Editing BookCrossing (section)

{{Short description|Book exchange website}}
{{Infobox website
| name            = BookCrossing
| logo            = Bookcrossing.png
| logo_size       = 200px
| logocaption     = Website title of bookcrossing.com
| screenshot      =
| collapsible     =
| collapsetext    =
| caption         =
| url             = {{URL|bookcrossing.com}}
| commercial      = No
| type            =
| registration    = Yes
| language        = Multilanguage
| num_users       =
| content_license =
| owner           =
| author          =
| editor          =
| launch_date     = {{Start date and age|2001|4|21}}
| revenue         =
| current_status  =
| footnotes       = 
}}
[[File:Leipzig Bookcrossing.jpg|thumb|A Bookcrossing in [[Leipzig]] southwest of [[Berlin|Berlin, Germany]], December 2009]]
[[File:BookcrossingLyon.jpg|thumb|Bookcrossing in [[Lyon]] northeast of [[Nîmes|Nîmes, France]], May 2006]]
[[File:Bookcrossing Kozminski University in Warsaw 2019a.jpg|thumb|A Bookcrossing at [[Kozminski University]] in [[Warsaw]], May 2019]]

'''BookCrossing''' (also known as '''BC''', '''BCing''' or '''BXing''') is defined as the practice of leaving a [[book]] in a [[public place]] to be 'caught' by others, who may then do likewise. The term is derived from [https://www.bookcrossing.com bookcrossing.com], a free online book community which was founded in 2001 to encourage the practice, aiming to "make the whole world a library."

The "crossing" or exchanging of books may take any of a number of forms, including the 'wild-release' of a book in public places (when the receiver of the book is unknown), controlled release (when the receiver of the book is known) with other members of the websites, or "book rings" in which books travel in a set order to participants who want to read a certain book. The community aspect of BookCrossing.com has grown and expanded in ways which were not expected at the outset, in the form of blog or forum discussions, mailing lists, and holding annual conventions throughout the world.