I recently came across an instagram post ( books.on.the.grange) about publishing trends that I found really interesting so I thought I would share. The creators are a copyeditor and a former literary agent, so they’re in the know. They talk about the rapid changes in the publishing industry and I have to say, some points really surprised me and some just made me plain sad. But there’s good news too so here’s the scuttlebutt!
Slashed Library Budgets Across the US.
I’ve noticed this in Canada too. I’ve heard of a number of library systems both in the US and Canada that have cancelled Hoopla (which makes me wanna weep) and in my public library, new additions to Libby have been cut back quite a bit, especially the audio books. (Cue the soundtrack of me weeping.)
Print books are still being ordered – just not as many. I’m guessing the higher price of books, paper, production etc. is the culprit. And that makes sense – library budgets haven’t increased at the same rate as the cost of book production. I’m still so grateful for the books I’m able to check out from my library. I have over thirty out right now so it’s not like I’m left with nothing to read!
Increasing Book Bans – Especially for Children’s Books
This is definitely a controversial topic though not unexpected. Personally, I am not a supporter of book bans. Libraries provide material to meet the needs of all their patrons, and that means they have a mandate to offer a wide cross section of books. They should not be forced to narrow down their collection in order to meet the criteria of a small subset of patrons. Easy enough for all of us to pick and choose what we want to read and just ignore the rest.
School libraries are a bit trickier. I was a school librarian for twenty odd years – elementary schools along with a few years in the school board’s Central Library. A common sense approach to collection development can head off a lot of headaches. But again, the collection should reflect the community it serves and that sometimes means controversy but it shouldn’t automatically mean book banning.
Middle Grade Books are Being Scaled Back
I find this rather alarming! Understandable though when you look at the first two points – library cuts and book bans. Sadly that’s making publishers wary. And there’s a move towards more graphic novels, which I find kinda sad.
More Investment in Adult Books
This really surprised me. There seems to be a resurgence of interest in reading in our adult populations. Yay! In fact some children’s authors are being encouraged to switch to writing for adults! I find this partly encouraging – yay for more adults getting back into reading – but yikes, who will be our future adult readers if we’re cutting back on books for our younger readers?
Increases in Printing Costs
Tariffs and inflation affect every aspect of book production which makes publishers more risk adverse. I’ve definitely noticed less new releases per publishing house when we make up our Reader’s Choice Week wish lists! I’ve also noticed that some publishers are skipping the print editions altogether and only publishing ebook and audio.
Overall, Author Advances are Lower
That doesn’t directly affect us as readers, but I hate to think of authors not being fairly compensated for the amount of work they put into their novels. Plus, if they can’t make a decent wage with their writing they might have to spend more time earning money to support themselves which means fewer books down the road for us! (Is that a selfish take or what?!
AI is clogging up Agents’ inboxes!
This one kinda stuns me. Apparently so many AI generated queries are being sent to agents that it’s taking valuable time to weed through them all. Most publishing houses have anti-AI policies (as they should!) so it’s taking some effort to filter out the AI content submissions. Which is discouraging and must be so frustrating for them! And potential authors waiting for a reply to their genuine manuscripts!
More Indie Books are Converting to Traditional Publishing
This one is another surprise. I would have thought it would be the opposite since traditional publishers are releasing fewer books. It seems they are looking for a sure thing so they are scoping out popular indie authors and signing them up. Makes sense, I guess, since those authors already have an online presence and if they’ve made enough of a name to be noticed by a big publishing firm, then they will come with a huge following which would be a marketing dream.
Big Publishers are Investing in Christian Publishing
Gobsmacked! Whaaattt???? Good news for us because some of the big publishers are expanding their Christian imprints, increasing new titles each year! Exciting to think that we readers are making a difference in the industry just by buying Christian Fiction (or requesting it for our libraries.) Woohoo!
Indie Bookstores are making a comeback!
