Belgium: Books Save a Village | European Journal

Redu, a small village in Ardennes, is fighting emigration and poverty with a novel concept to attract bookworms and holiday-makers alike.Redu was once like many villages in Ardennes: there were few jobs, and many people had moved away. But things changed after one resident returned from a trip to Wales. He visited Hay-on-Wye, where the world's first book town was founded in 1961. And so came the idea to put the concept into action in Redu. Numerous second-hand book stores have opened since then, and the village organizes large bookselling markets every year that attract some 200,000 visitors from around the world. Redu and the entire Ardennes region have profited from the book boom.