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SeaStar Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 11:12am | IP Logged
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My library is getting rid of its books. Not all of them, of course, and very slowly, but still...
I am shocked by how many of the books in the system are now only available as electronic downloads. It makes sense, of course, with technology and the cost of keeping real books around. This will allow many more books to be on the system, but still....
I am not an e-reader fan. I like to hold a real book. I will have to adjust. We will have to get another e-reader or two, looks like. One might not be enough if different kids are reading different things.
This depresses me. I need a few moments (or days) of mourning over this. Right now the family ipad is with dh in another state. I can't get the books I need for this week and next very easily. And I still just want a real book. WAHHHHH!
__________________ Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 06 2006 Location: Oregon
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 11:16am | IP Logged
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I'm sure I'd feel the same way... IF I could have gotten the books I wanted to start with.. so I'm embracing the e-readers more than I might otherwise because I can get things I want at a lower cost (sometimes) though it's still cheaper in some cases to find a good used book.
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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JennGM Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 11:18am | IP Logged
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Oh, Melinda, I feel your pain. I just can't do the e-reader yet.
Our library is getting rid of many books that I deem so highly. Yesterday I picked up a Crinkleroot book. I'm happy to have it, but I'm sad our library is getting rid of it!
__________________ Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to & ds1 '03 & ds2 '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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pumpkinmom Forum All-Star
Joined: March 28 2012 Location: Missouri
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 12:44pm | IP Logged
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This really makes me ! E-readers are just another option and should not be the main source. I would hope that a library knows that their main purpose in life is the actually books. Our library has the downloads as an option, but they are keeping books and always buying new ones.
__________________ Cassie
Homeschooling my little patch of Ds-14 and Ds-10
Tending the Pumpkin Patch
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Aagot Forum All-Star
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 1:42pm | IP Logged
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Oh this makes me mad too. Our library is getting rid of books all the time. I asked why and the librarian says that they want to be an up-to-date library, nothing before X year! So in our case, they aren't even turning those books into electronically available books.
I noticed this when I went with a book list from Little Angels Preschool. Those books were available when I used them 5 years ago with my now older kids. Gone!
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pumpkinmom Forum All-Star
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 1:56pm | IP Logged
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Aagot wrote:
Oh this makes me mad too. Our library is getting rid of books all the time. I asked why and the librarian says that they want to be an up-to-date library, nothing before X year! So in our case, they aren't even turning those books into electronically available books.
I noticed this when I went with a book list from Little Angels Preschool. Those books were available when I used them 5 years ago with my now older kids. Gone! |
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Oh, this is just horrible too! I realize that they can run out of book space, but not all books before a certain date should be done with. I would volunteer my time to help them thin down books to avoid the loss of wonder ones.
__________________ Cassie
Homeschooling my little patch of Ds-14 and Ds-10
Tending the Pumpkin Patch
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Erin Forum Moderator
Joined: Feb 23 2005 Location: Australia
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 3:29pm | IP Logged
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Contact them and offer to help by taking them!! Save the books!
__________________ Erin
Faith Filled Days
Seven Little Australians
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SeaStar Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 3:31pm | IP Logged
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Erin wrote:
Contact them and offer to help by taking them!! Save the books! |
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But where would I put them all? That is the burn...that is what the library is for- so I don't have to store them all , right?
__________________ Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
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stacykay Forum All-Star
Joined: April 08 2006 Location: Michigan
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 4:17pm | IP Logged
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Ugh! I fear this may be the way of the future , and I am not ready for it! Our library is getting new books, but I have noticed more and more ebooks when I do a topic search.
Just last week, I was looking for Latin flashcards for 14yods, and I was dismayed to find that some I really liked are only available for ebook (or whatever the terminology is! ) downloads to kindle.
I can't imagine not having a book to hold, highlight, flip back and forth with, and place in my library ...
In Christ,
Stacy in MI
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Mimip Forum All-Star
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 4:29pm | IP Logged
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Yep, its happening here at an alarming speed. The worst part is that since we live in a "better" part of town, they are taking our books first with the rationale that most of the patrons have e readers available for downloading.
When I spoke to a librarian she said the books were still in the system but were now out in the further parts of town. They have cut down the daily trips to the other libraries for loans from other branches too soooo, that means a book I wanted for next week, probably won't be here until the end of that week. I now have to plan a whole month ahead of time and remember to order the books with that much leeway but they have cut down the amount of books I can have out and the amount of time they'll hold it once its in our branch.
It is a crazy maze that sadly I am having to opt out of these days. My kids loved our trips to the library last year and we learned so much about the different branches and part of our City but the system is exhausting to try to navigate!
__________________ In Christ,
Mimi
Wife of 16 years to Tom, Mom of DD'00, DD'02, '04(in heaven) DS'05, DS'08 and DS '12
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Barb.b Forum All-Star
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 6:07pm | IP Logged
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OK - this is an honest question: what do they do with the books they get rid of? I wonder - give them your phone number or email and tell them to call you when they get rid of some!!!
Also, we all need to complain to our libraries! Maybe if enough people say something - they won't be so quick to get rid of books. What I find interesting is a library's assumption that everyone has an e reader! I do. . . but really they are expensive and not all have one. What about those who can't afford one - the library is where they used to be able to go to get a book without spending money!
Sad, sad!!!
Barb
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CrunchyMom Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 6:46pm | IP Logged
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JennGM wrote:
Oh, Melinda, I feel your pain. I just can't do the e-reader yet.
Our library is getting rid of many books that I deem so highly. Yesterday I picked up a Crinkleroot book. I'm happy to have it, but I'm sad our library is getting rid of it! |
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That's awful! Not Crinkleroot!
