wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Our library does not have a single book on Theodore Roosevelt, on Gutenberg or the Printing Press, about Telegraphs OR about Samuel Morse. :svengo: They have 1 book (only one) and it is a fiction book :blink: about the Pony Express. :banghead: :cursing: :rant: And yes, I am posting this from the library computer ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Any books about inventions? Maybe there is a section in a larger book about such things. I'd ask the librarian, since you're there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 6, 2011 Author Share Posted September 6, 2011 There is 1 book in the young adult section that she said 'might' have a very small section that might help us she said :glare: I am gonna go upstairs in a minute and see if there is a speck of hope in that book. We are going out of town this weekend an hour and a half away for groceries. I guess I will be paying their library a visit :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I found dozens of books in my library about Theodore Roosevelt but when I searched for "telegraphs," I got only two weird items. Apparently one must search for "telegraph" -- try that maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlygirlzx2 Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Can you do an interlibrary loan for those books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Can you do an interlibrary loan for those books? I was going to ask this question. As far as school books go, I no longer even think of my library in terms of what is on the shelves at a particular branch anymore. I do catalog searches and put holds on books I want, and just use the branch as a pick-up location. Books available anywhere in the county pretty much end up at my local branch in 2-3 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HistoryMom Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 We have the same problem. It's very nice for casual reading, but horrible if we want something specific. Our county has a reciprocal agreement with the larger county next store, so we head over there once every few weeks with a list of topics we need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 The Teddy Roosevelt thing is especially odd to me. Most libraries have whole sets of books about all the presidents. As dh pointed out last time he was at the library with us, "No one needs three books about Millard Fillmore." But the libraries all buy these sets. The Leonard Everett Fisher biography of Gutenberg is nice, by the way. See if they can ILL that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 As far as school books go, I no longer even think of my library in terms of what is on the shelves at a particular branch anymore. I do catalog searches and put holds on books I want, and just use the branch as a pick-up location. Books available anywhere in the county pretty much end up at my local branch in 2-3 days. :iagree: Love that aspect (since we use the same library system). I just HATE their catalog system. It's a pain to search. Sometimes you'll search for something one way and it won't find it at all, and then you search a different way and it finds it easily. Or you'll search for something and it will put things that have nothing remotely to do with your search topic up on the top of the list, and your actual item is on page 3. This is when you've searched by title. :glare: Now when I used the library in my actual county (I pay to use the other system), I was very limited, since it was just one library. I think they would still have Roosevelt though. That's really odd. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 6, 2011 Author Share Posted September 6, 2011 We can ILL books but they charge $2.00 per ILL and $1.00 per renewal. That is absurd to me. Maybe I am just to cheap :lol: It gets expensive though! I tried ILL-ing what I wanted/needed last year and it was really expensive. I guess we just need to stock up our own bookshelves as we find books at a good price. We have a children's encyclopedia set and a bunch of biographies but not the ones I need of course. SO- is there a series you recommend for Biographies on the presidents? What about physics topics? Machines/inventions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I think some people were also asking if your library has multiple branches, so that you could have (say) the main library send books to a corner branch. At the very least, isn't there some sort of "biography of the presidents" in one volume? My library has, for example, "America's Presidents : Portraits Of The Presidents" from 2009. I'd just double check that you spelled everything right and that there were no typos. I've made that mistake before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewel7123 Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I guess we just need to stock up our own bookshelves as we find books at a good price. Do you live in an area with Thrift stores? I have had really good luck finding all kinds of book gems from the two local thrift stores in my area, and at great prices. What a bummer about your library. I drive 30 minutes to a better one in my area because my hometown library is pathetic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsrevmeg Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I feel your pain. The town we used to live had no children's biographies on historical figures, but a whole shelf of Beyonce, Justin Beiber, and the like. The town we live in now has a better one, but is still not great. We also have cards in the library in another town. They have more, but it is not very organized so going is a hassle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oops, duplicate account :/ Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Our library has a service that you can request books for them to buy. The librarian told me that they hardly ever turn down a request and actually encourage patrons to make them. Maybe they could do that for you? :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
