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It's free. In most (probably all, but I don't want to make that claim) areas of the U.S., people are entitled to use the local public library system operated by
by bane 8y ago
It's free. In most (probably all, but I don't want to make that claim) areas of the U.S., people are entitled to use the local public library system operated by the county they pay taxes in.
You simply walk in, say "I would like a library card" and show some ID with your name and address on it and that's it.
Many public library systems in the U.S. have an incredible list of books and services they offer their communities. The ones in the counties near me offer everything from computer classes to maker areas with free 3d printers and other equipment and usually offer many on-line services like ebooks, audiobooks, etc. As a result, they are heavily used and enjoyed. They're highly responsive to children and young users with huge dedicated sections of child and young adult literature and a few even have robust comic book and manga collections!
Even the rural system I grew up using, which had very tiny libraries, were network connected back in the late 80s and you could "order" books or items from anywhere in the system and have it show up in a day. Most central county libraries also contain many historic records going back hundreds of years -- land records, old newspapers, important legal documents, etc. You can't usually take them from the library, but anybody can view them. If anybody wants a legal way to watch movies or listen to music without buying them and for free, just go check out the massive music and movie section at your local library.
The National Library (the Library of Congress) is free, and the most impressive active collection of material I've ever encountered anywhere. It includes everything from 500 year old violins and original composer folios to Graphic Novels.
There are also private (paid) libraries that house special focused collections. Usually certain research libraries for law or medicine. But I've also seen some foreign language private libraries for certain communities when the local system doesn't offer enough in their home language.
I'm actually curious, what other countries have similar systems, and what's the library system like in your home country? The other country I'm the most familiar with has good libraries, but their almost entirely private and usually dedicated to one or two major topic areas. Bookstores seem to fill in the rest.
- justaguyhere 8y agoOne of the American marvels is their library system. I've been to NYPL libraries, they are awesome, especially the bigger ones. The public libraries in smaller towns aren't that good (their book collections could be small/uninteresting), but they are still hubs for various activities - movies, free classes, kids stuff etc.
- adestefan 8y agoEven the small libraries are great because of intra-library lending. There's a robust network of libraries across the nation that lets you get almost any book you'd like. In most states the public university system is also part of the lending network and any library in the state can get books from there.
- pnutjam 8y agoI belong to a library system with two branches, that are relatively large and well funded, but I can also walk into a branch in several other town libraries and get a card due to library agreements. I can also get a special card good at any library in my state, for a fee. My parents live in an area that isn't serviced by a local library, but can buy into a nearby library. Although no library is usually indicative of an area that isn't worth living in and doesn't fund schools well, IMHO.
- blacksmith_tb 8y agoI heartily agree - with one caveat, it's generally not possible to make an ILL request for a title published in the current calendar year (even if you're making a request in December for a book published in January - though at least you only have to wait a month). I think this is to give the patrons of the library which holds a book the first chance to read it, but it's a crude implement.
- gumby 8y agoFree in Australia too. When I was a kid you could order books from the library and they'd be put on the train for you -- you could pick them up / return them at the station (if you lived in the country I mean)
- ahi 8y agoA small nitpick, the Library of Congress is very much not the National Library. The service it provides the public is ancillary to its role as the library for Congress. This creates headaches for librarians, including those working for the LoC.
- ataturk 8y agoNot only that, but our local county library acts as a homeless shelter, so you get to enjoy stepping over sleeping people who stink to high heaven while browsing the stacks. And if you want to, you can reserve a "study room" that the same homeless people took a piss in the week before. Yeah, it's that bad and worse. The local hospital waiting room is now a homeless camp, too.