This is really exciting. Unexpected, but exciting. I actually have two indie bookstores fairly close to me. One is within walking distance (well 30 minutes) and the other is a short bus ride a way. They are both fairly new – The Spaniel’s Tale is about five years old and Westboro Books is maybe two. I honestly thought one of them wouldn’t survive because they are pretty close. Just two neighbourhoods away from each other in an urban setting. But they both have unique spins on marketing and different focuses so they kind of compliment each other too. US indie bookstores have actually increased by 70% in the last five years! That’s amazing!
Film Adaptations Galore
There are a ton of popular fiction being adapted for the big screen and TV. In fact, it seems like books are being used as the inspiration for quite a lot of film creations which is all kinds of exciting (as long as they stick to the plot!!!!)
Lots of conversational talking points here so feel free to chime in with your thoughts in the comments! I look forward to chatting with you!
Kav's Best Reads 
Those are a lot of talking points! As I’ve mentioned, I’m a big fan of middle grade fiction, so I want to see more, not less. Moody has had some fantastic middle grade/ya fiction over the past several years, and I just reviewed a new release from IVP Kids that is classified as middle grade / YA. I’m excited to see what looks like more fiction from IVP. I’ve been requesting review copies from them for several years, and I think this is one of just a few novels I’ve seen from them in that time, plus I see another forthcoming novel on NetGalley 🙂
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That’s encouraging, Stephanie. I feel like there’s been an increase in CF middle grade books the past few years. Or maybe I’m just noticing them more. YA too. Happy Reading, Stephanie!
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Baker and Taylor went out of business and that is where libraries were getting everything. They had to cut back because they are not getting the discounts they use to get from them.
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Hence the cutback of audio books and ebooks no more discounts means more cuts to all libraries thoughout the USA and Canada.
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Hopefully our libraries can find another distributor but that’s a tall order since Baker and Taylor was such a giant. Heartbreaking too since they were in business since 1828!!!! That just boggles the mind. So many changes in our book world! Happy Reading, Kim!
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These trends are so interesting. I’m happy to hear more adult books are being printed, but not if it’s at the middle school levels expense.
I knew eventually the cost of books would go up like everything else we buy but it seems some books are out doing themselves. Case in point, last time I looked Elizabeth Camden’s latest it was 15.56 ebook and 16.38 paperback! For those of us that buy a lot of books, there’s no way we can buy as many at that price point. have wondered for years if ebooks would eventually affect print sales, but print is still going strong.
Re book banning in schools-we’ve had a big controversy in recent years over inappropriate material being available in our schools (i.e. pornography) We have a local lawyer with 2 kids in public schools who took on his school board along with a lot of other parents. They went to a school board meeting and started reading some of the books available and the school board was clearly embarrassed by the books and tried to stop them from reading them aloud. They made their point. Sexually explicit material has no place in our school system, so I agreed with them wholeheartedly.
I saw on fb that Great American Family network was making 2 of Melissa Ferguson’s books into movies. She was invited to the set, but she’s pregnant and didn’t know if she should make the trip. Their movies are always clean and wholes and its fun to see Christian books from people we kind of “know” making it onto the big screen.
I look forward to the day we get a local bookstore. I live in a big area but still nothing close, I have to drive 25 minutes to get to the closest one. The choices aren’t the best and usually full retail.
Happy reading Sunday Kav and Best Readers 🙂
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And the frustrating thing is that publishers plan their acquisitions based on sales but if the price of books become so expensive it stands to reason that fewer will be bought. I think the continued popularity of print has surprised everyone. Back in the day they predicted we’d all convert to ebooks and print books would disappear altogether.
Re school libraries. Agreed — that’s why sensible collection development is so important. I was very careful with what I purchased for my school libraries, focusing on curriculum support and wholesome recreational reading. I never had a complaint about what I didn’t have in the library. Public libraries have a wider mandate though, and that’s where parents need to be aware of what their kids are reading, rather than trying to ban all the books that they don’t approve of.
