Mercer County Public Library

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about the library…

How often do you visit the library? Do you have a scheduled library day/time, or do you go whenever? Do you go alone, or take people with you?

I love visiting the Mercer County Public Library - it's one of my favorite places in the world. I typically go once or twice a week. Monday's is usually my "regular" day. I go at lunch time, right after work, and I'm always armed with a list of books I'm looking for.

I also return to the library on Wednesday afternoons because it is an early-out school day for my daughter. We make an afternoon of it by going to the library and then visiting the grandmothers.

Because I'm a book reviewer for the library, I'm always placing books on request. There are many times during the week I'll make extra stops to pick up books the librarians call me about. The librarians are also great about getting interlibrary loan books quickly.

.

Musing Monday

Today's Musing Monday asks the questions:

How has the economy impacted your book buying? Do you think it will change the reading and book-buying habits of the country. Will it increase your library visits? Will it make you wait for the paperback edition instead of buying the hardcover?

Let me start by saying, I am already a heavy library user. I currently do weekly book reviews for my local public library, so it is not unusual for me to check out 5 to 8 books every week. Although I sometimes miss out on reading the "latest" best seller until months down the road, I am loyal to and support my library.

That being said, for the past 5 years, I rarely buy brand-new books, choosing instead to buy used books through Amazon, eBay, or library sales. Of course, there are exceptions to that rule ...

I have several authors that I truly adore, so I must have their hardcover books for my collection: Laurell K. Hamilton, Stephen King, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Silas House, just to name a few. These are books I plan to keep, and I ocassionally like to go back and re-read them. I recently added Stephenie Meyer to that list; even though I read her books first through the library, I enjoyed them so much, that I had to own the hardcovers.

I have never been a fan of paperback books, although many new authors I read are only published in paperback. If I have a choice between hardcover and paperback, I will choose the hardcover every time. The main reason I don't like paperbacks is because the printing is so small, and the older I get, the harder it is for me to read small print - even with my glasses on.

However, a funny thing has happened to me over this past year. I started a book review blog back in the spring - mainly to remind myself of books that I've read and enjoyed. As more people started to visit my book review blog, I started to receive review copies of books in the mail to read and review. Now, it is not unusual for me to receive anywhere from 5 to 12 books every week. My TBR pile is growing by leaps and bounds - almost to the point that I'll have people waiting months instead of weeks for me to post a review. Because I am a book whore, I love and treasure these books and my home library continues to grow, without me having to spend a dime!

One word about eBooks and the new Amazon Kindle: although I think it is wonderful that you can store books like an MP3 player, for me, nothing will change the sensation of holding that book in my hands, feeling the pages and smelling that sweet aroma of paper. Books may be a thing of the past in a distent future, but they are something I will always cherish.

Visit my book blog at Bobbi's Book Nook.

Booking Thru Thursday

Today's Booking Thru Thursday from Should Be Reading asks the questions:

What is your earliest memory of a library? Who took you? Do you have you any funny/odd memories of the library?

My earliest memories of the Mercer County Public Library in Harrodsburg, Kentucky is that the entire building used to be housed in the Historical Society. It still amazes me - when I visit the Historical Society - how tiny this building is! My mom would always take me to the library, which, when I look back, was kind of strange, because my mom is not much of a reader.

When I started Elementary School, I fell in love with the school library. So many books! By the time I was in the 4th grade I was a library assistant for Miss Joy, the librarian. I really thought I was hot stuff!

By the time I reached High School, I was still visiting the library often, but I was getting a lot of flack from my peers for reading so much. Looking back now, I shouldn't have let that bother me, but you know how peer pressure can be when you're a teenager.

Now, as an adult, I visit the Public Library two or three times a week. We got a brand new public library while I was still in elementary school, and it has already been expanded once since then.


Currently, the public library is working on plans for another expansion of the library. I'm so excited! I have been asked to set in with the planning committee to give input on the changes that will be made. It really is a wonderful time when a library has outgrown it's space. This tells me there are many, many people in our community that call the library home.