Readers love books, and we certainly own a lot of the physical variety. Holding a book in your hands remains a special experience.
However, you can only take a book or two with you most places, and sometimes you end up wanting a book when you don’t have one nearby.
There are also plenty of reasons to love libraries, homes to so many wonderful physical books. You can sample an unfamiliar author. You can explore subjects or genres outside your normal habits. You can read a “timely” book, one that applies to your life now but one you might not want to own forever. (Parenting books for specific ages or grades are sometimes best checked out from a library in our experience.)
However, you cannot always stop by the library to check out a book. In rural communities, the selection is small and focuses on popular books. (Interlibrary loans can take a day or two, and sometimes a week.)
We love books, and we love our library — including all the extra services at the new library in our small town.
Sitting in a waiting room at a doctor’s office with a strange selection of out-of-date magazines stacked on tables, I wanted a book.
Our library offers electronic lending of ebooks, and so I downloaded a non-fiction book I’ve been wanting to read. During the 40-minute wait, I read a few chapters of the book. I snuck in a few more pages once in the exam room.
I check out one or two books a month from the library electronically. Some I even own, but they are stashed away in moving boxes.
Lately, I’ve also been using Amazon’s Prime and Kindle Unlimited opportunities to download and read books. The selection is great, especially the current children’s books. Our daughters love previewing books via the Kindle app. Some of these, we have eventually purchased.
We support our library. We attend its book sales, donate during summer activities, and use many of its extended services. It is a great place that we want to see thrive and expand.
But I still worry that Amazon subscribers might come to see Amazon Prime and Kindle Unlimited as great, private libraries?
I don’t want our library to charge $100 annually for membership. I’m more than willing to pay taxes and donate so all families can access the services offered, especially the reading tutorials in English and Spanish for adults. Fees for some activities are already required, and many more ask patrons to donate what they can. The physical space of a public library is not Amazon.
Yet, some early research suggests the upper-middle and upper-class readers, those upon whom the publishing world most depends, are content to use subscription services to access materials, from books to films to music… to newspapers.
When I was in college, I would read the Wall Street Journal and New York Times in the university library. As a graduate student, I checked out films and music from the universities’ libraries. There were always periodical racks, with newspapers hanging from long rods. There were movies and music you would not find in most stores or, today, via streaming services. (Some libraries do offer streaming movies, now.)
Reading, sadly, has always been a class marker. But, libraries allow millions of people the opportunity to read books they might never own. Countless people, including both of us, were fortunate enough to have parents who loved books and libraries. Our reading habits helped shape us.
I love that our library has online options. I love Amazon’s services.
We all need to ensure these can and do coexist. We also need to remember that physical libraries are more than places to quickly grab a book or two. Libraries offer continuing education and open doors to opportunities.
Yes, download that book you want to read while traveling or waiting for appointments. Tap the Kindle icon during lunch. But, also stop by your library every now and then.