Library Book Purchases

I just thought I'd write a bit about the book purchasing process at the library. I've already written about one part of it in the post about expanding our graphic novel/manga collection, but there's more to it than that.

The process Sharon and I followed when expanding our graphic novel/manga collection was what we do in general if a particular area in the library is lacking. We identify the gaps, try to find a selection of good books that will fill the gaps, and purchase some of them. Previously library staff have done this with computer books (shortly before I began last August) and law books (a few months ago).

If we aren't trying to fill a particular gap in the library's collection, Sharon and I look for books that are informative, interesting, or entertaining. For every book we're interested in, we consider a few factors:


1) What the library currently has in its collection

If the library already has a number of books in a particular area, a book in that area has to be very good or unique for us to consider purchasing it.

An example of this happened when I was looking for a new book about programming websites (the books that were in our collection were around ten years old). I came across a book called The Baby owner's manual that looked pretty interesting. Sharon reminded me that we already had many books in that area. We took a closer look at our collection, and realized that the tone and audience of this particular book are quite different from the other books about babies in the library's collection, so I ordered it after all.


2) The price of the book

Nomatter how wonderful a particular book is, there are limits on how much we're willing to pay for it. While researching graphic novels for the library, I found that we could purchase a hardcover edition of the complete Death and Life of Superman for around $70. That was one of the biggest comic book storylines of the last two decades, but that price was (sadly) too much for a comic book. When Sharon and I discussed expanding our graphic novel collection, we agreed to spend around $100, so spending $70 on one book was not a practical choice.


3) The expected popularity of the book at our library

The library has already pre-ordered Dan Brown's newest book based on the overwhelming popularity of his previous book The Da Vinci Code. We also recently purchased The Dark River, because it was the sequel to The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks, which had circulated a relatively high number of times for a library of this size.


4) Reviews of the book

We often check the reviews for a particular book on amazon.ca before purchasing it. We're well aware that the reviews there do not represent everyone, but they give Sharon and I something to consider.


5) Patron suggestions

Sharon and I both welcome purchase suggestions from library patrons. If possible, give us the title and author (the ISBN is also welcome), and we'll take a look (at the items listed above) and consider our options.

A word of warning: if the book is overly esoteric or expensive, we probably will not purchase it unless there is sizable and continuing demand for it. If that demand never materializes, we'll likely suggest you wait and then request the book through an interlibrary loan.


If you think you've found a book the library should purchase, consider the things I've typed above, then suggest it to Sharon or me. You can do it in person or by leaving a comment after this post (a Google account is required)