I follow Melissa Ferguson on instagram and she did end up going to the movie set! I think it’s in Canada? She took her whole family with her and she looks like she could have that baby any second! I need to figure out how to access some of these movies. I don’t pay for any streaming services and I don’t have cable so my options are limited. Sarah M. Eden’s Seeking Persephone is going to be available on Amazon Prime soon. I’ve never looked at their movie options before but I’ll have to check that out.
I’m surprised that I have two indie stores close by, as well as a Chapters Indigo (like your Barnes and Nobel) store in the closest mall. The indie stores don’t carry Christian Fiction or most of the cozy mysteries I enjoy but I have ordered through them periodically to support them. Plus they have the neatest bookish adjacent collections like mugs and pens and so many beautiful journals and stickers etc. So much fun just to browse. Or I go there to pick up a cookbook or a kid’s book for a gift. Gotta keep the indie stores in business.
Happy Reading, Tracey!
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On one hand, I can understand the logic of amount of funds and the expense of books adding up to less books for libraries. My one gripe with our library is not accepting books for their shelves. I often get ARC of books and have offered them to the library so others could enjoy them as well only to be told that all donated books go to their monthly book sell where paperbacks go for a quarter and hardbacks for a dollar. I refuse to do this. I mean hardbacks are expensive, like $25 or more. These new release books having only be gently read once, why can’t it go on the shelf. How can you talk lack of money and then refuse expensive, current books. I decided a long time ago that I gift to friends on the condition I get the back so I can donate to the hospital for the cart going to patient’s rooms or other worthwhile organizations.
I’ll just say, I’m against any form of book banning. My generation grew up without it. Yes, I’ve started a book to find it offensive to me, but I also know how to lay it down and move on. Adults have a brain to choose what to read and not read. Parents need to take responsibility of seeing that they children are reading (or anything else) that is appropriate for them and their age group.
Children need to be encouraged to read, not limited by the number of books to choose from. Their brains are like sponges meaning they need a wide variety of subject matters to read. It helps them to learn the joy of reading, which will be carried over into adulthood.
Yes, I’ve found it harder and harder to find books for the Reader’s Choice Week because everything seems to be going to ebooks. I often say that I feel like the dinosaur about to be extinct. Whether it’s trying to find an actual paperback book to read or to be given a chance for an author’s launch team, paperback options are getting less and less. I’ve had authors who I have supported and been on several of their launch teams tell me I no longer qualify because of going to all ebooks. While I under stand the cost factor, authors making less money on their books, and ever-increasing postage costs, it still makes me extremely sad and left to the curb.
Again, being that dinosaur, I’m not in favor of AI at all. Period. Enough said.
Seems to me that they are making it harder and harder for authors to be published, which means less books and probably some authors that eventually give up. That’s a great lose for us readers!
I’m thrilled at the news of more Christian books are being published! They always say the squeaky wheel gets the oil. I guess those of us that read Christian books have squeaked until it was heard.
Wish we had a book store close to us. It’s hard to have to travel a long way to one. The bright spot for me is that it make having to travel long distances to the big city for doctor appointments or tests means I’m rewarded with a trip to the book store.
Well, my two cents seems to have taken up enough space for a short story. LOL
2clowns at arkansas dot net
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I read for review and sometimes get duplicates. I approached the librarian the other day about giving books for circulation, if they weren’t already on the shelves. He said that maybe they would put them in circulation. But if they were autographed then no, because they walk out the door and don’t come back. ( I won a series that I already had). They would put them out for sale for $1. They display some for sale in the library and there is a separate sale from Friends of the Library twice a year.
But giving away or selling true ARC books is forbidden when you accept them for review. These are the ones that are pre published and are not the final copy. They may have a different binding and clearly state that they are ARCs on the cover. I have picked up several at the library sales.
iI will continue to gift my extra books to friends simpnce w3 don’t have Christian Fiction in our church library anymore ( I tried a few years ago but nobody checked them out).
