Book swap
Everyone gives one book, chosen for one person
A reading group, a classroom, a team. Draw names and each person picks a book for someone specific, rather than a safe bestseller for nobody.
Set up our book swapFree · No account for the readers · Ready in three minutes
Scratch the card
Why draw names for a book swap
A swap where everyone brings a random book produces a pile of safe bestsellers. Drawing names changes the brief entirely: you are choosing for one person you actually know.
It works for a reading group, a classroom, a team or a family. The gift stays cheap, the thought does not, and everyone leaves with something somebody picked for them.
How to organise it
- 1
Pick the date and the format
In person or by post, secondhand allowed or not. Decide before the draw, because the format changes what people go looking for.
- 2
Add the readers
First name, last name, email. Nobody installs anything and nobody creates an account.
- 3
Mark who reads together
Housemates and couples often share a shelf: drawing each other means one household gets two books and reads neither.
- 4
Send the draw
Everyone gets a private link and scratches a card. You see who has opened theirs, never who drew whom.
Worth agreeing on first
- A price cap, and a low one
- A book swap works best cheap: ten to fifteen. The point is the choice, not the edition — a paperback picked well beats a hardback picked fast.
- Say whether secondhand counts
- For many groups a well-chosen used book beats a new one. Say so explicitly, or half the group will assume the opposite.
- Ask for a note, not a review
- Two lines inside the cover explaining why this book for this person. It is what turns a swap into something people keep.
- Agree what happens to duplicates
- Someone will receive a book they own. Decide up front whether they say so or quietly pass it on — both work, being surprised does not.
Common questions
How many readers do you need?
Three is the minimum. With two there is no secret: each one knows they are choosing for the other.
Can I stop two people from drawing each other?
Yes. Flag any pair — housemates, partners, anyone sharing a shelf — and the draw routes around them. If the exclusions make a valid draw impossible, Pindao says so before a single email goes out.
Can readers say what they like?
Yes. Each person can fill in a short wishlist, which reaches only the reader choosing for them — genres, authors already read, formats they cannot stand.
Will I see who drew whom?
No. The matches are encrypted and never displayed, including to you as the organiser. Your dashboard shows progress only.
Does it work for a classroom?
Yes. Use a parent or teacher address for pupils without an inbox, and keep the price cap low enough that no family is put on the spot.
What if someone joins after the draw?
Add them anyway. Pindao slots the newcomer into the cycle, so exactly one existing match changes and only that person is told.
One book each, chosen on purpose
Add the readers, send the draw, and let everyone scratch.
Set up our book swapPindao