The `living books’ come in all types of human life - from Steven North, a bright working class bloke brought up in Salford and who encountered total snobbery at England’s top university, to Saleem Ahmed who recounts his experiences in a `Spot The Terrorist’ kind of way.
Also available for borrowing is Grant Higginson, who charts his `Life With Epilepsy’ and Elizabeth Cameron, who uses her `Young Gifted and Black’ living book title to take you through discrimination and fighting back as a shop steward.
All the participants are not poncy authors trying to sell books, just extraordinary trade unionists who are opening the door of their lives and inviting you in to rummage around.
There are twelve living books to choose from, and you can sit and listen to the stories either in groups or by yourself and then ask questions or have a chat. It’s a great concept, a top way to meet people from different backgrounds and it’s been brought over from Denmark where the idea first started almost ten years ago by the public sector trade union, UNISON.
"Many people think that as a trade union we concern ourselves purely with workplace issues, but our diverse membership plays an important role in making our communities vibrant and tolerant places to live, and this series of events is a natural extension of that" says Helen Titherington, Regional Education Co-ordinator for UNISON North West.
LIVING LIBRARY takes place at Swinton Library, on Chorley Road, Swinton, Salford M27 4AE 2pm-7pm on Monday 29 June 2009.
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