Halcyon Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We used to live in a place where the public library was not great and hard to get to, and we ended up buying quite a lot of books. We've since moved to a place where the library is GREAT..I mean GREAT and my bank account has been thanking me :D We've bought probably 10 fiction books in the last 20 months since we can get almost everything through the library. However, I've noticed a difference and I decided to post to see if others have experienced this. Since using the library more and the bookstore less, my boys, particularly my youngest, seem less attached to their books; not just the physical book, but the stories they tell. My youngest likes to read and re-read his books a lot, and enjoys the very idea of "ownership"-that he can put the book down, return to it at his leisure, peruse a few chapters, revisit a loved character....he told me he doesn't like library books as much because the books don't "belong" to him....this is a child who has books from 3 years ago (he's only 5 :lol:) that he just LOVES and rereads and from which he draws the characters. And I don't mean he just loves the story-he loves the actual, physical book itself. And the knowledge and information they gets from these books! Simply by virtue of OWNING the book, it seems both my kids glean from osmosis information therein...picking it up, reading a few pages, reshelving it...I seem to recall from childhood books like this...books that were on our shelves that I didn't read, but loved the cover of...and then later on picked up and read...and then reshelved..but they have a special place in my memory...am I making any sense??? :001_huh: As an adult, I have books that I've had for decades...books that I've read and re-read, that have notes in the margins (he's not doing that yet LOL) and that just feel like a well-loved member of my family. I think that's what he's getting at. I am loathe to buy books when the public library has them. But I am beginning to rethink this. Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giraffe Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We have a so-so library and so also frequent the bookstore. What I try to do is get the books from the library first. If DD falls in love with it, I'll buy it. It's happened more than once. She goes through a LOT of books, and when they are keepers, we keep them (not the library copy). I guess we've always had both an ok library and a bookstore nearby so DD has grown up with this procedure. She's always understood that if she loves a book, really loves it, we will buy it for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 I have found that kiddo is more eager to finish a book because he knows it is going away. That said, he has some favorites he rereads in bed. I buy those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We check out a lot of books and don't usually buy them (at least now that I no longer have access to the excellent Friends of the Library used book sales I used to!). But when I buy new books for the kids from Scholastic, school book sales, or a bookstore, they do get more excited about them than if we just checked one out from the library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 (edited) We have a great library system (the library itself is limited, but the ILL system is phenomenal), so we buy very few books new. I simply can't afford it, and it feels like such a waste of money since many of the books only get read once. However, we are frequent visitors at library and used bookstore sales, so my girls' bookshelves are overflowing anyway. That's my cost- and eco-conscious solution :D ETA: We don't seem to have the problem you're having, but that could also be because we always used the library extensively. Like Kalanamak, though, if there's a favorite, much-loved book, we do buy it or put it on the b-day/Christmas list. Edited April 14, 2011 by melissel typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 For myself I prefer to own. I like to write in books. I've stopped reading several library books simply because I knew I wanted to highlight and make notes, but didn't want to reread the book after I purchased. My son is a slower reader, he can't always finish a book in the checkout period. He also tends to fold down pages, so I buy. Thankfully I have enough reading material to last until he graduates, and I still buy more. :blush: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 (edited) Three of my four children think going to the library is exciting. My youngest made me take her to a library (not a bookstore) on vacation. It didn't matter to her that we did not have a library card for the state, she just 'wanted to be in a library.' I myself, think a visit to the library is not unlike Christmas morning when you're 8. Bookstores are not libraries. And we own a lot of books! PS What did my dd do at a library where she was not allowed to borrow books? She crawled the stacks, taking down titles and authors. I plugged them into ILL via our laptop, and when we arrived home, several of the titles were waiting for her. :) Our first outing after our vacation was ....to the library. lol :) Edited April 14, 2011 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Three of my four children think going to the library is exciting. My youngest made me take her to a library (not a bookstore) on vacation. It didn't matter to her that we did not have a library card for the state, she just 'wanted to be in a library.' I myself, think a visit to the library is not unlike Christmas morning when you're 8. Bookstores are not libraries. And we own a lot of books! What a joy to have a child like that! We moved to a small town recently. The library is old, many of the books in the library are old. The classics section is phenomenal, many of the books are leather bound antiques. They have a 1960s Dolciani Alg 2 book for check out. After moving from a lousy library system, I feel like I'm in heaven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 I see no reason to have to choose between the two. :D We own over a thousand books (most from when I was an English major, and from thrift stores) and we consistantly have at least thirty out from the library. If we get a book from the library that dd loves, I keep an eye out until I find it at the thrift store or a garage sale. We just got a copy of "Where the Wild Things Are," brand new, from the local consignment store for fifty cents. I never was less attached to library books as a child, but my mom never really bought too many books for me to own, so that may have had something to do with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We have a fabulous state-wide library system (small state lol). We tend to check out books from the library and buy the ones that become favorites :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 What a joy to have a child like that! . :) It's an ever greater joy, as I have one who doesn't ...gasp....care for the library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelanieM Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 My daughter adores the library and going there is the highlight of her week. She also reads a huge quantity of books (she's at 99 for the year as of today) and I wouldn't want to have to keep up with her by purchasing alone. However, she does have a shelf stocked with favourites and she chooses to buy new books with her spending money regularly. So yeah, a bit of both here. I also want to agree with LL about the library being similar to Christmas morning. I still feel that way myself and I'm way older than 8! lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 14, 2011 Author Share Posted April 14, 2011 Thanks all. To clarify, both my boys ADORE the library--we go there twice a week and spend many hours combing the library. I get where my son is coming from...somehow owning a book, to me, makes its memory stronger when I'm older. