Penguin Books is launching a new book by tapping into the global phenomenon of “bookcrossing”, where people leave their favourite books in public places for others to find.

The publisher has released 100 copies of Black Rabbit Summer by Kevin Brooks “into the wild”, promoting the availability of the free books through Bookcrossing.com.

It has teamed up with retailer USC to place 60 of the copies in its stores hidden among the trainers and hoodies, while the rest have been left on buses and trains and in pubs and cafes around London.

The ethos behind bookcrossing is that people pick up a book for free in a public place, advertised on the website, and then, when they have read it, they leave it somewhere else for new people to enjoy.