Buying books vs. renting from library vs. ebooks

imanonymous

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:11 pm

amother [ Bronze ] wrote:

Correction, OP: you don't want to be bothered going to the library. Unless you're physically handicapped or in quarantine, chances are you CAN go. I'm not saying I blame you but you do need to understand the difference between being unable and not wanting to.

Do you know my schedule? Do you know if I have the time to go? Does "cannot" have to be only a physical distinction?

Sheesh. Condescending much? "You need to understand the difference"? What am I, two?

imanonymous

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:14 pm

amother [ Green ] wrote:

I like using the library. I go every 3 or 4 weeks, get 3 or 4 books, and read one per weekend. If you don't have patience to browse, reserving books is a great option. I personally enjoy book browsing, but my local library branch is closed.
It's up to you how you want to pay for books. It's obviously going to be either $, or effort. Personally it's worth it for me to drive to the library every few weeks rather than spending.
During the height of covid when libraries in my area were completely closed I bought books on Thriftbooks.com, recommended by someone here on Ima. It was very affordable, I filtered books by under $5 and took 3 at a time to get free shipping.
I don't have room to store books at all, but I'm a book lover and can't think of selling them. I'd donate them to a community library if there was some oversight/ management. Don't want to donate to BPL because I think they don't need it.

I actually have other reasons for wanting to avoid the library, besides time. I don't want to get into it here.

I guess paying for it physically makes the most sense for me.

youngishbear

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:20 pm

What do you usually do, Covid aside?

I love putting books on hold at the library and getting the email that it's available for pickup. I'm lucky that I can fit it into my schedule before or after work, because that's the cheapest option. It takes about 60 seconds to find the books and use the self checkout.

Otherwise you need a money tree, even if you buy from online used book stores like abebooks.com, thriftbooks.com, etc.

tigerwife

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:25 pm

I use thriftbooks.com for books that I know I’ll want to keep, like books for my kids or books I’m familiar with. I use the library for everything else, and find the online-reservation option very convenient. I also read a lot of e-books on my phone but I’m trying to cut down since it hurts my eyes. I have a barely used kindle because I find it expensive to keep purchasing.

youngishbear

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:30 pm

tigerwife wrote:

I got into audiobooks one erev Pesach and now I love them, especially for nonfiction like memoirs and biographies, or the type of books that tell the story of a specific event.

I've listened to the autobiographies of Helen Keller, Nikola Tesla, and Benjamin Franklin, as well as memoirs like Educated and Becoming, and true crime, science, or disaster stories like Midnight in Chernobyl, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Hidden Figures, The Devil in the White City, Conan Doyle for the Defense, The Day The World Came to Town, etc.

imanonymous

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:35 pm

youngishbear wrote:

I never go to the library, ever, and I haven't for the last eight years. I had read more sporadically over that time, and only started reading more recently. I don't have that money tree. Sad

imanonymous

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:35 pm

youngishbear wrote:

Unfortunately, audiobooks do nothing for me. It would be as if I didn't hear it. I zone out audio.

imanonymous

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 8:36 pm

tigerwife wrote:

I have a Kindle, but I just don't find it all that useful when my main reading time is Shabbos.

youngishbear

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 9:05 pm

imanonymous wrote:

I never go to the library, ever, and I haven't for the last eight years. I had read more sporadically over that time, and only started reading more recently. I don't have that money tree. Sad

Do you know someone you trust who is a library addict and wouldn't mind taking out books for you?

youngishbear

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 9:09 pm

Still brainstorming...

(A booklover who has difficulty accessing books hurts my heart...)

Maybe someone knows of a book-swapping group on Facebook or WhatsApp, or whatever form of communication you feel comfortable?

If this doesn't exist yet, it should.

Frumme

Sun, Nov 15 2020, 9:38 pm

Does your library have an app? I reserve books through the app and pick them up (either by going in or curbside). The app also tells me when my books are due (plus I get email notifications). Maybe that would work for you.

imanonymous

Mon, Nov 16 2020, 10:12 am

youngishbear wrote:

Do you know someone you trust who is a library addict and wouldn't mind taking out books for you?

No. DH and I discussed, though, and he said that he'll take out the books that I want if I give him a list.

gamanit

Mon, Nov 16 2020, 12:51 pm

Contact your filter company to unblock the library's website for borrowing ebooks. Note that you can check out up to 15 books at a time usually and your kindle will only return them once you take your device off airplane mode. The library assumes that it has it back and can lend it on to the next person as soon as your loan is up but you can finish reading one batch before taking out another batch.