DISCUSSION: Libraries

As fellow book people, I’m sure you’ll agree with me when I saw that libraries are the worst. Not in the usual ‘they’re so boring, blah blah’ way but in the ‘I already have enough books to read. Why are you doing this to me? WHHHY?’ kind of way. 

Hi, I’m Ely and I have a library addiction. (Now you all reply ‘Hi Ely’ in your monotone voices. Okay, GO!) I haven’t been to the library in three days, but I was on the library website three minutes ago looking as to whether any of my books have come in yet, even though it’s a Saturday and books don’t come in on weekends. It’s starting to take over my life.

Until about two years ago, around the time Chami and I started this blog, I got a library card after ten or so years of not having one. I used to borrow books from school in that time, but you could only ever take three out at a time so it was never a big deal. Then came the library card. Suddenly, I could take out as many books as I wanted and I could order books in from other libraries. I’m sure you can all imagine how this went.

That was my second library haul. The first time I went with Chami, and I got about 15 books out. I couldn’t even carry them. 

See, the things is...I can’t resist my library. I own about 400 books already, most of which are unread but I keep going back to that library, most of the time for books I don’t actually need. Currently, I have seven books out from the library and another seventeen on hold. Yes, that’s the level of crazy that I am on. 

I thought I’d share the books I currently have from/are on hold at the library. Firstly, the ones I have – Dissonance by Erica O’Rourke (2014 release), Perfect by Ellen Hopkins (because I NEEDED it after Impulse), On the beach by Neal Shute, Mr. Penumbra’s 24-hour book store by Robin Sloan and After Darkness by Christine Piper (all of which were recommended to me by the wonderful Brit) and then Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini and Star Cursed by Jessica Spotswood (both of which I have actually started). 

Now onto the ‘on hold’ ones. Capricornia by Xavier Herbert, Reluctantly Charmed by Ellie O’Neill and Lyrebird Hill by Anna Romer (again, recommended to me by Brit), The Road by Cormac McCarthy, Illusive by Emily Lloyd-Jones, Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta, I know why the cadged bird sings by Maya Angelou, Dark Places and Sharp Objects by Gillan Flynn (for reasons I am not entirely sure of), Gone Girl also by Gillan Flynn (because of the movie), The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (because it’s on my Top 14 to read and so I can understand Belzhar), Watchmen by Alan Moore plus two volumes of Captain America (because GRAPHIC NOVELS), and finally Toxic Heart by Theo Lawrence, The Scorch Trials and The Death Cure by James Dashner (because I want them, but I don’t want to pay for them). 

This is what happens when I put myself on a book buying ban. You see this? It’s baaaad. Anyway, now it’s time for us to go around in the circle and you can tell of your terrible library addiction.