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I hear what your are saying about libraries only accepting donations for their used book sales. I’m wondering if it’s because they are purchasing books system wide and so they want full control of all the library collections? I used to hold a used book sale every year at my school as a library fundraiser and I always had a disclaimer that I would pick out books I wanted for my library before putting the rest in the sale. Parents were happy with that and I go hundreds of books in great shape for my library. But it was easy for me to do because I was the only librarian and I knew my collection. So, even if a book was in great condition, if I already had two copies on the shelves, I’d let that one go to the sale. It would be harder to do that with a multiple library system collection development.
I like your no nonsense approach to book banning (or lack thereof.) I agree that it’s the responsibility of parents to be actively involved in all aspects of their children’s lives, including what they are reading. A great opportunity to share values and start discussions and help kids to become responsible for their choices.
The thing about Reader’s Choice Week and ebooks is that often, only ebooks are posted for early listings of a book but then, closer to the publication date, the print option will show up on Amazon too. So frustrating because it’s hard to tell 2 or 3 months out if books will be available in print format. You’d think they’d want all the preorders they can get!
AI is such a conundrum. I just read another article about how agents and publishing houses are being inundated with AI produced submissions. Apparently they are easy to spot because they are formulaic and very cliche because AI can’t have an original thought so it can’t create something unique out of a common trope for example, the way a human author can. But sifting through these manuscripts is time consuming and adding to the impossible workload of industry professionals which is making it even harder for an author to get noticed. So sad!
Bwahahaha! like your squeaky wheel analogy. I’m really excited that big publishers are noticing the demand for Christian Fiction and adapting their collections acquisitions accordingly. I was worried for a while that CF was being faded out.
Love the idea of you rewarding yourself with books after the long trek to doctor appointments. Almost makes it worthwhile! 🙂 Happy Reading, Kay. Thanks for the chat!
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I woke up with bad brain fog this morning (what causes that? ugh) & I’m not sure I can carry on an intelligent conversation, but I’ll try… I just took a trip to NetGalley. I haven’t been there for awhile bc their selection is not only smaller, but the last few books I’ve gotten haven’t had the text-to-speech option & I can’t listen to them while doing a boring chore. They used to have a Christian fiction selection for months ahead of time & they don’t now, which makes me wonder if they’re going to eventually do away with NG. They have a lot more books from non-Christian publishers.
So I’ve been buying most of my books & as we mentioned before the prices are escalating. I recently saw an upcoming book from a major Christian publishing company that was $18 and some change for the e-book. Are some people not going to be able to afford to read? My sis & her hubby are on a fixed income & it’s so unfair to expect them to pay such ridiculous prices for books when they need their money for food & rent. I’m all for indie books bc not only are they less expensive, but they’re very good. I wasn’t aware that there are indie book stores so that’s rather cool. And y’all have two! Do they sell Christian fiction?
I’ve seen a lot of upset peeps in Avid Readers of Christian fiction book club about Hoopla & Libby but honestly have never used them. But I’m saddened for those who did & depended on them. Also upset by the cutbacks at the library so I don’t understand why they won’t take book donations. I had boxes of nice conditioned Christian fiction books and they wouldn’t take them. I had to put them in a donation box close to our house.
I have also seen some irate authors on FB who claim their books are being copied by AI. Imagine all that hard work and long hours sitting at a computer to write a book only to have it stolen. Grrr 😡 This is super cool news, tho! Big publishers are investing in Christian publishing! We’ll see how that goes.
Thanks for helping us become aware of the many future changes in publishing that I knew nothing about, Kav. Some good, some not so good. I’ve been just sitting here happily reading, oblivious to many of these things.
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I go on NetGalley all the time. There are 367 books under Christian.and some are all the way out to September. I have a hard time narrowing it down! I do wish you could sort Fiction and non-Fiction.
