Katie Couric did a report for one of her "Notebook" segments on CBS News about how,
"Americans are saving money, and keeping the looming recession at bay, by going to their local libraries to rent books, CD's, and DVD's"
It was reported that borrowing is up 35% in Chicago and 16% in New York from last year. However, bookstore sales are down. Barnes & Noble lost 18 million dollars in the third quarter.
ALA President Jim Rettig said, "During tough economic times, people turn to libraries for their incredible array of free resources, from computers to books, DVD's and CDs, for help with job hunt or health information. The average annual cost to the taxpayer for access to this wide range of resources is about $31, the cost of one hardcover book. In good times or bad, libraries are a great value!"
Yes, libraries are a great value, but there are still so many people out there that just don't take advantage of them. ALA reports that only two-thirds of us have library cards. Do you have yours?
A former librarian, and current first lady (though not for long), Laura Bush, stated that libraries are "community treasure chests loaded with a wealth of information."
I know that I get a lot of use out of my public library, which in turn saves me a lot of money.
3 comments:
I'm a card carrying library girl!! And yet I still buy an obscene amount of books. I'm too impatient for those waiting lists...
SPeaking of books- I dropped yours off today but you weren't there. Thanks for lending it to me!!
Ah, I love library advocates! (course, I might be biased, being a librarian and all...)
I visit my library very regularly. I always wonder why more people don't. Although... I'm often glad more people don't. My books! Mine!
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