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Comment by wat10000 | Hacker News Reader

The point of libraries is to help people access the books they want. If someone wants Oprah's book then why should the library not help them access it? If a lot of people want it, then why should the library not stock many copies so that more those people can access it? They don't exist to gatekeep books and ensure people read whatever you think are the right kind of books.

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I have a bit of a problem with the all or nothing framing this discourse usually has. I think that libraries should make an effort to stock evergreen classics in addition to the recent, hot, and in demand. The new ones will be checked out a lot, then fall off, and then the library eventually gets a new batch of new hits.

They do serve a lot of people with this method, but am a different cohort. If a library is to serve a diverse group of people it should also remember book snobs like me. When I visit my local library it is as if anything remotely classic is hidden in a secret area, you can’t find hardly any of them.

I totally agree. People who want evergreen classics count too, and the library should do its best to ensure they can get the books they want as well. They shouldn't stock nothing but bestsellers, any more than they should stock no bestsellers at all.

And, with the Internet (e.g. Gutenberg), evergreen classics are less of an issue. Speaking for myself, I've gotten rid of most of my books in the public domain unless they have other characteristics like illustrations that make me want to hold onto them.

The libraries actually do this, even if it’s not entirely visible or advertised- most librarians are rabid book-lovers and would love nothing more than to stock great books and similar.

They just provide cover with the DVDs and the pulp.

If a lot of people want it, it will be widely available through other channels. If you buy too many copies, you end up with what we see in many libraries, multiple copies of last/previous years' flavors-of-the-month that nobody cares about any more. Great for publishers who want to maximize library sales at $80/unit, not so great for readers who want a wider selections of books to choose from.

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