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Out to Sept? I’m only seeing them through to April except for Tyndale. And def not 367. Puzzling. 🤔
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Paula, even when I quit blogging I still used NG to review books, but I was more choosy. Now I’m using NetGalley a whole lot less bc I enjoy Indies a lot & also text to speech & seeing the cover. Wonder if they’re making more books accessible to you bc you review so many from them? I know there’s no way for you to know but I’m just curious. My feedback ratio is still 100%.
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Have you tried NG audio books, Diane? Of course, that doesn’t give you the option of reading as well so they might not work for you. Definitely way fewer audio book options on NG when it comes to Christian Fiction. Interesting that you’re noticing a decline in the ebooks too. I wonder if it’s because they are shifting review reading onto authors more? Like street teams? So they don’t feel the need to add the books to NG? I don’t know hoe that works, but I expect the publishers must pay to have their ARCs made available on NG?
My understanding is that those high priced ebooks drop around the release date. It makes no sense to me why they do that because that discourages preorders. And you’re right, readers have to stick to a budget and that means less books sold. And with libraries purchasing fewer titles too, that really affects those who are struggling to make ends meet. By indie bookstores I mean Independently owned bookstores. And the ones by me do carry indie authors which I find encouraging. Sadly, no Christian Fiction, but I can order through the bookstore and it just takes about a week usually to get a book in.
Kay was saying the same thing about book donations. I think it’s because library systems are responsible for collection development, not each independent library. You never know, that may change as they face harsh budget cuts.
I think AI is the worst thing to happen to books and publishing — such potential for plagiarism and so invasive and hard to fight. It needs to be regulated somehow but we aren’t there yet. And yes, I’m encouraged by the increasing interest in CF.
Happy Reading, Diane!
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Your reply was in my junk folder! How dare them! I can’t do audiobooks. I’ve tried even listening to samples online. I just can’t concentrate on them. Especially at the beginning of the book where I have to learn the characters. Also now that hubby Is working somewhat less he is in & out & it’s so distracting. Then he gets his business calls in the evening, too, when I’m trying to read. I hate to put the ear thingies in bc then I feel like I’m shutting him out. lol I do turn my e-books from text to speech when I’m making my bed, chopping up veggies, fixing hair, etc.
Oh, I wonder if that’s it with NG. Street teams. I’ve had to cut way back on those & only participate in the ones that I’ve been on for years like Nancy Mehl.
Oh, yes! Chapters Indigo is a great store & I usually post my reviews there. The online store has Christian fiction. Also KOBO has indie books & BookBub online. I think they carry e-books as well although I’ve never purchased 1 from them. I just use them to post reviews.
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It is a mystery for me how that works! I am pre approved for Revell and Bethany House and Barbour and get approved most of the time by Tyndale and Thomas Nelson. I get some from being on Street teams too. My review rate is 93% but has gone up as high as 95%. But I always seem to have more books downloaded than is possible for me to read in a timely fashion. I get greedy! Ha ha!
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Paula, they had your reply in my junk folder. How insulting of them. We’re talking books here, not junk. lol I used to have auto-approval for all of those publishing companies as well, except Tyndale. Then Revell, Bethany, Barbour took my auto approval back. Now I have to request all galleys except Thomas Nelson’s books. They’ve been good about granting my requests, but I have friends who also had auto approval & they are getting turned down.
Kav may have hit the nail on the head. It may have something to do with being on street teams. I’m only on a few of them now bc I don’t want to get overwhelmed by deadlines & all those street team requirements. Only a true reader can understand “book greed”! I totally get it!!! LOL!
