Library Question

[mawvkysc]

I prefer reading non fiction. How is the selection in the new libraries? Most pictures I have seen show lots of fiction. 

[Mary229]

If past experience is anything like now I would recommend a tablet and downloading your own selections.  In the past the nonfiction is travel related or very popular fluff.  There is an exchange area that you may find something interesting 

[dockman]

Which ships?

 

I would recommend you bring a few paperbacks along and then leave them onboard for others in case you are on a ship that basically does not have a real library which unfortunately is becoming more common.

[mawvkysc]

31 minutes ago, dockman said:

Which ships?

 

I would recommend you bring a few paperbacks along and then leave them onboard for others in case you are on a ship that basically does not have a real library which unfortunately is becoming more common.

I’ll be on Zuiderdam. I think it has one of the new style libraries that they are putting back on the ships. 

[crunchii]

Here is the non-fiction section of the library on Zuiderdam. This photo was taken a couple of months ago in late August.

 

[dockman]

Just now, crunchii said:

Here is the non-fiction section of the library on Zuiderdam. This photo was taken a couple of months ago in late August.

 

i have more books than that in the trunk of my car....hardly what i would call a "library" for couple thousand passengers.

[crunchii]

That was just the non-fiction section of the library, as that's what OP was interested in. Here's the rest:

 

 

 

 

[Destiny0315]

Remember the old slogan, "Reading is fun"? Well here is the entire library(including games)on Carnival's newest "fun ship" the Venezia.

[cruisemom42]

4 hours ago, mawvkysc said:

I’ll be on Zuiderdam. I think it has one of the new style libraries that they are putting back on the ships. 

 
If it is like the one recently installed on Westerdam there is very little non-fiction. Bring your own. 
 

(Plenty of young adult fiction and poetry though….🙄).

[ski ww]

1 hour ago, Destiny0315 said:

Remember the old slogan, "Reading is fun"? Well here is the entire library(including games)on Carnival's newest "fun ship" the Venezia.

That is pretty sad.

[mawvkysc]

4 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 
If it is like the one recently installed on Westerdam there is very little non-fiction. Bring your own. 
 

(Plenty of young adult fiction and poetry though….🙄).

A friend of mine recently published his first book (“The Earth’s Project”).  It’s YA fiction. His publisher said the number one consumers of YA fiction are women in their 40s and 50s. 

[Lakesregion]

7 hours ago, dockman said:

i have more books than that in the trunk of my car....hardly what i would call a "library" for couple thousand passengers.

Actually it is overstocked given how little most people read these days while on vacation.

[albingirl]

4 minutes ago, Lakesregion said:

Actually it is overstocked given how little most people read these days while on vacation.

I see alot of reading while on vacation.  I've even seen people bring their local library books on cruises!

I think a loaded kindle suits me just fine, but it's welcoming to see library books onboard now.  Libraries are one of the last free things we enjoy in society, and who doesn't enjoy a fresh new book?

[OlsSalt]

Thin on non-fiction.  Very thin and with a certain political slant. Think about bringing a favorite to donate to the share section, and help build a more diverse inventory.

 

I love non-fiction and current events too, so this lack of serous choices did force me to dip into a few books I would not have picked up but found to be good cruise reads - in the paperback share racks.

 

Thanks to whomever left the Italian detective series "Murder at La Fenice" paperback on the Noordam for a rollicking good cruise read. The historical fiction about Achilles, not so much.

[Banditswife]

I love to read, but have never read from a ship's library.  I am afraid I wouldn't finish reading it while on board.  So what are the rules?  Book exchange?  Does the book exchange usually have a good selection?

[Susanmaz]

If I don’t finish a book I’ve taken from a ships library, and it’s something I want to finish, I check it out from my library at home or find in a used book store.

[Toofarfromthesea]

It doesn't make sense for a ship to have an extensive library when anyone can easily bring thousands of books they personally select without adding an ounce to their luggage weight, IMO.

[OlsSalt]

14 minutes ago, Toofarfromthesea said:

It doesn't make sense for a ship to have an extensive library when anyone can easily bring thousands of books they personally select without adding an ounce to their luggage weight, IMO.

 

It does make sense. Happy to see HAL is making a selection of onboard real print books available again. e-readers are not for everyone. Luggage weight and space considerations are real. 

[mawvkysc]

23 minutes ago, Toofarfromthesea said:

It doesn't make sense for a ship to have an extensive library when anyone can easily bring thousands of books they personally select without adding an ounce to their luggage weight, IMO.

To me it’s more relaxing to have a paper book in my hands. Also, my iPad is hard to read in the sun. I’m not interested in buying a separate e-reader that works in bright daylight. 

[ECCruise]

Even though we would never use the library for books (our 500+ books on Kindle Fire more than satisfy) I applaud HAL for reinstalling the libraries for those will will avail themselves of them.  And this thread verifies that those folks are out there.

[Susanmaz]

It does make sense when one takes the time to realize that everyone has thousands of books handy…. I know of hundreds of people who don’t don’t use technology for anything.

[Djptcp]

My husband said the last time we were on the Rotterdam the library was gone. We are sailing on her this Sunday and wonder if anyone lately has seen a library on the Rotterdam again? We will bring our own paperbacks and my Kindle has new books downloaded, so we will be set. Just curious about the Rotterdam.

 

As a retired Librarian I am happy to see support for our libraries. They are for everyone and free.

[WriterOnDeck]

Remember the Zuiderdam is on the Grant Africa now and will be doing the Grand World starting in January. On the Grand World earlier this year her new library got quite a workout.

[OlsSalt]

Serendipity is also one of the underrated joys found in real book onboard libraries. Finding books you had not even thought about reading. Plus being able to quickly thumb through ones that you don't mind rejecting. Some of my most favorite reads were random and unknown titles picked up in past HAL ship libraries. 

[Mary229]

4 hours ago, Banditswife said:

I love to read, but have never read from a ship's library.  I am afraid I wouldn't finish reading it while on board.  So what are the rules?  Book exchange?  Does the book exchange usually have a good selection?

I suggest sitting down with your librarian at home and installing all of the apps and going through a demonstration of the depth and breadth of the modern digital library.  I have access through my library card to most of library systems anywhere in the state of Texas including the universities, thousands of worldwide newspapers and periodicals, the library of Congress, thousands of videos, documentaries and even some tv series. I am not as avid a reader as some but I have a hard time imagining that there is not enough in digital libraries to occupy every single person on the ship for months.  Yes, there is always that odd book that I need to order but that book would certainly not be on the ship either.  In the old ship libraries I did enjoy the travel books as I could quick run down and read a refresher on an upcoming port. 
 

all of that said browsing the exchange can be an eclectic journey and I always try to leave some interesting book there for the next person

Edited October 18, 2023 by Mary229