Annual Circulation Tops 2 Million!
Posted By: webmaster
Date Posted: 8/6/2008
Local library users checked-out more than 2 million items for the first time last year, according to Deschutes Public Library Director Michael Gaston. “It wasn’t so long ago that we were celebrating topping a million circulations,” says Gaston. “This is another exciting milestone.”
The five branch libraries in Bend, La Pine, Redmond, Sisters, and Sunriver combined with the bookmobile to circulate 2,000,567 items, a 5% increase over the previous fiscal year. The Bend Library was the busiest branch library, circulating over 926,000 items annually. The Sisters Library saw a 13% increase in the circulation of children’s titles.
Local library statistics are consistent with national trends. The American Publishers Association reports that book sales continue to increase. Data indicates that teens are active “book” readers as well as avid online users. The increase in teen reading seems to be spurred in part by the availability of print titles based on popular movies and games.
“It looks as if the book will continue to be the primary reading device for most people for the foreseeable future,” commented Gaston. “The challenge for public libraries is that we will need to continue to build our print collections while we add electronic formats.”
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