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Diane, per your Netgalley comment. I used to read all my arc’s on my kindle and use the text-to-speech feature, but amazon got wise to what readers are doing and they pulled the plug on that. You can only use that feature when buying books on amazon. Just the same way we amazon used to allow readers to lend a kindle book one time, they pulled the plug on that too. They are preventing any ways that readers can use their fire tablets for reading unless readers buy from them, aggravating! It’s not like amazon doesn’t already make huge profits! I use the text-to-speech option 95% of the time so I rarely get review books anymore. Sad, the times they are a changing…
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Yes, they certainly are. But it seems like Amazon would realize that our positive (mostly) reviews will draw more readers to their site & therefore garner more sales. Bc it’s pretty much a requirement from NetGalley to post your review on Amazon & typically we do on Goodreads as well. Sometimes if I buy a book, I don’t always review it bc of time or health issues on that particular day I conclude the book. But when I used NG for reviewing, I always posted a review on Amazon & GRs. No matter how I felt!
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I remember hearing that Amazon was trying to become the main book distributor for libraries after the demise of Baker and Taylor (the biggest book distributor ) and I’m wary about that. I think Amazon is way too big for its britches!
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Yes, I quite agree! Should we boycott? Nahhh 😂
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Definitely too big for their britches Kav! I have a like/dislike relationship with them.
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My problem is that I’m bound to Amazon because of all my audible books. Plus, they are mostly the only source for indie authored books. I try to buy everything else at other stores and only buy books on Amazon so that’s as boycotting as I can get. 🙂
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This is very interesting. The AI one is so confusing. Like, why? I was looking on upwork for writing work and saw some editing jobs for AI written books. Honestly, I’ve been writing my manuscript for years, pouring time, energy, and love into it. How sad that people are getting their manuscripts written in a few days and edited for a $100 online! I just realized I may be able to report those jobs. I’ll have to look into that. I was also surprised about the Indie publishing trends now moving toward Traditional. I feel like it’s so much cheaper and gives an author more options to independently publish. But also, I’m sure one would make more money traditionally published.
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It’s got to be nonreaders who are pushing the AI produced books concept. They may be able to string some words together and create a cohesive plot but it will be a story without a soul, no emotion, all the little nuances that trigger a positive reader response. Writing is an art! I find this all very frightening. And yay you for working on your own manuscript! That’s exciting!
The indie switch was the most surprising trend for me. But it’s kind of a smart move for a publisher since they are getting a known entity with a successful indie author – one who comes with a following – which can’t help but boost their sales which is important in this finicky industry. And I guess it would be a relief for an indie author not to have to deal with all the production and marketing aspects of writing – and an advance wouldn’t hurt either!
Happy Reading (and Writing), Rebecca!
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When I worked at the library (a few years back), publishers were starting to charge differently for ebooks. The library could purchase a hardback or paperback book, and that book could be checked out a hundred times (if the book lasted that long, grin!). But when the library purchased an ebook, the publisher set limits on how many people would be allowed to check out the book.
For example, if the library only purchased one hardback book of The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. cost $25.00 If the library wanted to purchase that book in an ebook form, they’d charge the library the cost of the book. After, say, 25 people read it. The book would be taken back. The library would have to purchase the ebook again. That seems crazy to me. But that cost could be higher on popular books. Hence the need to participate in the Libby program. Not sure if they are still doing this.
BOOKS Made into MOVIES—I love that we are seeing this happening more and more. It seemed for a long period they were just recycling the same movie, same cast. I’m excited to name just a few books made into movies. Recently
The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden
Margo’s God Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
Paddington in Peru by Michael Bond
Project Hail Mary
The Amateur
People we met on Vacation
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
Regretting you by Colleen Hoover
Thank you for this post; there is so much to be aware of. Thanks for all you do.
Nora finding hope at yahoo
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That’s an interesting insight into how ebook purchases for libraries work. I can see how that affects Libby purchases. Who would have thought a print book would have a longer shelf life than an ebook?!
