Impulse ...since 11/13/08 checked out 145 times |
Alone ... in the library since 11/2/06 and checked out 147 times |
A New Guide to Women's Health ... since 3/8/08 checked out 113 times |
The Naming ... since 10/16/08 checked out 131 times
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The above came from the library in a women's section of a prison. Books are checked out for 2 weeks and may be renewed twice, however, during that time they may be read by a person's cell mate and passed along thorough many other hands meaning that times "checked out" is the lowest number of times that they were read. At least 4 additional readings per checkout would not be hard to imagine. Hardbacks as well as paprbacks are taped, re-taped, sometimes bindings glued, sometimes covers re-made to keep them from falling apart. The pages are often soft and thin. The books shown are all still in the library, 9 to 11 years after they were first placed on the shelves.
"The life of a book is measured by the number of hands that has held it."