springy Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I always use Amazon.com to find a book, and then copy the ISBN# into the library's database. If the problem is that the book doesn't exist, then the library is not to blame, but on the other hand I find library's keyword searches woefully inaccurate and inadequate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godsaggie Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I totally understand! Our library here is very limited. ILL is at least free though...but it takes about 6 weeks to get anything! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Our library does not have a single book on Theodore Roosevelt, on Gutenberg or the Printing Press, about Telegraphs OR about Samuel Morse. :svengo: They have 1 book (only one) and it is a fiction book :blink: about the Pony Express. I'm in shock. Our local library actually has five on T.R., including a Fritz book & a general one about presidents by Krull. We have one book that covers the invention of mechanical printing through time and one youth fiction book that involves a book secretly brought somewhere by Gutenberg's mute apprentice. :001_huh: We also have one fiction book about the Pony Express. Wonder if it is the same one? When I was planning my BF History of Science assignments, I had to cross out some of the recommended ones because my library doesn't have any books on those topics. :sad: The assignments involve the kids doing the searching on their own, so the "big city" library wouldn't work for it. We are going out of town this weekend an hour and a half away for groceries. I guess I will be paying their library a visit :001_huh: We pay for the privilege of checking out books from the library system in the Big City 1 1/2 hrs away. I tried HSing with our local library our first year. The checkout limit for a family (household) is 15 books. After some really vehement feedback, they upped the limit to 25 total during the "school year" for homeschoolers. I think they are afraid if they let people check out more than a few books at a time, they will run out of books in the library. :tongue_smilie: Now when I used the library in my actual county (I pay to use the other system), I was very limited, since it was just one library. Our small town library isn't connected to any others. ILL is $$$$$. I'll gladly pay the annual fee to the large library system. I could ILL 10 books, or I could buy 15 used ones, or I can have access to the hundreds of thousands with one check a year and a stop each time I'm shopping in the Big City or visiting my parents. I feel your pain, WY_kid_wrangler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 My library has about 20 books about the Pony Express -- that includes several about Buffalo Bill, and about 80 specifically about Theodore Roosevelt. I honestly don't understand how a public library could have nothing these topics. I haven't moved on from disbelief! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandty Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Our library has a service that you can request books for them to buy. The librarian told me that they hardly ever turn down a request and actually encourage patrons to make them. Maybe they could do that for you? :grouphug: Yes, ours like getting request. Some libraries are small and don't have much. I know that our library is for those in our county, but you can pay $50 a year for a library card if you are out of the county. We have a lot of smaller counties near us that don't have the resources so this allows those people to use our library. For us, $50 would be well spent. We have considered moving one county over and I looked this up because I knew the library sucked in that county, lol. We have ILL at ours and it is free, which is very nice because it actually cost the library $7 a book for shipping the books between the libraries. So, $2 isn't too bad, but too bad they don't cover that cost. Since I know it cost our library, I always make sure it is a book we can't miss reading. I know I library likes feedback, so let them know you homeschool and need these resources. They can't do anything unless they know their is a need. Our library ask for feedback all the time and it is great to see new programs put into action from our feedback. (I am not going to tell them, but I would pay more in property taxes for our library as we love it, but would like to see even more.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystika1 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 I was going to ask this question. As far as school books go, I no longer even think of my library in terms of what is on the shelves at a particular branch anymore. I do catalog searches and put holds on books I want, and just use the branch as a pick-up location. Books available anywhere in the county pretty much end up at my local branch in 2-3 days. :iagree::iagree::iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 My library has about 20 books about the Pony Express -- that includes several about Buffalo Bill, and about 80 specifically about Theodore Roosevelt. I honestly don't understand how a public library could have nothing these topics. I haven't moved on from disbelief! Well, I'd say how many my library has, but the online catalog is down. Again. :glare: But I know they have plenty. Basically, I'm with you - I'm in disbelief that there would be a library system without a biography of at least some sort of TR. It makes me feel really sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 And our small town library just got a big grant to expand and add (more) COMPUTERS! and a bigger MEETING ROOM! Not, by the way, to add any more shelf space. The new librarian has spent the last month removing hundreds of older non-fiction books from the shelves/system (for good) to make room for the New York Times best seller (fiction) books she buys each month. She has been re-arranging books so the (popular) fiction section has more shelves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 I think some people were also asking if your library has multiple branches, so that you could have (say) the main library send books to a corner branch. At the very least, isn't there some sort of "biography of the presidents" in one volume? My library has, for example, "America's Presidents : Portraits Of The Presidents" from 2009. I'd just double check that you spelled everything right and that there were no typos. I've made that mistake before. It has 2 branches. The 2nd branch is even smaller yet :glare: This is rural living at its finest I guess :glare: Do you live in an area with Thrift stores? I have had really good luck finding all kinds of book gems from the two local thrift stores in my area, and at great prices. Yes we do. I guess its time to start looking more than once or twice a month. My library has about 20 books about the Pony Express -- that includes several about Buffalo Bill, and about 80 specifically about Theodore Roosevelt. I honestly don't understand how a public library could have nothing these topics. I