Libraries Unlocked - a new system and a fresh haul of books to read.

 Libraries Unlocked

As regular readers of my blog, and anyone else who knows me personally, will know I love to support my local library. Services in my local area are making a gradual move to the Libraries Unlocked system, where you can access the library buildings between 8am and 8pm, Monday to Saturday with just a tap of your library card and a PIN number. While this enables users of the library more flexible access to collect and return books, it also has a detrimental effect on the physical staffing levels at the library which means I am torn in my opinion of whether it's a good thing or not. I recently used the facilities for the first time during 'Unlocked hours' and I have to say I felt rather awkward being in the building without any library personnel on site. I'm sure this will gradually become the norm, and I was pleased to be able to pick up my reservation at a time when previously it would have been inaccessible, but I still say you can't beat having a smiling face greet you as you peruse the shelves. Someone to put new customers at their ease, or to help long-standing customers like myself who are looking for recommendations of a new author or genre to spice up their reading habits. The youngsters - new to the endless choice of books available, who just need a bit of guidance to find their favourite authors - and the older generation, or those with accessibility issues, who just need a helping hand to access books in either large print/audio format or via the BorrowBox digital lending library service. Essentially, libraries need people - both sides of the counter. Use them or lose them!

Does anyone else have the Libraries Unlocked facility in your area? What are your thoughts and experiences - good, bad or indifferent. Let me know in the comments section below.

The Books

So, what did I find during my out of hours visit? My purpose for visiting was to collect Jo Spain's latest novel The Trial which was published in April, which I have been patiently waiting for having reserved it round about publication day. I've dived straight into this one, and I'll let you know my thoughts once I've completed it - I'm about a third of the way through so far. It's centred around St Edmunds college in Dublin and a student named Dani whose student boyfriend Theo disappeared in 2014. She's back at the college 10 years later as a tutor and she wants answers - and not just to the obvious questions either.

The second book I picked up, The Verdict, is by a new author to me, Nick Stone and was written in 2017. It's a courtroom thriller (one of my favourite genres) although I have been warned that the said Verdict takes a while through the book to arrive, so I'll need to soak up all the clues along the way to see whether it goes the way I think it might. 

I also chose 3 others by popular authors David Jackson, BA Paris and Sophie Hannah. Whether or not I manage to read all these before the loan period expires (or my mood swings and I fancy something lighter for a change) remains to be seen, but my gut is leading me towards reading The Prisoner by BA Paris next. A sneak peek at the first chapter has piqued my interest in that one so I need to go and get my head into a book and read some pages to even stand a chance of getting to it. 

If you have any thoughts either on the libraries unlocked system or any of the books I've mentioned, please drop me a comment :-)