There are plenty of great personal finance posts about the wonders of the public library. Most of us know just how many wonderful resources they offer.
But how many of you avail yourselves of all the library systems offered? I wasn’t until recently.
Tim loves graphic novels. His ADD often means he has trouble with page upon page of text. He can only read in short bursts. But with today’s graphic novels, you get unique art plus good story lines. Ever since I showed him that graphic novels were available in public libraries, he’s been a much bigger fan on the institutions. (I’m trying to get him into listening to audiobooks as a way to enjoy regular fiction, as well.)
Recently, I passed on a suggestion from my mom (who had to read the first book as part of a class) that Tim check out a series called Y: The Last Man. Tim and I each ended up deeply engrossed in it — and I’m really not normally all that interested in graphic novels.
Unfortunately, our city library systems has books 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10. Not terribly useful.
My next stop was the county library. County systems often have books that their city counterparts don’t. Apparently this doesn’t apply to graphic novels, though.
So I moved on to some Phoenix suburb libraries. Sure enough, the Scottsdale had every single book in the series. I signed Tim up for an account online and put a hold on the next few chapters of the saga. It took about five minutes.
Of course, alternate library systems won’t always have what you need. There’s another series Tim likes — Locke & Key — that just isn’t in most catalogs.
But in this particular case, a little research saved us a lot of aggravation. If I hadn’t found the books in Scottsdale, we would have had to hope they showed up on Swaptree (and that we had a book the person wanted) or used up our rewards program points getting the series from Amazon.
So, do you guys make full use of available library systems? What, besides regular books, is your favorite resource at the library?
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I actually enjoy non-fiction for research etc. AND I like having a quiet place to sit and read–which may be kind of dorky, but I don't care.
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This is crazy, I just posted about making better use of the library due to my potentially longer commute a few days ago! What a coincidence!
Anyway, my favorite resource at the libary? I quite place to spread out and work! That really is helpful!
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We borrow books, dvd's and cd's from our library. There is no charge for eitherthe dvds or cds.. I can't remember the last time we paid to rent a dvd, or the last time we purchased a CD. If there is an item we want, but our library doesnt have it, we can request it from another library and it will be delivered to our library for pickup. It's all done on-line. We can even get on a waiting list for any item they have if it is checked out .When the item is available, we receive an email letting us know. We love the library!
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OMG! I loved Y The Last Man! I have the entire series … at home.
But since I have to *really* watch the budget now, I've got my brand new library card for the SF public library which has 27 branches in their system and am jonesing for a book fix.
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And thanks for the link!
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Libraries! so easy to forget yet they are teaming with all kinds of books, DVD, CDs and now the growing trend towards audio books – the best part is the price! I love free!
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My mom has macular degeneration. But she loves to read. I have introduced her to the audiobooks at the library and take her every 3 weeks. I pick out about 10 books for her. some I know she will listen to and some that I hope she will listen to. I have gotten her started on several new authors.
Now is I could just get them on my ipod I could listen too.
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Abigail Reply:
April 7th, 2010 at 4:57 pm
You may already be aware of this but if she has macular degeneration, your mom probably qualifies for the library for the blind. I had a teacher once who was dyslexic and he qualified to use it. He said there was a MUCH more broad selection of audiobooks.
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Abigail Reply:
April 7th, 2010 at 4:57 pm
You may already be aware of this but if she has macular degeneration, your mom probably qualifies for the library for the blind. I had a teacher once who was dyslexic and he qualified to use it. He said there was a MUCH more broad selection of audiobooks.
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Through the Inter-Library Exchange Program you can get a book from libraries all across the country not just in your local system. Just ask your local librarian for details.
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How smart to check out other city libraries! All the libraries within a 30-minute drive of me are all linked, so I can access them with one card. For the most part they have all the books I need/want, but checking out some of the outlying libraries (or an inter-library load as Andy mentioned) is a good idea when the local ones don't have what I want.
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Try Interlibrary Loan. I used to work at the main branch, and we were able to do it; just ask.
Also, I currently work at a university library. I don't know if all major universities do this, but mine does allow the public to get a library card. They can usually get stuff out for 2 weeks at a time, I think. The Interlibrary Loan system there is also MUCH better than the smaller, regional libraries. If you can find it onhttp://www.worldcat.org/ then you can probably borrow it! This also works for CDs and DVDs, especially if they've been out longer than 3 months. In any case, it doesn't hurt to ask; libraries usually love it when someone wants to join.
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Movies! You can rent movies from the library for free, which is great when it means you can give up your Netflix or RedBox addiction.
Our county library system does a thing called "inter-library loan" where they will hunt down a book for you from another library and let you check it out through your home library. It's been very useful to me in the rare occasions that our library didn't have what I was looking for.
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I love the library! Now that the weather is warm, I'm trying to go more regularly. I love to read outside in the park on a lovely spring day. And I hate the clutter of keeping around books that I'll just read once.
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I love the library….. I know back in England you are often able to order books in, not sure if this is possible if all library resources are exhausted.
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@coremaker, ask your library if they have downloadable audiobooks, or check on their website. Chances are they do.
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