by Robyn Woods
How do you decide when something needs to be replaced? Is it worn, dirty, or outdated? Maybe it is ripped and has stains. Well, what if it was all of the above? That should make the process pretty easy; you just get rid of it. When it comes to replacing books, it’s not quite that easy.
Collection management is a big part of being a librarian. This is something that is always occurring behind the scenes. Last year, it was time for the children’s materials to be reviewed in depth. When looking at the collection, it became clear that juvenile non-fiction books needed the most tender, loving, and caring. When you have limited space and a limited budget, decisions about what stays and what goes are monumental. There are several factors to consider when weeding the collection. Non-fiction books teach readers through facts and information. It’s important for the collection to stay up to date. The relevance of a book is a factor. Has the book circulated? Something else to consider is that this book is part of a series that has to stay together. When it comes to the U.S. state set, you do have to purchase all fifty states at once.
Because there are all of these questions when assessing materials, the best way to start this project was to look at every book. I sat on the floor with the books and took them off the shelf one book at a time. The first thing to look for is the book’s condition. As books circulate, they get wear and tear. This is to be expected with books that have been enjoyed several times. But some books take more damage than just being well-loved. Some books can’t be stitched back together with tape or glue. Books can develop mold or harbor a mystery stain. When this happens, they can’t be left on our shelves.
Because I took such an in-depth look into each book, I then had an idea of what needed to be replaced. That is when the fun part of the process began. Even in 2024, there is nothing like a new catalog. Yes, I make the purchases online, and I can always look at online catalogs and websites, but there is something glorious about having a book catalog right at your fingertips. I am then able to go through and circle all of the new books that I want to buy and read reviews. Once the books come in, they are cataloged and added to the collection. They are then processed and sorted and find their way to their new homes.
Dinosaur books are some of the most requested topics by kids of all ages. Because they circulate so frequently, many of the books looked like aged fossils themselves. That was an area of the collection that received an upgrade. The new books may physically be in the children’s area, but anyone can check them out. The infographics found in many of these books make learning fun and engaging at any age.
Recently, I learned in the book “That’s Fact-tastic!” by National Geographic Kids that in World War II, the Girl Scouts sold calendars instead of cookies due to the shortages of sugar, butter, and flour. There are always new and exciting things to be learned from a good book. What will you learn?
Robyn Woods is the Youth Services Librarian/Coordinator for the Adams County Library System.
I hope you aren’t getting rid of books that have been “fact checked” as that is happening too often these days.
Always wandered. I live in Chester County with an extensive County Library System. The trap I think is buying 50 to 100 copies of books that are read once by their fans then wind up on the shelves forever. Couldn’t many be donated to poorer systems like Philadelphia or to the school systems