A novel set free
This book travels
Found Que la terre nous soit légère in a public book box? Someone left it there for you.
Each copy carries a handwritten message from the author, a date, a place. Yours has a story. And that story continues with you.
Already read it? Get a signed copy0
copies in the wild
0
cities visited
0
regions explored
0
countries
How it works
Joan leaves a book
With a handwritten message, a date, a place. In a book box, on a bench, in a cafe, at the station.
You find it
By chance, by curiosity, by destiny. 584 pages of travel between Africa, the Mediterranean and Europe await you.
The book moves on
When you're done, leave it somewhere new. The journey continues. Each reader adds a chapter to the story.
Why book boxes
There is something deeply subversive about a book box. You place a piece of yourself - 584 pages of sweat, doubt, sleepless nights - in a small wooden cabinet, not knowing who will come looking.
No transaction. No algorithm. No five-star review to reassure you. Just a book waiting, exposed to rain and absent-minded glances, until a hand picks it up.
The book market is saturated. 70,000 new titles a year in France. For a small publishing house with no budget, no press agent, no distribution network, the usual channels are closed. So we do it differently. We go directly to readers, one by one, box by box. Just an author, a book, and the conviction that quality finds its way.
I love book boxes because they resemble what literature should always be: an unconditional gift. A book is not a product. It's a conversation between two people who may never meet.
Every copy I leave in a box is a bet: that someone, somewhere, needed exactly this story, on exactly this day.
Each point marks a book looking for its reader. Tap the map to mark where you found it.
54 copies in the wild
What readers say
4.29/5 on Babelio - 27 reviews
"A truly beautiful novel, I took great pleasure in reading it. So many emotions too - some passages left me deeply moved."
- HundredDreams, Babelio
"A story that moved me, angered me at the world, and gave birth to hope."
- MarcFaux, Babelio
"Hard to summarise this rich novel, this human adventure that I took as a tribute to all those forced, forgotten travellers."
- nanek, Babelio
"Joan Bastide's pen is a brush that paints a graphic novel, beautiful and harsh at the same time."
- Adish, Babelio
"A truly beautiful novel written with tender humanity and considerable harshness."
- diamelee, Babelio
"A fine journey. The author has undeniable knowledge of Africa. A pleasant read, with beautiful quotes and proverbs."
- JeanPierreV, Babelio
Recommend to your bookseller
Your local bookshop or library can offer it to other readers
Send an emailGet a signed copy
Did the novel move you? Share your experience and receive a signed copy - to keep, to give away, or to set free in the wild.
Review on Babelio
Post a review - even a short one, just a few lines. Each review makes the novel visible to thousands of readers.
Go to BabelioShare, your choice
A photo of the book on social media (post, story, tweet...) or a trace on this page. The format doesn't matter, it's the gesture that counts.
Send me the links
An email with your Babelio review link + your share link (or let me know you left a trace here). I'll send you your signed copy.
Send my emailWhy these steps? For an independent author with no distribution network, every review and every share opens the door to a new reader. It's like leaving the book in a new box, but on a global scale.
The author
Joan Bastide
The Baobab Man. Writer, musician, researcher and humanitarian. This novel is his first. It won't be his last.
The book boxes
44 book boxes across France and Switzerland.
Swipe for more →