I got a late Christmas gift in the mail yesterday from my sister: A wallet that has been repurposed from a damaged paperback by a woman who does business under the name Rebound Designs.

The book that is now a vinyl wallet is Wolfling, a sci-fi novel by Gordon Dickson ("ON EARTH HE WAS A SUPERMAN. BUT TO THE HIGH-BORN OF THRONE WORLD HE WAS JUST ANOTHER WOLFLING.") The cover is to the left (click to enlarge.) The FAQ page at Rebound Designs covers the tricky ethical issues of repurposing books:

Don't you feel bad cutting up all those books?

Not really. Most of these books were damaged or being thrown away to begin with, I don't cut up valuable books or books in fantastic condition. I take great care to find books that are already falling apart or are unwanted, like out of date textbooks.

What do you do with all the pages?

Right now most of the pages are in my attic, I'm loath to throw anything away. If you purchase a purse, I would be happy to mail you the pages at no extra cost but for the shipping. I am looking for a literacy program to donate the pages to, and I also give some of the textbooks with interesting illustrations to other artists who do collage work. If you are interested in taking any of the books without covers, please contact me...

Rebound specializes right now in making purses out of old hardcovers, but she also makes pins out of passages from the interiors of the books. After the jump, you'll find a couple of photos of my new wallet.

Here's the packaging, as it came from Rebound Designs. It's always nice to get a present marked with a heart in the mail.

It looks like a paperback folded in half, only shinier. (The whole thing is covered in vinyl.) There's an elastic band attached to hold the whole thing shut, too.

The inside of the wallet is the back cover ("A hundred years in our future, the first expedition from Earth reaches Alpha Centauri only to discover a vast human empire, long-established and sternly ruled by the aristocratic High-born. In a stroke Earth becomes merely another primitive outpost...") and there are two pockets for ID cards and such.

And the inside of the wallet is the first two pages of the book. "Chapter 1. The bull would not charge..."

In conclusion, I have the best sister ever. And you should go check out Rebound Designs; they do good work.