Tampa Book Buzz

miscellaneous library chatter

Time recently had two interesting tidbits about libraries:

47 — Number of years Robert Nuranen kept a copy of the book Prince of Egypt borrowed from the public library in Hancock, Michigan, before finally returning it last week.

$171.32 — Amount he paid in late fees for the book.

–from the January 22 issue of Time.  Hell, I’m impressed with the library’s record-keeping skill.

“We’re being very ruthless.  A book is not forever.” — Sam Clay, director of the library system in Fairfax County, Virginia, about the threat to remove thousands of books from its 21 libraries, including classics like Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom The Bell Tolls and Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, because they haven’t been checked out in two years.

–from the January 15 issue of Time. I don’t know which saddens me more: the fact that no one has checked out those classics or that the library is going to ditch them.  Sigh..