I think its time I stopped trying to assign actions to specific months! We remain committed to monthly actions but in reality we take things on as we think of them and sometimes that means four in a week and other times nothing for several months, or just recognising after a long time that an established practice is in fact a sustainable practice but we hadn't thought about it that way. And I blog infrequently, in sudden rushes like today.
We have been public library members and users for years, and signed Eva up when she was tiny. I have been a long-time collector of picture books, and at least half of those I purchase are from second hand book shops, most commonly the shop selling discards from the State Library of Western Australia which sells children's books for $1 each. Some of these are torn or drawn in, although very rarely in a way that reduces the enjoyment of the book, but most are simply surplus to the library system's requirements.
We have been public library members and users for years, and signed Eva up when she was tiny. I have been a long-time collector of picture books, and at least half of those I purchase are from second hand book shops, most commonly the shop selling discards from the State Library of Western Australia which sells children's books for $1 each. Some of these are torn or drawn in, although very rarely in a way that reduces the enjoyment of the book, but most are simply surplus to the library system's requirements.
Initial Time: Joining the public library took about ten minutes, and for Eva was even easier, as a rep from the library visited our mothers' group.
Initial Cost: Zero.
Ongoing time or cost commitment: Public library membership is free. A library trip takes about half an hour. About once a year there are a few extra minutes to renew our membership records. I can lose an hour easily in the discard bookshop, especially at sale time when extra piles of books are brought out. I rarely make a special trip but I seem to find myself there anyway (mostly because I do research work that takes me to the Battye library, in the same building).
Impact: We borrow about 200 books in a year, mostly picture books for Eva. If we were to purchase these books it would take about 40kg of paper, as they are mostly board books. Once she graduates to soft paper books this could reduce to only 20kg of paper per year to keep her supplied in paperback picture books, or rise closer to 70kg for a year's supply of hard-cover picture books. (I've just weighed piles of books and was very surprised to find hard cover paperbacks weighing so much more than board books!). I don't know how to calculate the quantity of ink used to print these beautiful books but at a guess they substantially do not use natural dyes!
I admit to some discomfort about not purchasing books new. I value the high quality of children's literature produced in Australia (and elsewhere) and I recognise that borrowing or buying second hand makes it harder for the industry to survive. This is one of the ways I justify to myself that I do also purchase new books. Since Eva got into books, nearly every book I have purchased for her has first had several runs from the library until we are sure it really is a winner. I also try to support actual bookshops, especially independent stores (including Oxford Street Books , Lane Bookshop and St Johns Books Fremantle), rather than purchase online, as I value the atmosphere of a real book store and its contribution to a neighbourhood. There is no bookstore in our neighbourhood at all and this seems a terrible loss to me.
I admit to some discomfort about not purchasing books new. I value the high quality of children's literature produced in Australia (and elsewhere) and I recognise that borrowing or buying second hand makes it harder for the industry to survive. This is one of the ways I justify to myself that I do also purchase new books. Since Eva got into books, nearly every book I have purchased for her has first had several runs from the library until we are sure it really is a winner. I also try to support actual bookshops, especially independent stores (including Oxford Street Books , Lane Bookshop and St Johns Books Fremantle), rather than purchase online, as I value the atmosphere of a real book store and its contribution to a neighbourhood. There is no bookstore in our neighbourhood at all and this seems a terrible loss to me.
Just after writing this post we discovered a new independant book store had opened in our local shopping strip: http://www.crowbooks.com.au/ Let's hope it survives.
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