When was the last time you went to a library? You might not even remember. In fact, you might have even forgotten that it's possible to get almost any new book completely free of charge, from a service that we're all funding through our council tax.
So why, when Amazon can deliver you a book within hours rather than days, should you bother?
Well, firstly, permit us to make a little bit of a hippie argument. Roughly half of UK adults had visited a library in the previous twelve months in 2005. By 2019, it had dropped to a third. Even though there are small signs of recovery in the last two years, this represents a pretty chunky shift in social behaviour. The thing about a library is that it's for all of us. You borrow a book, read it, and return it. Seems simple enough. But there's a substantial subconscious message that lies underneath this everyday act. That book has been bought by the community, for the community, and read by hundreds of people already. It's been handled by your fellow human beings. It's a civic arrangement that is starkly alien to the individualistic age in which we now live. It's one of the last examples of a time when we felt that our local councils really worked for the benefit of everyone. Sure we all need our bins collected, but that's a necessity rather than an enrichment of our lives. It's a low-cost, huge-benefit, social contract that is surely worth protecting. If we all stop using it, it will be lost forever. As will that small sense of belonging to something greater.
If that all sounds a bit too fluffy for you, then it's worth saying that libraries have changed considerably. You might find that yours now contains a proper coffee shop. Some are now even loaning out tools for DIY, or everything you might need when you're hosting a party, in partnership with The Library of Things. And, although Paperweight magazine strongly encourages spending less time indoors, just possessing a library card gets you access to streaming services to watch films and documentaries. It could be worth the trip just for that.
So, the next time you consider reaching for the Amazon button, why not see if it's available at your local library instead? Your inner hippie will thank you.
You can find your nearest library using this postcode look-up tool.
Part of Paperweight's 'Greater Things' series; #1001 ways to live your life greater. Get it delivered to your inbox every week with Sunday Paperweight when you subscribe for free.
