Library Confidential

A short break from the election campaign to another kind of campaign:  the fight to save our libraries.

Everyone knows that libraries "weed" books.  A growing library needs to make room for newer books, and weeds out those that don't circulate.  We are fortunate at our library that as of a couple of years ago, instead of throwing the weeds out in the trash, we began to recycle them by sending them on to the Friends of the Library to be sold at book sales.  Book goes to a good home, people get to buy affordable books, there's room on the shelves at the library for more growth, everybody's happy.

Except now, suppose there is a new director, from another part of the world, who has come in with the attitude that he is going to get us into shape.  So many issues, so little time.  So I will focus on the most recent, and, something we can do something about.

I don't know if the term "dusty bookshelf" is a common library expression, and for once, neither Google nor wikipedia would help.  But at our library, every couple of years a list was generated, of books that had not circulated for five years or more.  At the branch manager's discretion, they would be "weeded" out of the collection.  Not a terrible plan.

But now we are given a "dusty bookshelf" list of books that have not circulated in TWO years (talked up from one!), and told to weed.

The books that people like me have left on the shelf without circulating for more than two years, first of all, are few and far between -- we need the space -- but when left, are left because they have some kind of value:  a classic that does circulate, but rarely, an author that has some value.

So what can you do about this?  Check it out!!!  If you see a book that you think has value but may be getting old, or you are afraid that it just may not be getting out and about as often as it should be, check it out!  You can return it next time you come in, you can even drop it in the book drop on your way out.  The important thing is to keep the important books circulating.

We may not be able do to anything about this year's purge, but we can take preventable measures for the future.

These crazy times call for crazy solutions, yes?