My Current Literary Obsession

Also titled, Hey, Look, a Blog Post That Actually Isn’t About Food!

So, yes, I’m obsessed with books and reading. If you’ve known me for all of ten minutes, you know this already! I learned to read early and I fell in love from the first word I read.

I also grew up in the library. Almost quite literally. My parents were avid readers and had me visiting the library multiple times a week when I was young. I spend hours at my local branch after closing as a kid, while my mom tirelessly volunteered with the library’s board and on various committees. I did service projects as a teenager cleaning up library storage, and worked summers at my local library all through college. I spent the past five years working for various book publishers. I’ve been surrounded by books my entire life and they’ve integrated their way into my personal and professional personalities with abundance.

I now visit my local libraries once or twice a week and I have long lists of hold items at each library system (there are three in my county).

Some of my favorite library tips:

-If a certain book has a long waiting list (yes, libraries have waiting lists), check out the large-print edition as there are hardly ever holds on them, or definitely fewer than regular print.

-You can check out CDs and audiobooks at libraries, and many of them are now offering MP3 downloads for audiobooks (yay!).

-Most libraries offer DVDs, VHSs, and various video games for rent, usually for very cheap (think $1 at most) or free (usually for a week or two’s rental).

-You can search for items and then place them on hold directly from your computer and have them sent to your local branch. The library will e-mail you when the items arrive and you can go pick them up when they're ready.

-Most also have free wireless Internet access.

I could go on and on, obviously!

This leads me into my most recent literary obsession! A few months back, one of my friends turned me on to a site called Paperback Swap, where you can post old books that you own and receive books from others. The cost is free, but shipping your books out to others is on your own dime (and fairly cheap, thanks to media mail).

At first, I wasn’t too sure about this site. I wondered why I’d use it since I had my faithful library services. But then I wanted a book that had long waiting lists at all three library systems that I frequent; I checked on Paperback Swap and found it! I am now a loyal user of both this site and my local libraries.

I also like using Swap Tree, a similar service to Paperback Swap but that also deals with CDs and DVDs.

Check ‘em out! I gotta get back to my book now.