RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The ship MV Logos Hope, considered the largest floating bookstore in the world, is currently docked in Santos, on the coast of São Paulo, where it will stay until the end of next week. On September 19th, the ship will arrive at Mauá Pier, in Porto Maravilha in Rio de Janeiro. The ship will remain in the “Marvelous City” until October 6th.
With more than 5,000 books on board, the ship will be open for public visitation, as well as access to theatres, concerts, and conferences.
During the stay, there will be a charge of R$5 (US$1.3) for entry, except for children under 12 years old and adults over 65. The collection of books is on the main deck and includes children’s literature, novels, science, sports, arts, cuisine, and religious literature. Most of the works are in English, but there are offerings in the language of each country the ship visits.
In the cities where it docks, the ship will set up a structure to donate books or to sell them at an average price of R$20 (US$5).
The crew is composed of 440 volunteers from 65 countries, who work on a missionary project maintained by a German evangelical Christian organization called Operation Mobilisation, whose main purpose is to spread their religious beliefs throughout the world and evangelize the local population, both on-board and off.
After Rio, the floating library will continue to Vitória, Salvador, and Belém. Last year, Logos Hope began a tour of Latin American countries starting with Colombia.
The ship has already been visited by about 47 million people in 150 countries during the 40 years of the project.