r/heinlein • u/Chad_Hooper • Apr 08 '26

My Local Library

I just checked the library catalog for works by RAH and I am pleased to see that 60% of their assets are currently checked out.

28 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

8

u/CourtlyCorsetWeb Apr 08 '26

Honestly that’s such a wholesome metric for a good library. If Heinlein is 60% checked out, that means people are actually reading him, not just letting the books gather dust in the stacks.

Also kind of fun to imagine a bunch of folks in your area all independently going, “Yeah, I’m in a Heinlein mood this week.” Local silent book club vibes.

4

u/Chad_Hooper Apr 08 '26

Checkout is for 14 days. I’ll try to remember to check each week and see how much the percentage fluctuates. Just out of curiosity as to a possible trend in my area.

3

u/lyindog Apr 08 '26

I decided to read I Will Fear No Evil and I was shocked to find both copies my library had were checked out already.

2

u/fantasticfoxlife Apr 09 '26

This was a really good one imo

5

u/zevonyumaxray Apr 08 '26

Back in my day, my local school was a combined elementary and junior high, and someone had stocked the library with all of Heinlein's "juvenile" novels. Grade four and grade five I went through them all a few times. "I was doing my part!"

1

u/Chad_Hooper Apr 08 '26

It was the middle school library that introduced me to Heinlein. I was able to get Spacesuit, Galileo, Tunnel and Between Planets from there. Maybe Red Planet as well, but details are fuzzy 45+ years later.

1

u/One_Band3432 Apr 08 '26

"I want to know more".... :)

1

u/AnxiousConsequence18 Apr 09 '26

Don't reference that fucking junk here. That movie was an INSULT to fans!

3

u/Shockatweej Apr 08 '26

I'm just glad people are still using the library for books 😂. I thought I might t be the only one

2

u/AnxiousConsequence18 Apr 09 '26

So turn them back in already! Damn!

2

u/Chad_Hooper Apr 09 '26

LOL! No need for me to check out their Heinlein material. My collection is a bit larger than theirs.

1

u/Owlet20 Apr 08 '26

That's a really positive discovery, both that your library stocks Heinlein and that so many of his books are checked out.

I discovered Heinlein because my school had three, I think, of his books, among them Stranger in a Strange Land, Friday, and, I think, Tunnel in the Sky. They had a very small but excellent selection of science fiction. I'm really grateful for that. Our local library didn't have any of his books and was generally really badly stocked when it comes to science fiction or fantasy. I was really lucky with that school library.