haven't moved on from disbelief! Nothing. I have tried everything. Topical, years. Everything. They have 1 book of presidents but it is from JFK to present INCLUDING Obama. Has the #1 popular songs during their presidency and all that stuff :glare: They said I could check out the encyclopedia but I have a set. I have that info, but I want more, ya know. Nothing on inventions. Nothing on famous people/inventors. Nothing. We do have plenty on Justine Bieber and Hannah Montana-- as a previous poster stated :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 And our small town library just got a big grant to expand and add (more) COMPUTERS! and a bigger MEETING ROOM! Not, by the way, to add any more shelf space. The new librarian has spent the last month removing hundreds of older non-fiction books from the shelves/system (for good) to make room for the New York Times best seller (fiction) books she buys each month. She has been re-arranging books so the (popular) fiction section has more shelves. Are you my neighbor?? :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitten18 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 And yes, I am posting this from the library computer ;) I did find this part funny.:lol: SO- is there a series you recommend for Biographies on the presidents? What about physics topics? Machines/inventions? I don't have any suggestions, but have you looked for good websites instead of a book. I wouldn't want to do that for every topic, but every once in awhile I think it would be o.k.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 I checked my local branch of the library. We have nothing on the printing press or Gutenberg except that apprentice with the magical book someone else mentioned, 9 books about or featuring the Pony Express, 2 books and 1 DVD that mention Roosevelt, 2 on Samuel Morse, and 20 mentioning telegraph in the description or title. It is one of the largest libraries in my county. We also request books from a library in a different county. Our card is free because many PA libraries have a reciprocal agreement, but I'd be willing to pay money for it. I told my husband this evening that we can borrow any book or movie we are interested in for free, whenever we want. It is amazing to have access to a good library system, but it only makes the poorly stocked libraries look even more sparse in comparison. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 (edited) I imagine our library isn't much better. I can't even check their inventory online! :tongue_smilie: I just buy a LOT of books. It's a good excuse, right? And ILL is expensive for us too. I could buy the books (used) for that much. Edited September 7, 2011 by Mommy22alyns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tawlas Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 I just had to add that in our small town library (population 7000) has two in our actual branch, 11 more in our system. And I live in Canada! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAS in LA Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 We can ILL books but they charge $2.00 per ILL and $1.00 per renewal :svengo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 (edited) Egads, I cannot FATHOM trying to homeschool with some of the library systems you folks describe. I rely on our public library so much. I mean, I know it can be done, but there is no doubt my kids' education would not be as excellent as it is if they did not have access to the quantity and variety of books we have available to us, especially with younger kids who learn so much from brief books. I no joke probably check out 10-20 books a month related to directly to our schooling, and the kids check out 5-10 EACH per WEEK of fiction and nonfiction to read freely as they choose. I cannot even keep track of them all. I probably shell out $5 in late fees a month on average for lost books or books with holds I can't renew, and I am so grateful to the library that I don't even concern myself about paying it. I am glad to give money to the library and when I think of the cash value of books we check out - even if I were to get them used - holy. A few bucks in late fees is nothing. But fees for an ILL and renewals? That really breaks my heart. :( That is not what a library is supposed to be. Edited September 7, 2011 by zenjenn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waa510 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 That is so disappointing. Being a former military wife, I know what it's like to live in an area that has a less-than-ideal library. The area I live in now is fantastic though..I've told dh that if we ever move, I am checking on the library system there first before even considering the area! :blushing: The downfall (library-wise) is that there are a ton of hsers in our county, so even if they have 30 copies of a book, b/c everyone seems to hit the same spot in their curric. at the same time, there are no copies when you need them unless you are extra diligent about holds..which I'm working on!! One thing I thought of, although it may not help you immediately, is to try using paperbackswap.com. I've swapped all of my youngest's board book collection and tons of books I get from freecycle for history and science lit suggestions from SOTW, RSO, Sonlight, Veritas Press, etc. They have a wish list feature that allows you to put yourself on a list for a book so that when another member posts it, if you are next in line, you will be notified and can use credits from swapping for the book. I try to stay at least 6 months ahead of when I'll need a book when posting it to my wish list, so that I have the best chance of getting the book by the time I'd need it in a curriculum. My mom also lives near a Goodwill bookstore (yes, an entire bookstore :D) and buys me a ton of great books for pennies. I check the Goodwill here and library book sales as well. I'm also that mom who puts books on our wish list on amazon so that if a birthday is coming up, or the grandparents feel like spoiling the kids :tongue_smilie:, they have ideas on what to buy. I also buy books as presents/rewards for my kids. Also, do you have a Borders nearby?? I bought a lot of books very cheaply recently due to their going-out-of-business sale. I'll try to think of other things we do. