Stamp Booklets : Magic Carpets to Adventure

When my friends heard I was writing a book, they naturally wanted to know what it was about.

This HOW-TO book is USEFUL and FUN!
I told them that the main theme of the book is that stamp booklets can start a person on an adventurous trip. The booklets contain information that give you ideas about cultures and societies that you may not have thought about. Stamp booklets can take you on journeys around the world and back in time.

One friend asked me if there weren't many other ways to do the same thing. I answered that of course there were. There are travel magazines, travel sections of newspapers, TV travel programs, and travel books. However, there is a difference. All the current travel media are directed to you as a tourist. The messages that come across are, "See how interesting or relaxing or friendly our land and society are. Why don't you come and visit us?"

Certainly there are tourist messages in stamp booklets. In modern booklets, there are pictures of beautiful beaches, golf courses, soaring mountains, and gorgeous sunsets all designed to lure you to visit.

The older booklets are different. Their messages were directed to their own people. The messages were designed to motivate the people to action-buy our product, use our airline, contribute to our charity, help your government. Those messages are for the society that existed when the stamp booklet was sold. They are not directed at you.

The booklets hold secrets of the society and culture in a foreign land that existed years ago. The fun and excitement of using these booklets to start a journey is uncovering the secrets hidden in the booklet.

My friend interrupted and wanted to know if he couldn't get more information by looking at magazines and newspapers from that era and country. Of course. Those media are