It has only been a little over a year since I got my library card as an adult. I know, I know. As someone who reads and talks about books for a living, this may come as a shock.
I have fond memories of going to the library throughout my childhood and into my teenage years. I was lucky enough to have my high school attached to a local library branch which meant my student card was also a library card.
When I began my undergraduate degree in English literature and History, I wanted to own all my textbooks. This was probably the beginning of me doing mental gymnastics to justify the cost of a brand-new book because they were pretty and would (for sure!) make me a smarter student. I still have many of these textbooks sitting on my shelf so I feel justified!
As I entered the corporate world, I wanted to own all the books. The building I worked at was kiddy corner to one of the biggest Chapters bookstores in my city, so it was easy to spend lunch hours browsing and buying (it is also clear to me now that the books I was gobbling up were an escape from the doldrums of office life as an entry level worker. Wait, should I do a post about this?)
I’m not sure why it took me until 2023, as an adult in my thirties, to get my library card. Perhaps it is because I was no longer in a position that provided me regular pay cheques. I would find myself picking up books in store and then putting them back down as I tried to justify the cost for a hardcover. It seems like I am part of a growing trend of those during or post-pandemic who are returning to the library after years away. In fact, there is data to support that Millennials and Gen Z are frequenting their local libraries more and more (and, yes, we are interested in physical books, even as ebooks become more popular).
Since October is Canadian Library Month, I thought I would share how having a library card has changed my habits in ways I couldn’t have predicted.
I’ve become a faster reader…
There is nothing like a deadline for me to take it on as a personal challenge, so return dates motivate me to get reading (also a great strategy I encourage those looking to get out of a reading slump to use). So far this year, my first full calendar year with a library card, I am on my way to reading the most books I ever have since I started tracking my reading habits on Goodreads in 2013.
… But I read a lot of ‘average’ books.
This, of course, is subjective, but I find because there is no monetary investment I will place holds on titles or covers that are vaguely familiar or that I’m curious about. While I have been learning to flex my DNF (Did Not Finish) muscle and return books that just aren’t for me, I’ve also slogged through some two-star reads just because of the convenience of having them ‘free’ from the library.
I’ve dabbled in audiobooks.
I never would have tried audiobooks if it hadn’t been for my library card and corresponding Libby app. I need to read a physical page to absorb and remember the content (especially when leading literary salons!), but audiobooks have been a great way to find some easy listening options. And they help me…
Get more steps in.
Audiobooks have been a great incentive to get moving as I am not someone who will sit and listen to a book. Again, with the return date limiting my time, I will put an audiobook on 1.5x speed and get out for a walk. Plus: as soon as one of my physical holds comes in it is motivation to walk over and get it as I am lucky enough to live several blocks from a library branch.
I haven’t even tapped into the in-person events or the variety of digital resources offered by my library. I can even show my library card to get discounts at fitness facilities, access to museums and art galleries, and ski passes! These are just a few benefits to having a library card. But library cards aren’t just a gateway for us readers but are also a big help to libraries.
Public libraries are funded by taxpayers, so the number of people with library cards, and the activities associated with them, are a great way for data to be compiled and libraries to justify their funding and spending.
Libraries are space to provide connection, education, and resources no matter one’s background. This emphasis on breaking down barriers to information is a huge belief I hold (and I am constantly striving to reflect in my business). In the US, studies show that library staff also play an important role in reporting and standing up for banned and legally challenged books. While the number of attempts to censor books was down in 2024, “soft censorship” is an insidious way for books to be restricted from readers and need to be questioned.
Some argue that in this digital age there isn’t a need for physical books or even the spaces that shelves those tomes. In perhaps the most Canadian headline ever, making the case to close ‘redundant’ library branches in 2011, then-Councillor Doug Ford claimed there were more libraries than Tim Hortons in his riding. It was false: “Etobicoke has 13 library branches and 39 Tim Hortons", making it easier to get a doughnut than a book.
And libraries are important third spaces that allow for access to the internet, ability to job hunt, practice a new language, study safely, and at base, get us out of the house. They provide a place for school-aged students to meet up and work, they allow parents of young children to join them for songs and stories, and some libraries will loan out services, like instrument rentals, or use of expensive equipment like 3D printers.
The more I talk about the books I have on loan from the library, the more others reach out to share their hold list or library-based memories with me (I love cultivating a bookish community!). I’m beginning to feel like more and more libraries were part of our core memories as children and I’m worried that as we age we are slowly pulled away from our library habits. I hope you join me in returning to yours!
Let me know in the comments below, what is your relationship like with your local library? Has a library card changed how you read or buy books? Do you have memories of using the library as a kid or teenager? How do you think libraries have evolved with the times and how could they continue to modernize?