Libraries

With very little money left after my present buying escapade last December and a dwindling pile of books in my 'to be read' pile, earlier this week I decided to take a trip to the library. The one closest to me has a teen section the extent of one shelf, most of the books having been already read by me because I have taken almost all of them out before. I didn't mind having to travel a bit further afield to go to a library that could satisfy my needs and actually quite enjoyed the trip, but some things about libraries do bug me.

I got four books and one manga out from the library, three of the books being sequels to books that I have previously read. Although I am very happy that these sequels were there so I could finish these series without spending too much money, only the bus fare there and back, on them, I was also disappointed that most of the books there were sequels.

Finding a book that you would quite like to read and then noticing that it is a sequel is always a bit annoying. If the first book is there then I will get both out so I can read them in succession, but there only ever seems to be the second or third book in a series there, never the first. On the rare occasions that there is I will grab the book with both hands before anyone else can get to it. I understand that other people will have taken them out to read them and I'm happy that they're having the experience of reading that book, but when I go over to the manga section and see that there are three copies of volume five of Death Note, but no others present, I start to question what the library is doing with the books.

Secondly, I cannot stand how many people treat library books. My grandparents use their local library to get books as after so many years of reading they have run out of space and we will often chat about what strange crumbs we find between the pages and how disgusted we are with the small rips and tears that we discover.

Personally, I treat books better than I do quite a few people. There are no dents in the spine, you will not find any of the pages curved or torn and you most definitely will not find me turning down pages to mark where I have got to! I know that we all treat books differently and that I can't expect everyone to be as careful as I am, but I would at least expect to be able to get books out that don't look as if they have been trampled on by somebody's dog.

Finally, people. I love finding people who share an interest in books with me. To be able to find someone with which I can connect over books is a sadly odd occurrence and libraries are often the place to find people with that common interest, but it is also the place to find people that you would rather avoid.

We all know of the librarian that will judge you from the moment you walk in the door, the mother or father who will let their child run rampage and the people who shout across the library like they're at a concert. Of course most librarians are lovely and helpful, most parents just want their children to find an interest in books and most people are happy to look at the books quietly, but there are always a few that choose to spoil that. It's a shame that they choose to do so, yet it seems that we are incapable of stopping them. While I find this a lesser problem than the other two, it can leave a sour overcoat on a particular library.

Even though this post has been about the things that I dislike about libraries, I would never want anyone to get the idea that I do not like them. I think it is wonderful that we are that trusting with books and that it means that they are available to more people, so I wouldn't want that to change for anything! Though, there is nothing quite as good as finishing a book you have really enjoyed and being able to put it on your own bookshelf and knowing it will always be there for you to go back to at a second's notice.
-E