Library Hoarders

I don't know about you, but when I was a kid my parents always emphasized at the dinner table that I only took the food I was going to eat because it was a shame to waste food that someone else may want to have.  I could apply the same logic to borrowing items from the library--borrow those items that you think you're actually going to use during the allotted check out time and leave other items on the shelves for other patrons to use.

It's great for the library's circulation numbers when patrons check out numerous items, but there's a difference between someone using a lot of materials and someone who's a "library hoarder."  For instance, it somehow irks me when a patron checks out a dozen DVDs and asks to renew the dozen DVDs she already has out because she didn't have the time to watch them.  I can't help but wonder why she's bothering to check out more DVDs when she still hasn't watched the ones she checked out previously.  It reminds me of the time when my cousin kept shouting from his high chair for more corn when he had a plateful of corn in front of him.

Some patrons come into the library knowing exactly what they want to borrow while others decide what they want by browsing.  I hate to think that some patrons may miss that exciting unexpected find because someone else is hogging items.  Now don't get me wrong, if someone is actually going to watch 28 movies in a week or read 53 books in a month that's perfectly fine, but if that person keeps renewing those items and checks out more, that's plain gluttony.

So if you happen to be a library hoarder, take a moment and think about your fellow patrons.  Is it really fair to others to have library items just lying on your kitchen table when someone else may get some good use out of them?  Remember--sharing is caring, and libraries do both.  Don't forget to care about other patrons and share all around.

Just my 2 cents from the perch.

Not Rowling Along

So many of us kids and kids at heart have loved reading the Harry Potter series of books.  Although the writing style may have been mundane, what really sold these books to readers was a creative world of wizardry as seen through the eyes of its child protagonist.  We explored Hogwarts, the Leaky Cauldron, and Honeydukes Sweetshop together with Harry, and we became interested in the different fascinating people he encountered, good and bad.  The Harry Potter books were page turners because we had to know what was going on with Harry, causing each newly published volume to be more anticipated than the last.

When J. K. Rowling announced that she was going to write another book after concluding the Harry Potter series, her fans were overjoyed to learned that they had not read the last from their beloved author.  When it was announced that the new post-Potter book was targeted at an adult audience, fans were surprised and skeptical, yet mostly open-minded.  They trusted that Rowling would no-doubt have the Midas touch with yet another publication.  Sadly, though, I'm afraid a number of Rowling fans will be disappointed by The Casual Vacancy.

I'm not normally a quitter when it comes to books, but I have to confess that I wasn't able to get very far past the opening of Rowling's latest offering.  The same mundane language of Harry Potter is there, only this time it's laced with gratuitous profanity.  We know this one character is dead and that many people are happy this character died unexpectedly, but we don't really care why he's been so hated.  Unlike with Harry Potter, Rowling can't gain our sympathy or interest.  Even a quaint, charming fictional town nestled among the majestic English hills can't draw us into this ordinary, non-wizarding world.  After being bored and apathetic for the first 25 pages, I just didn't want to confirm my first impressions by trudging through the next 478 pages. 

There are writers, such as James Patterson, who can easily shift between writing for adults and children, but unfortunately not all writers are blessed with such a gift.  Some writers are better off finding a niche they're good at and sticking to it.  If you ask me, I think Rowling should keep writing children's books that captivate children of all ages and leave them hungry for reading more.  Be honest--am I the only one around here who wants to know what happens to Harry Potter's kids and whether there's new dark magic brewing at Hogwarts?

Unmagical me daydreaming magical dreams on the perch.