Most S1 and S 2 and some S3 pupils have now completed the online survey. There have been a number of good comments made by pupils and over the course of the next week or so I will post the replies here.

The first batch of comments relates to the books.

Resources

A lot of you commented on wanting more new books but you have to remember that money doesn’t grow on trees. The library buys around 300-400 new books each year and before they are shelved they go on the display shelves. Just ensure that you check these from time to time.

• More modern books available
• More well known books
• If there was more new books by good authors

We do purchase books by well-known authors. If you can’t find what you are looking for then please put in a request for it to be bought.

• More of the newer books, I don’t like reading old ones unless its a new edition, sorry, I can be a bit fussy

Fair enough, but as we only have a set budget, some popular books can get a little tatty and we do our best clean and / or repair them and will replace them if necessary.

• I would like the library to have more girls books for our age group
• A Bigger Selection of Girls Books

Umm! There are plenty of these on the shelves and in March ’09 we did receive a box of around 20-30 books aimed at teenage girls. They were prominently displayed for a while. Remember. You can borrow books from the displays!

• To get more books that are in diary genre
• More books like the latest films
• Manga

Good idea! I will keep these in mind when I start thinking about the book orders. If you have any specific suggestions then let me know!

• More books for my age

Well, sorry if I am a bit flippant here, but Duh! This is a secondary school library and the books are specifically selected for your age range. If you really think the books aren’t suitable for your age then please let me know or discuss it with your English Teacher/

• If there were more books on things that interest me

You really need to let me know what you like. Trends in teenage likes and dislikes can change so fast it can be hard to keep up.

• If we could take out any book not just the junior fiction ones

You are able to look at the senior fiction if you want to. S1/2 pupils who are good readers  need to speak to your teacher or the Librarian if you are interested in borrowing senior fiction. You may be required to get a letter of permission from your parents.

• Put books in sections by their genre, not by author’s surname, that way it will be easier to find

Books used to be shelved by some genres but they weren’t getting used much so it was decided to go back to traditional alphabetical order. You can use the catalogue to find books by genre.