The Easter break is over and I hope you had safe travels in your visits to friends and family or time away.
I haven't had any extended journeys recently but always welcome the opportunity to get on the quiet carriage of a train, snuggle into a window seat and get out a good book. Get it right and it's a time of uninterrupted bliss when I can lose myself in another world without the distractions of emails or household tasks. It feels such a gift.
But what if I'd forgotten my book? Or on a particularly long journey, what if I'd finished my book and had a few more hours to fill? Well, in the West Country Penguin Books has the answer. The company has created a paperback vending machine and installed it on a station platform!
Penguin teamed up with Exeter UNESCO City of Literature and Great Western Railways to make a range of titles available to travellers at Exeter St Davids station. These books - fiction and non-fiction - will be changed regularly and will feature new releases as well as old favourites. Key moments of the year will be recognised in the choices too.
The initiative marks 90 years since Allen Lane founded Penguin in an endeavour to make books affordable and accessible. He got the idea for the company when he was at Exeter St Davids, returning home after a meeting with Agatha Christie.
The vending machine is a fun idea and it's always interesting to look at selections of books - there's usually something surprising. But it's a long way to go to see the machine for ourselves and Penguin only has plans to install one more. It hasn't been revealed where that will be but Penguin has said it won't be in a town which has a bookshop!
Now, the month is flying by so this is the first call out for the book group meeting! We'll be gathering together on Monday 24 April to discuss 'Wivenhoe' (scroll down for more details). If you are planning on coming along, please let me know so that I can make all the necessary arrangements for chairs and catering.
Thank you for reading.