ABSTRACT
The story behind this chapter dates back to the early sixties, when the young Richard Booth founded the world’s first ‘book town’ in Hay-on-Wye, a small Welsh rural village, threatened by economic decline and migration. His idea was to turn this depression to upturn by selling second-hand and antiquarian books. Initially, there was little faith in the concept, but during the 40 years since, the idea has spread throughout Europe, and an increasing number of book towns play a significant role in their local economies.