I have a friend whose husband used to work in the lbirary at Columbia University. Now years later, when he goes to any library, he will still periodically check out books that are "good," even when he owns them or has read them, just so they are in the system as being "used" and won't be gotten rid of.
__________________ Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony
[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 10:37pm | IP Logged
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NO! That can't be the wave of the future. PLEASE NO! We have no e-readers. I really wonder what all this technology based things will do to our eye sight?! Of course I guess reading lots of books with fine print can damage but I just think of the constant visual light stimulation. ? There is NO substitute for a real book in your hand that you can easily flip forward and backward within the book. Make (gasp) pencil markings or even highlighting words for vocabulary. Well, I'm going to ask as we go to our weekly library visit tomorrow.
Still great storytime for the little ones in the morning and gives the big kids a quiet place to work for a while. I might just have to check out extra books...just because.
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 02 2012 at 11:09pm | IP Logged
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e readers have what is called an e-ink screen.. they're not backlit like a computer screen so you don't get that kind of eyestrain.. very similar for the eye to reading from a book.
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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SeaStar Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 5:39am | IP Logged
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Barb.b wrote:
OK - this is an honest question: what do they do with the books they get rid of? I wonder - give them your phone number or email and tell them to call you when they get rid of some!!!
Barb |
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My library has a giant sale twice a year to purge books. This is one of their main fundraisers, so the books are sold off there. The sale happens to be going on this week. I saw 5 copies of Mousekin's Thanksgiving being sold.
What a dilemma for me- my kids are past Mousekin, which was loved in its time here. Should I buy a copy and just store it indefinitely for grandchildren I may or may not ever have? What about all the other Mousekins out there... I can't buy and store everything.
And what about the moms who need Mousekin now and won't find it at the library?
This is a strange new world we are in. We have talked before about being picture book pioneers- the last hold outs in hope that they will make a come back someday.
But now it's not just picture books I can't get in real life anymore, it's other books as well- longer books for older kids.
I am trying to calm myself... we love audio books here, and if that is the case, maybe we will come to love e-readers as well. I do have to say, though, with audio books you get the bonus of hearing a (usually) wonderful narrator, which makes the story even better.
I am trying to think what would be "better" using an e-reader. Hmm.....
__________________ Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
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CrunchyMom Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 7:21am | IP Logged
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It is especially maddening because Mousekin is so superior to so much of the garbage they DO keep!!! I must confess that I don't often take my children to the library because there is more there I'd prefer they didn't read (bratty children, garish illustrations, crass humor, poor writing) than stuff I want them to read. When I request books, they come from all over the state! I realize that there are good picture books being written, too, but libraries don't always have them in the quantity they do the junk.
__________________ Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony
[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
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JennGM Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 7:40am | IP Logged
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I try to check out books like Mousekin and Crinkleroot so they will stay in the system, but it seems that doesn't matter with these new criteria.
I would have bought Mousekin from you! I want those for home. I only have a few...and they are getting harder to find.
But that is the other dilemma. I don't have enough space for books. There are many I only want to check out, not occupy home space. I can't rescue them all.
Finally, I do think down the road we will find out the downsides of reading e-books, at least for children. I know they aren't games, but they aren't completely tangible. I was listening to Dr Carroll's talk on Nature Study on Childlight Site. He discusses how nature study incorporates all the senses and brain cells actually continue to develop because of this. He pointed out other benefits, too. I have been thinking how this should apply in other areas. The senses need to be incorporated, even when reading.
And yes, I worry about the eyes and brain factor, too. It seems the world jumps on board to this new thing without knowing any long term effects.
I'm not against e-books completely, but I really find the real books more what I want for my family.
__________________ Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to & ds1 '03 & ds2 '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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JennGM Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 8:29am | IP Logged
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SeaStar wrote:
Barb.b wrote:
OK - this is an honest question: what do they do with the books they get rid of? I wonder - give them your phone number or email and tell them to call you when they get rid of some!!!
Barb |
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My library has a giant sale twice a year to purge books. This is one of their main fundraisers, so the books are sold off there. The sale happens to be going on this week. I saw 5 copies of Mousekin's Thanksgiving being sold. |
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At our library each branch does their own way of sales. My library decided to not do giant sales but has boxes of books all year that they purge. It's a lot, and I never know what will be purged (i.e., Crinkleroot!). It's hard to "rescue" if you don't know when they are getting rid of them.
__________________ Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to & ds1 '03 & ds2 '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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MaryM Board Moderator
Joined: Feb 11 2005 Location: Colorado
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 10:32am | IP Logged
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This disturbs me as well...I hate the way libraries are going. Trying to be "relevant" in the technology age. It's nice to have the technology but not at the price of replacing the paper - like many of you have said, I like the hard copy, real book.
__________________ Mary M. in Denver
Our Domestic Church
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
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Posted: Oct 03 2012 at 10:49am | IP Logged
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oh and even our library is starting to have e-readers to check out.. so you don't necessarily need to own one.
e-reader benefits - lighter to hold than many books.. not a problem for everyone but anyone who's hands ache when holding a heavier book can appreciate this.
an ereader slips into my purse very easily when anything but a very slim book would not fit.. and it carries many books with me not just one. Not always a necessity but sure is nice for traveling especially if you might get caught in weather and stuck inside.. books that you can read outloud and have the choice of beatrix potter for the younger kids or harry potter for the olders well you know what I mean..
Also, not just cheap but FREE for getting many of the classics.. anything in the public domain.. hard to beat that price.
now there are plenty of real books on my shelves.. but I do enjoy the benefits of the ereaders as well
ETA - I don't think an e-reader would do a picture book justice at all!!
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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