Belfast Free Library Circulation and Social Media



The garden area behind the library

The Reading Fairy,
 the garden is behind her through the window.

The Belfast Free Library has a back exit across from the main circulation desk on the first floor. This exit takes you to a beautiful fenced in garden area complete with benches and flowers. There is even a fairy house in the garden. The garden can be viewed from the spiral stairs leading you to the first floor from the mezzanine. As you ascend and/or descend these spiral stairs, you see The Reading Fairy enjoying a good book. My daughter has always called these "the fairy stairs" which she loves to use every time we visit.




Circulation:

 According to Library Director Steve Norman, 80% of the new audiobooks will only be down loadable. The library has stopped acquiring tapes. They have been receiving only CD's for the last 5-6 years. He sees in the very near future that even CD's will not be available, quite possibly materials will be down loadable only. It will be up to the publishing industry to make this actual decision.

Down loadable materials are up at the library 200-300 % annually. Books, however, have seen a slight decrease. The area community's response to audiobooks is favorable. There have been many requests for assistance using eBook readers and a few compatibility issues. The selection still remains limited, yet the statewide cooperative helps readers who are looking for a variety.

Social Media:

The Belfast Free Library has many "likes" on its' Facebook page.  It is a great place to share library events and other community information. The con to social media is the fact that it is difficult to keep the page, along with their blog, updated. It does require a great deal of staff time. They see social media as somewhat effective in keeping the community informed and they are making progress in updating their posts. The Library sees their community collaborations as the most effective way to keep the greater Belfast community informed.