Spent my first day in the library doing a basic count and estimate of volumes to order the proper amount of covers for paperbacks. We have a lot more than I thought! Roughly eight hundred paperbacks of assorted sizes. Whew! I have decided that the children's books will probably remain uncovered since we a) have so many of them b) they are mostly hardbacks (without jackets) and c) paperback covers won't make them much more resilient against a determined child than if we left them uncovered.
I think the best way to begin the organization is to go back to some of my Apple basics - make sections that are easily divisible and reasonable goals that are achievable. So with that in mind I will first order supplies from Brodart and make a Staples run, (yay!) and start to separate the books into sections and create some order upon the shelves. They are already loosely organized, but it's difficult to know how much we have of one section or another without rummaging through piles. Fortunately we have shelf dividers which will make this way easier. I don't know if the original librarian/committee/volunteer/whatever knew just how lovely and priceless those things are.
One thing we really need for the library right now is an area to keep our supplies that is out of sight and out of mind. I've found a few things at Ikea that would make things easier, but at the same time they are overpriced and unwieldy. Ideally we could have a table with some lockable drawers and a librarian station for covering books, etc... the thought of creating a kind of lazy Kate for the rolls of book covers has crossed my mind, and it wouldn't be difficult - a few pieces of wood cut down to size and a couple of dowel rods would do nicely. However I have yet to find a place to keep such a monstrous contraption.
Another thought is to cut holes in a box (or modify an appropriately sized dairy crate) and put the dowel rods in there - easy to stack and change out rolls, as well as easy to move and store... any ideas?
Well, a good first day to get things rolling!
-Kirsten
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