Old Workhorses

Chances are you've already heard about librarians' dismayed reaction to publisher HarperCollins new eBook policies. HarperCollins points out that print books eventually wear out and need to be replaced, generating sales and income for authors, booksellers, and publishers. eBooks, on the other hand, never wear out and never need to be replaced. If a library only needs to buy a book once to have it forever, the publisher argues, the book industry will miss out on sales that it needs in order to afloat. HarperCollins' solution: henceforth all eBooks they sell to libraries will need to be repurchased once they've been checked out 26 times.

While HarperCollins is correct that library books wear out over time, librarians across the country have found a 26 check-out limit puzzling to say the least. Barring something like a coffee spill or an act of dog, any well-made book will soar past 26 check-outs without significant damage or wear.

With that in mind, we've put together a display of books that have been checked out more than 150 times. As you can see, they're not spring chickens but they're definitely still readable. Most surprisingly, they've all been checked out within the past 14 months (most more recently than that). Not surprisingly, Nicholas Sparks rules the roost. He's got two book in this display and another three that would be here if they weren't either checked out or being mended. Sparks also has the books that have reached the 150 milestone most quickly.

~Andrew, Adult Services