Should You Buy or Borrow Books?
A common dilemma faced by readers, especially those who read regularly, must be the choice of how to acquire a book. To buy or to borrow?
Between heading to your nearest bookstore to browse the latest selection of books, and making a trip to the library every week, it all seems to come down to personal preference. But is one option better than the other?
Why Buy Your Own Books?
There are several reasons why you might choose to buy a book instead of borrowing it from the library. Whether it’s a physical book, an eBook, or an audiobook, it could be the satisfaction that comes from buying a book written by your favourite author, especially when it has just been released after much hype.
Alternatively, these are books that could have inspired you to achieve a personal goal, or even comforted you during tough times. Owning an author’s books could be a way to give back to someone who has made an impact in your life.
More Time to Read
Apart from being able to support an author directly, buying a book allows you more time to finish reading it. And should you wish to return to a particular section of the book in the future, adding a copy to your personal collection allows you to do just that.
On the other hand, borrowing a book from the library means there are constraints around the time you are allowed to have it in your possession. This can be difficult to adhere to should you find that your priorities have changed, making you unable to finish a book before it’s due!
Personalise Your Own Book
If you’re one of those readers who love highlighting certain passages or underlining new words that you’ve encountered in a book, this is a big one. For instance, when you own a physical book, there are no limits as to how you can make it yours (even if you do decide to damage it by folding a page).
When it comes to a physical book, however, borrowing it from the library means you have to take extra care of it. After all, it is a book that is being shared with others! Should you opt to do so, consider using temporary methods such as highlighter tabs to mark your reading progress.
Read a Book Immediately
When you have purchased a physical book from a bookstore, or an eBook or audiobook online, it is expected that you can read it immediately (if that is what you wish). And even if you have purchased a physical book online, it is guaranteed that a copy is yours and is on its way to you, even if this process typically takes some time.
If you are eager to read a book and decide to check with your library, you may be disappointed to find that all of the existing copies are on loan. Conversely, if the book has only been released within the week or month, your library may require some time to acquire it for readers.
Why Borrow Books From the Library?
Now that we’ve explored some reasons you should buy your own books, it’s important to highlight the benefits of borrowing books from the library, especially if you aren’t familiar with the process.
Depending on your reading goals, you may find that doing so helps build a consistent reading habit due to factors such as cost (or the lack thereof), as well as the variety of titles available to choose from. Below, we explain why:
More Cost-Effective
For those who prefer borrowing their books from the library, the ability to read for free is surely a factor that keeps visitors coming back for more. As libraries typically have a high borrowing quota, users who read regularly are able to take home a large number of books at any one time.
If you’re someone who enjoys purchasing physical books, perhaps you love taking beautiful snapshots of your hauls for #Bookstagram, as we’ve seen on the social media feeds of our favourite influencers. However, this may not be cost-effective for those who have a voracious appetite for literature (and who said you couldn’t do the same with physical books from the library?).
Return Books You Don’t Like
A downside to acquiring these physical book hauls is that sometimes, you may not enjoy all of the books that you’ve got. And that’s okay. If you’ve simply borrowed these books from the library, you can always return them and find other books that better suit your interests.
However, if you’ve purchased a physical book that you stopped reading partway through, you may end up not finishing it, and leave it to collect dust in a corner of your room!
Try Reading a New Format (for Free)
One advantage a library holds over a typical bookstore is its selection of books across formats, all in one place. You’ll most often have the choice of reading a physical book, an eBook, or an audio version of your book of choice (subject to availability, of course).
If flexibility is something you value as a reader, or if you’d like to explore new book formats before purchasing them, consider checking them out at the library first, especially if they’re available to read on-the-go via the NLB Mobile app.
Are you a book lover who prefers to amass a personal collection of books? Or are you the type who loves having the world at your feet upon stepping into your favourite section at the library?
If your answer’s the former, perhaps it’s time to visit your nearest library and be surprised by what you’ll find!