That’s an impressive list of book movie adaptations! I’m mostly aware of the British productions of classic authors and cozy mystery series so this is an eyeopener. Wonder how it affects scriptwriters though? Are there any original scripts being written any more? I guess it’s another case of going with what is already popular and has a following so they are guaranteed a viewership. Thanks for sharing, Nora!
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Talking about library budgets, etc. – I think we are still trying to get back to the basic supply/demand averages we had before Covid, which affected everything in our lives. Economies basically or nearly stopped for months, and we see it so much in the high inflation during the past few years. Thankfully our inflation numbers are much better, actually on target if you look at the index, but if you study economic history, you find that prices don’t typically drop back to their original point. They will abate some and the current or expected inflation rate is in a good range for growth of economy, but I don’t expect anything I buy to revert back to the 2020 prices. Just my opinion based on reading WSJ, Kiplinger, and other business publications and my educational/professional experience in the finance/business sector. So, that said, we all still obviously dislike the higher prices for books, ebooks, etc. purchased personally and for the library purchases. I watch for sales and also use my library. My library many years ago started as a tiny volunteer library and then we eventually repurposed another town building and renovated for a library. It joined a group of other local/regional libraries to share books. They used to accept nice donations for the shelves but now it is more of a drop off scenario, and they will view/study and probably all will go to the Friends of the Library booksale.
There used to be in the 1990’s two nice independent bookstores that we visited frequently in a 10-mile radius of my house, but there is just a Barnes and Noble now and for quite a few years.
Interesting their comment regarding an increase for Christian publishing. Just looking at publisher websites, it seemed like an actual lessening in offerings.
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Ohhh, I think I know of a book that would be right up your alley, CC. Have you heard of The Lies We Trade by Kristine Delano? I think it’s her debut and the heroine is a Wall Street financial manager….or something like that. it’s a suspense/thriller published by Tyndale. The finance business aspect of the book makes me hesitate because that is so not my area of expertise or even basic comprehension but I’ve heard some good reviews about it.
I love your library’s origin story! And the cooperation between libraries to share resources is a great way to expand a small library’s collection.
And yes, the increase for Christian publishing intrigues me too. I think we’ll see this play out in future years since they were talking about current trends which means publishers are looking to sign up more CF authors now which means the books won’t be released until 2027 and beyond so we won’t necessarily notice it right away. I find it encouraging though.
Happy Reading, CC!
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I don’t remember hearing of that book. Thanks for sharing the information, as it does sound rather interesting as I am reading the publisher’s summary.
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The library I worked at took donations and was up front with how the process works. We took books that were in good shape. No school books (college or regular school), VHS tapes, or cassette tapes. The library would have a huge sale (thanks to the donations throughout the year). The money collected went into buying new books for the library. It was very popular and helped get new books or additional copies of popular books.
Nora finding hope at yahoo
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Used book sales are a huge boon to libraries everywhere. I had to laugh at your list of want they won’t accept because that’s always what folks want to offload! 🙂 Our library has similar limitations. We used to have two mega huge system wide books sales every year but now every branch has their own little used book store and there’s also a monthly mega sale at the main branch. I’m in a city so we generate a lot of used books, I guess.
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Thanks for all the info on publishing Kav and others above. It seems like I’m experiencing fewer options at my library, especially through Libby and Hoopla. I used to be able to have 20 books in my holds for upcoming releases on Libby, and now they aren’t being ordered at all or not until close to release dates. And I’m seeing more audiobooks on Hoopla rather than ebooks, which sadly don’t work for me.
I’m still using my library since I have to be selective in spending my book dollars 😊, but it’s more of a challenge.
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Good information here! I’m officially following books.on.the.grange.
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Kav, How did I not know you were a former school librarian?! Thank you for sharing this very informative post! Have an amazing week.
psalm103and138atgmaildotcom
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I hope more bookstores pop up near me! We used to have several used bookstores we would frequent, but unfortunately most of them have closed. The closest one now is about an hour and a half away so I can’t go as often as I’d like. 🙂
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