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Our library is horrid as well..... We do Trisms and at times it has been impossible to find resources on something that, to me, seems pretty common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smillard00 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Our library is absolutely awful and I've vented here before. So I went to search for Teddy Roosevelt books. Two things came up and I think one was a video. However, I also did a search for Theodore Roosevelt and 16 books and videos came up. So wanted to be sure you had thought to do the search by his real first name. I'm used to the super cross-referenced searches on Amazon and other online book selling sites. So spoiled there! But I find that the library website is much less cross-referenced and you have to be sure you spell everything correctly and try all variations on a name and that sort of thing. I also have these visions of wonderful books sitting on a shelf in the corner that just never got put into the computer system. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZMom Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 This thread is making me feel incredibly grateful that the next town over has an amazing ILL program. If I had to pay a fee for each book I get through it, I'd probably need a second mortgage! Our county library is pretty pathetic, and this other town's is just so-so, but GA has a system called PINES that allows any GA resident to check out books from any participating library, and they all loan to each other. I believe we're allowed to have 30 titles out per card at one time, so we could get over 100 if we wanted to. It's also computerized, so I sit at home and order all of my books, and they email me as they arrive. I can only think of 1 or 2 titles I haven't been able to get. We can also renew online, which makes it easier to plan ahead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 We can ILL books but they charge $2.00 per ILL and $1.00 per renewal. :blink: Wow. ILL here is free, and I'm not sure how I'd homeschool without it (and that's with a home library with lots of good biographies - it's still never enough. :lol:) :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKim Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Got to make room for all those wonderful vampire books, you know. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 I guess it would be futile to meet with the supervisor and discuss ordering books? I'm not sure if it's a budget issue they are having or the fact that requests are more entertainment in nature. I feel for you. My library has order 15 books on my suggestion this school year alone. I would at least try. Our library does not have a single book on Theodore Roosevelt, on Gutenberg or the Printing Press, about Telegraphs OR about Samuel Morse. :svengo: They have 1 book (only one) and it is a fiction book :blink: about the Pony Express. :banghead: :cursing: :rant: And yes, I am posting this from the library computer ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 Got to make room for all those wonderful vampire books, you know. :glare: Yeah, exactly. Its full of them :glare: And teeny-bopper artists :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 I guess it would be futile to meet with the supervisor and discuss ordering books? I'm not sure if it's a budget issue they are having or the fact that requests are more entertainment in nature. I feel for you. My library has order 15 books on my suggestion this school year alone. I would at least try. I will talk with her and see. I have informally brought it up before and was greeted with a chuckle and a "we'll see" :glare: We live in rancher country and you can find ANYTHING on Ranches, farming, tractors, cows or similar topics that you want. Also if you want to learn the history of our county you will drown in all the info they have. :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Yeah, exactly. Its full of them :glare: And teeny-bopper artists :glare: I also feel a little :glare: about those books, but it shouldn't be a choice. A good library will have both a large stack of copies of Twilight and Justin Beiber "biographies" as well as all of E. Nesbit and an extensive collection of presidential biographies. It shouldn't be one or the other. It should be both! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 I also feel a little :glare: about those books, but it shouldn't be a choice. A good library will have both a large stack of copies of Twilight and Justin Beiber "biographies" as well as all of E. Nesbit and an extensive collection of presidential biographies. It shouldn't be one or the other. It should be both! I completely agree with you. And I support magazines about knitting and books with makeup tips for baby boomers too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 I also feel a little :glare: about those books, but it shouldn't be a choice. A good library will have both a large stack of copies of Twilight and Justin Beiber "biographies" as well as all of E. Nesbit and an extensive collection of presidential biographies. It shouldn't be one or the other. It should be both! :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domestic_engineer Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 :grouphug: I guess that's part of the price we pay for living in a rural community that we often forget about ... although having to pay for ILL *really* stinks! Would the local school library (public or private) have any resources? Even if you couldn't check them out? If the librarian there heard there were zero resources at the public library, maybe (s)he would be just as aghast as we are at the situation. Let us know how this situation finally gets resolved ... and how you, as a super-mama, will overcome the circumstances!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Our library does not have a single book on Theodore Roosevelt, on Gutenberg or the Printing Press, about Telegraphs OR about Samuel Morse. :svengo: They have 1 book (only one) and it is a fiction book :blink: about the Pony Express. :banghead: :cursing: :rant: And yes, I am posting this from the library computer ;) e are rural and our family lives by ILL -- our librian is AMAZING -- bu teh Lib itself is so small and NO $ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted September 9, 2011 Share Posted September 9, 2011 Do you live in an area with Thrift stores? I have had really good luck finding all kinds of book gems from the two local thrift stores in my area, and at great prices. What a bummer about your library. I drive 30 minutes to a better one in my area because my hometown library is pathetic. there is a used book store here that is AMAZING Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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