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 As an adult, there are some books I like to have around- mainly reference types books in my area of passion, health- but I have deliberately tried to overcome my attachment to books in general. I have been moving towards "minimalism" in general. I just try to remember that I can go and get the book anytime I like- I don't like to have thousands of books in my house, though I have plenty. For my kids- yes, I understand that attachment to the book thing. I think its probably stronger for some kids, and at some ages. Mine both have a few books on their shelves that they are attached to the memory of reading. But I also like to encourage a gentle "letting go " mentality overall rather than attachment- discernment at least. But...whatever it takes to keep a kid reading. I woulnd't go to the extreme of buying everything- its good to use the library and its good that kids learn to gently let go of books too- after all, they can get it back again another time- but at the same time- when kids love to read and re-read books over and over, its natural to have those books around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We love both borrowing and owning books. Our library is great, because whatever they don't have anywhere in the state they will buy in for us. But there's no substitute for owning books, being able to grab them at any time of the day or night and even just the feeling of knowing that they are there. I would be extremely sad if I couldn't give my kids their own books. And yes, I have bought my kids books that are in the library, just because they fell in love with them and really really wanted them. But, the budget being how it is, most of their books are second hand from charity shops, or donated by friends or Freecyclers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 (edited) I buy the books that I want read and re-read. So, I've been buying all our Sonlight books, I buy all our family read alouds, and I also buy books I know my boys will enjoy (the Percy Jackson series, for example). If they have a strong passion (my oldest loves the Civil War and my next oldest loves Greek Myths and JRR Tolkien), then I'll keep my eyes open for good books for them. I'm picky about what I buy, but I want my boys to be able to pick up good books when they want to read something. My ds10 recently finished the LOTR trilogy. It took him a long time to finish it because he would take a break and read other stuff. Since he owned the book, he was able to enjoy it whenever he wanted. That book is worn and tattered, but it is loved. But we still use the library a lot. Our check out limit is 100, and there have been times where we've maxed out a card and had to use another card. We use the library for exploring topics that aren't passions, and for books I won't buy for one reason or another. We love the library, but it's just not the same as owning the books we love. Edited April 14, 2011 by JudoMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abreakfromlife Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We're the same way....love to own the books. They're friends and familt. The kids are constantly pulling books off our shelves in addition to library books...so I stock up at used book sales and get new special ones at christmas and bdays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Well, my husband is a librarian at a major research library. He also deals with interlibrary loan. So, I never, ever buy a book for myself. I can get anything I want. If it is in a library in north america then I can borrow it. For the kids, I tend to buy. But it is generally used. We also have one of the biggest library sales in the country right around the corner from my house. I think it's the 5th largest? Anyway, it is spectacular and it is twice a year. If you are patient, it will show up there. When my kids are in high school and working through the great books, I will borrow them. We can keep books from DHs library for a year or more. This year I did a sort of lazy woman's Ambleside kindergarten with DS2 and we could get all those old books from DH's library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosy Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 We're in almost the exact opposite situation--we were avid library users, and I was spending a fortune on overdue fees. I finally decided I'd be better off minimizing our library use and spending that money on books we can keep. What I'm finding is that they still feel like there's "nothing to read"--mostly because I've picked out the books I've bought. They tend to pick out twaddle, and I'll still let them choose their library books, so they tend to prefer those. However, owning books has made it easier for us to do read-alouds--I pick higher quality literature, and we don't have to rush through a book or abandon it halfway through because the library needs it back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganClassicalPrep Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Well, we do both. It is inevitable that half of DD's gifts on any given holiday are books. Plus I love to do yard sales and thift stores for books. We also frequent the library. (And by frequent I mean, twice or more a week.. :tongue_smilie:) I haven't seen a difference for DD. She loves books either way. She does love to own books, and often goes back to our bookshelves for books, but enjoys library books just as much. I am a book hoarder. I love books. Especially history books. Especially history books in my particular geographic and thematic areas of interest. (South America, particularly Brazil, and gender/sexuality studies). I have recently begun writing (GASP!) in those books, so... it is nice to own them. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anissarobert Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 I do both. I own over 10,000 books but we always have library books out. If it is a book that I don't think is worth them rereading then we use the library. I rarely buy a book new, so if there is something coming out that they want to read right away, we use the library. We also use the library for books on topics that we are studying if my own collection is light in that area. (It happens. :D) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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