Can't decide which book to buy? Try the lucky dip

A Canadian bookshop has developed an intriguing new way of selling books.

Describing itself as “Toronto’s most idiosyncratic second-hand bookshop”, The Monkey’s Paw is living up to its reputation with the arrival of an ingenious new curiosity – a book-vending machine called the Biblio-mat.

Stephen Fowler, the bookshop's owner, had been searching for an innovative way to offload some of his languishing titles. The $1 bargain bin sitting dejectedly near the register would not do.

With help from Toronto animator Craig Small, the Biblio-mat was born. It is the first “antiquarian book randomiser” that dispenses books for the reasonable price of a Canadian two-dollar coin (about £1.20).

Readers who have a tough time deciding what to buy from the bookshop’s eclectic collection can now consult the Biblio-mat, although all the books are hidden so it essentially functions as a lucky dip.

Fowler originally envisaged “a skinny guy sitting in a cardboard box feeding out books”. He ended up with something more sophisticated: a beautiful chrome and mint-coloured vintage-style machine, operated electronically. On the front it reads: “Every book a surprise. No two alike. Collect all 112 million titles.”

The Biblio-mat has certainly attracted a lot of attention, with a video attracting 12,000 views on the night it was uploaded.

The bookshop’s younger aficionados, in particular, have been inspired. "One kid I can think of, a very intense, physical little boy, not what you would necessarily consider the bookish type, he got a weird, local history book about Hamilton, Ontario," says Fowler. "And apparently he's been carrying it around his house, you know, asking his mom, 'Did you see where I left my Hamilton book?'"

The machine strikes a chord with customers. "They’ll get a book and feel as though it was physically selected for them,” says Fowler.

Question 1. Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text.

      a) The Monkey’s Paw is a library.

      b) Fowler sold many books after putting them in a $1 bargain bin.

      c) Stephen Fowler had the idea of creating “Biblio-mat”

      d) The books that you buy from the Biblio-mat cannot be seen before.

Question 2. Answer the following questions in your own words.

a)       What is a Biblio-mat?

b)       For what type of readers does the author think the Biblio-mat is a good idea?

Question 3. Find a word or a phrase in the text that means the same as:

a)  to fulfil (par. 1)

b)  to give out (par. 3)

c)  to visualize (par. 5)

Question 4. Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning.

      a)       If he doesn’t get a good mark, his father won’t buy him a car.

Unless …………………
b)       Anna got divorced six months ago.

It’s …………………………………..……….

c)       They will deal with the claim and conduct a meeting afterwards.
The claim ………………………..

Question 5. Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:

Do you think the Internet will make physical books disappear?