Why I Love The Library

My favorite library, the Copley Library.

I’m definitely obsessed with the library. I have tons of books on hold on my online account and about 6 checked out at the moment. I can’t believe I hadn’t been taking advantage of it all these years. I got caught up in kindles and ebooks, and all that good stuff. That’s changing now!

Anyways, I wanted to write a post about my newfound love of the library, so I’ll be talking mostly about the libraries in my area, since I haven’t ever visited one out of state. I wanted to highlight a few of the things that I like the most about it. =)

What I like about the library:

I love the fact that I can travel to about 5 different branches, 2 of which are super close to my house. The others are a bit farther by train, but still a relatively short commute. I also love that there is such a large selection of books that I can get just about any book I want and many will be readily available for me! I love the sitting areas and the beautiful areas surrounding many of the libraries in Massachusetts. For example, the Copley Library (pictured) is right in the middle of downtown Boston, and the area is beautiful! There’s a hotel, the train station, a mall, a big huge garden area, and many other very nice things around there.

What I don’t like:

It’s hard to pinpoint something that I don’t like about the library, since I’m completely in love with it! The one thing that I really wish could change would be the hours! Libraries should be opened more days a week and LONGER hours, especially for those of us who work 9am to 5pm, it makes it almost impossible to go to the library during the week. It’s heartbreaking.

What the best features are:

The best feature about the libraries in my area is definitely the website! As I navigate my way around it I keep discovering new and very exciting things. I can ask for a book to be bought and if the library system purchases it, my name will already by put on the hold for it, so I’ll be the first one to get it once it comes in. Also, as I mentioned before I can put books on hold that I want to read and have them delivered to the library branch of my choosing. AWESOME. I don’t even have to go far from my house, I just ask for the book to be taken to the library closest to me. The process itself is pretty fast, too. Of course, it depends on how many copies there are of the book I want and how many people put a hold on it, but I’m not complaining. Another favorite features of the library is the fact that I can borrow more than just books, movies and audiobooks, too. I think that’s amazing, especially the movies. Since there aren’t many good movie rental places around and the ones from the library are free to rent. It’s fantastic!

I don’t know how libraries are everywhere else, but if they’re like the ones in my area everyone should be taking advantage of them! Seriously. I’m not saying don’t buy books at all, but use both resources, libraries and bookstores. I just wanted to share my newfound love for the library with everyone.  I can’t wait to go to the library again!