Confessions of a Wayward Bookworm

I am ashamed to admit that I did something that I haven’t done in YEARS…I visited the local library! No, I’m not ashamed that I went there. I’m ashamed that it’s been so long since I did that.

From grade school on, I loved going to the library. Both at school and at the local branch. I could spend a lot of time there, browsing for books. Checking out a stack of books and taking them home. If I couldn’t finish them all in the 2 week time period, I would renew the unfinished ones and get a bunch more at the same time. I always had books at the ready.

As an adult I would check out favorite books time after time along with new ones I hadn’t read. As the years went on, the favorites that went out of print were no longer in the library. I started tracking them down to buy. Used book stores became one of my favorite haunts. Also Salvation Army and Goodwill.

As the Internet became a more and more reliable place to find used books, I went to the library less and less. I joined Barnes & Noble online and found a lot of my favorites. And when I’d get coupons, I could buy books at a discount. I also had memberships in Mystery Guild and Science Fiction guild.

I can’t remember the last time I actually stepped foot in the local library. I hated it when they got rid of the card catalog and went to computer only. I would sometimes look for a certain book or subject in the card catalog and find other wonders along with what I was looking for. When it was computer only, you had to have a specific book or subject. I think that might have been the breaking point. When I saw the notice that it was opening up again after lockdown let up a bit, I decided to get a new card and have a look see. Things have changed drastically, and not just because of lockdown. It’s just not the same. But I will still try to patronize the library to show support. Now the library is closed again with curbside pickup only. I’ve started doing that and hope things will change soon.

By the way, I have to plug a couple of my absolute favorite used book stores. The Bookworm in Oroville is outstanding. The folks there are the best. In Clovis there’s a store called A Book Barn. That is a wonderland! Huge inventory. They are also online. When I was going down to Fresno on a fairly regular basis, I would always try to visit A Book Barn. And the people there are great too. Very helpful.