Take ten minutes to visit your library. Books, CDs, DVDs and possibly free internet

pcg2001

Hi, reading through the post I noticed that noone mentioned Westminsters libraries in London. They are really great.
I use them for example for:
- travel guides. I've saved quite a lot of money.
- language courses on cd cost about £2 to rent for 3 weeks (they are really expensive to purchase) - lots of languages on offer and levels (1.60£ for Rescard)
- dvds: with a resident card they are really cheap. for example the not-new releases are £3 for 3 dvds for 1 week. They also have weekend deals (3 for 2 at the moment I think)
- audiobooks cost £0.60 with the residents' card

You can enrol in one and use them all. With a westminster resident card you have discounts on whatever you have to pay. :T
And their opening times are great - they're even open on sundays.

See you in one of them!! :rotfl:

http://www.westminster.gov.uk/libraries

thebrow2000

I love the Library, but I keep forgetting to renew me books. I must have racked up 20 quid in fine. And at my Local it doesn't go back into books, but instead the council pockets it!!!

descartesmum

I love my library.
Since I am on Income Support I do get some concessions, cheaper requesting fees and cheaper cd fees too.
Then one day one of the librarians noticed that I was disabled and that I was entitled to everything free except for requesting up-to-date dvds. Which is wonderful because I do request alot of books and now it's free!
The staff are wonderful, I've known them for 20 years so besides books I get a chat and a joke.
My library is also on-line so I can request books/cds/dvds in the comfort of my home and then I can see when they are ready for me to pick up. Which is good because it takes several days for me to get a notice that the book is ready for pick up.
On Sundays I sit with the Book Sections of the newspapers and make notes of books I want to borrow.
There have been times that I have requested books not available in this country or no published yet and I get a call from Central Library to explain the situation.
So I give full credit to Stevenage Library and it's staff.
:T

joemardo1

And on the subject of a free read, lets not forget places like W.H Smiths or Easons in N Ireland, large book stores where you can have a free read, Anytime of the day you can go in there and people are having a free read of books mags newspapers without buying. The staff dont seem to mind and Easons in N ireland has even provided a little stool beside the computer mags section (how cool is that) Now I can sit down and have a read like a proper library.



Joe

grecophile

I couldn't manage without my local library...I 'eat' books! I could never afford to buy all the books I read. Libraries are such an amazing resource. I adopt several methods of choosing books but the one that makes the librarians smile is when I go in and pick up a very random selection without looking too closely at them within five minutes. It makes for reading ( or not id the book is really not to my taste) books I would never choose normally.
Libararies abroad though- use them for internet access, information and help. they are great places...except for Greece which has no public libraries....:(
Our local library is happy to accept donations of books you no longer want- good ones go on shelves, others go on a for sale rack to raise funds for more books.

123xyz

SurfBowlSC wrote: »

Not exactly something you should be happily admitting to though.... that's breaking the Copyright Law!!

Do recording artists get public lending rights in the same way as authors?

Rabiddog_2

Despite all the praise I have to say my local library isnt all that great. CD's are cheaper to rent (than buy) but dvd's are NOT. They charge three quid for all newer releases and 2.50 for older ones. I prefer lovefilm for one month at a time. (Tip, note down over the year what films you want to see, then join lovefilm for 1 or two months, very often they are so desperate to get you back they will offer you a free month or two on top) Charges in Lambeth libraries are too high also. Luckily the books that I have that are overdue have all been exposed to unmentionable diseases, thats why I couldnt bring them back on time. The stock of books is very bad and tatty, and the actual selection is quite small. Getting a seat to sit down can be difficult sometimes. And turn off your mobile, yes the rules apply to you!!

pianoman

I don't think anyone has mentioned the many online services that libraries provide in addition to reserving and renewing books. My library in Gateshead allows free online access at home to many external services. You simply enter your library card number when you get to the external site. You will have to find the link to your own library from its website. This is what Gateshead offers: http://www.asaplive.com/online/index.cfm?ccs=531
The Grove Dictionary of Music (which would normally cost £195 + vat for a year's subscription) and Art, Oxford Reference Online, listen to the complete Naxos CD catalogue online. There are more services you can access when you are in the library such as the Ancestry library if you are researching your family history.

Bevann

I work in libraries too and am amazed some authorities charge £1.50 to reserve a book. In Kent libraries we only charge 25p to reserve a book from any Kent library and £2.00 from outside Kent (this inculdes overseas and we sometimes get books from America). Internet access is free and we have volunteers who come for a few hours a week to give people individual help with computer problems and queries. Our children's tapes and CDs are free too (yes even on an adult card) and under 5s don't get fines at all and we don't charge if your baby or small child damages a book. There is a audio/visual offer once a week (most Kent libraries it's Fridays) where you can take any three audio/visual items (dvds/videos/CDs/tapes) and only pay for two. This means you get three DVDs for £6.00 for three days (there is an extra day over the weekend). Children's DVDs are usually £1 for a week, so even cheaper!

honey

I love the library , I live in Northamptonshire and I use several of them, but my favourite is my local one in Wellingborough.

The amount of books I can borrow for free still astounds me (and I used to work there!) My children love choosing new books. I can search for books, renew and reserve on-line - libraries are fantastic :money: