Gifts That Give Twice...

I came across an interesting charity that Penguin Books is involved with. Its division Penguin Classics has partnered with (PRODUCT)RED™ to bring us some of the greatest classic that Penguin publishes in beautifully redesigned covers with 50% of the profits from the sales of these special edition books going to The Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. The Global Fund is a global public/private partnership dedicated to attracting and disbursing additional resources to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

“The message of this campaign is that these great books still have the power to change lives—and literally, to save lives,” said Indigo CEO Heather Reisman.

The special editions are (PENGUIN CLASSICS) RED™ editions, which you can buy directly from either Penguin Book UK, Penguin Books US and Chapters.indigo.ca (Canada) The titles available seem to vary by country, with Penguin Book UK having the largest selection, and also having previous titles in the (PENGUIN CLASSICS) RED™ editions available. Here are the titles available:

Penguin Books US:

KIDNAPPED by Robert Louis Stevenson

SILAS MARNER by George Elliott

SONS & LOVERS by D. H. Lawrence

THE HOUSE OF MIRTH by Edith Wharton

THE TURN OF THE SCREW by Henry James

THE SECRET AGENT by Joseph Conrad

Penguin Books UK:

LITTLE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott

WUTHERING HEIGHTS by Emily Bronte

KIDNAPPED by Robert Louis Stevenson

THE LADY WITH THE LITTLE DOG & OTHER STORIES by Anton Chekhov

SILAS MARNER by George Elliott

A SENTIMENTAL EDUCATION by Gustave Flaubert

SONS & LOVERS by D. H. Lawrence

VANITY FAIR by William Thackeray

Previous

(PENGUIN CLASSICS) RED™ editions still available at Penguin Books UK:

DRACULA by Bram Stoker

ANNA KARENINA by Leo Tolstoy

GREAT EXPECTATIONS by Charles Dickens

The prices seem reasonable for trade paperbacks, ranging from $6.00 to $16.00 for the books, although you have to add shipping (and from the UK or CA to the US, VAT charges too). Doing a little searching for some of these titles elsewhere, I was able to find some at The Book Depository, which offers free shipping worldwide.

You can learn more about The Global Fund at their website theglobalfund.org. You can learn more about

(PENGUIN CLASSICS) RED™ and the charity it supports at Penguin Classics, and while you're there check out the interviews with the cover designers about how they came up with their book covers. In the meantime, if you give one of these books as a gift, it's like a giving a gift twice...