Library books (and e-books) vs. physical copies of books for children

We do both. We use the library literally several times a week (at minimum it's been once every few weeks for my kid's whole life). We also occasionally buy books, accept hand-me-downs, etc. I really recommend both. You will never have all the books in the library. A great thing about visiting is getting such a huge variety. It allows your kid to try new things without reservation or worry about money. But having a shelf of books at home gives the kid familiar old loves to turn to any time. It reinforces that books are important - part of what "home" means. I feeling that for me, has lasted almost 40 years so far. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520213116.htm that the number of books in your home (not how often you read them!) has a powerful impact on your child's long-term educational achievement. I think a love of the physical book is part of what keeps me, personally reading.

The way you feel about the books that were in your home as a child, I feel about my childhood public library. The librarians were just fine with my wandering into the adult books as long as I was quiet, starting at around age nine or ten, before which I had a habit of just stealing things my mom had finished reading that she'd gotten out for herself. (Lest this seem too much like I'm labeling myself a prodigy, she mostly read cozy mysteries that ran short and simple.) We did have some books, but not tons, and more kids' picture books than anything else. So--seems like it works fine, to me.

I agree that you should do both. I grew up in a house with a lot of books, and I also had a library card. The library was about two blocks away, so I could go any time I wanted. The library allowed me to discover books on my own, which was valuable. I learned that I could explore what was available and choose what to read on my own, instead of simply reading my mom's books. I got exposure to books that my mom wouldn't have bought for herself. But, I don't actually remember many of the library books I read! I read a lot of books, and most of them blended together - except for the ones I reread. I wasn't likely to reread a library book, simply because most of my rereads were impulsive. (I'd want something familiar in that moment, but I probably wouldn't plan to check out a book so I could reread it.) The books that really made an impression on me and became "friends" were books that I could reread at will because we owned them. These are the books that really shaped me as a reader and as a writer. Also, about ebooks ... I grew up before ebooks were a thing. I suppose you can read ebooks whenever you want, but honestly, I find it more difficult to lose myself in an ebook than a paper book. Even if it's a dedicated reader like a Kindle (and not an ipad), I find all of the functionality distracting.

I agree with all the "both"-ers above. Since I had kids (and got an e-book reader about the same time!), I have been more strategic about what books to buy in hardcopy and what to buy in e-text (and what to borrow at the library). I think of the books I choose in hardcopy as "childbait," intended to sit on the shelf looking enticing and be weird and wonderful and strange and thoughtful and world-expanding when the kids, on a rainy afternoon when they're stuck at home, pull them off the shelf in boredom to flip through. The is an idiosyncratic selection that relies partly on what I love (poetry, history), partly on books I loved as a child, partly on Great Books (Plato, Shakespeare), and partly on shit that is irresistibly page-flipping, like brilliantly-colored, oversized atlases, or collections of pictures of jellyfish, or exploded diagrams of machines. I recall, vividly, studying my parents' atlas for hours and hours on end trying to understand the bigness and strangeness of the world and becoming more and more curious about it, and I try to stock some shelves with things that are similarly curiosity-inducing and puzzling.

Seconding both. Library for the wonderful library ambiance and selection, special good quality owned books to treasure and read over and over. Learning how to use a library--really really USE one, not just checking the catalog or computer-- is a fantastic skill that will stand them in good stead in their university years (and later.)

My parents did not have a large number of books personally, but each of us (the children) had several shelves of books in our own rooms. We regularly got books as one of our winter holiday gifts, and at random times throughout the year. I vaguely remember my parents reading to me before I could read myself, but after that we read on our own. As in, we WANTED to read, flashlight under the covers after lights out and choosing books over playing outside kind of wanting to read. I'm quite the nerd, but I digress... We also were regulars in the library. During the summer we went once a week and each left with armfuls of books. I quickly figured out that the adult sections had much cooler books, and my mother never batted an eye. I think this is where most of my discovery happened. Books were always considered awesome in my house, even when we didn't own a ton of them. Reading was encouraged, which I think is more of the point. It's not about owning the book, it's about reading the book.

We are a family that reads a lot. My 7yr old got a kindle during the summer between 1st and 2nd grade, mainly because his older brother had gotten one a few months earlier. At the fall parent/teacher conference, I learned that his reading level had jumped up a lot between the assessments done at the end of 1st grade and the beginning of 2nd. I am 100% sure it's because of the kindle. My two boys (7 & 11) and I share an account, so I can wirelessly send samples of anything that looks interesting to their kindles, just by clicking on it from my computer. My rule is that if mom put the sample on your kindle, you are allowed to buy it - otherwise you have to ask. The instant gratification is awesome. All 3 of us read more now that we have kindles. And Amazon is frighteningly good at predicting what you want to read next and suggesting it to you. We have been known to spend $100/month on kindle purchases. With slightly more effort, I can borrow e-books from the library, but the selection isn't as great. I used to think I was the sort of person that loved the physical presence of a book. Turns out, I am the sort of person who loves to click "Buy Now" and have whatever I want to read magically appear. I read a lot before having a kindle and I read even more now. Also, since we share an account, the books that I bought for the 11 yo can be downloaded for free onto the 7yo's kindle once he's ready for them. We have physical books in the house, but the vast majority of reading gets done on the kindles.

Can that same sense of magic and discovery really be recreated in a house with few permanent books? I think a love of reading is a love of reading. You may find that when/if you have kids you have a less-itinerant lifestyle and having a few more bookshelves becomes what you do. Or you may find that the whole family is on the go and you get into the habit of recycling your reading through paperbackswap.com or something similar and maintain a similar lifestyle to what you have now. I think it's important for kids to have some of their own books just like I think it's good for them to have their own toys and their own clothes they like, etc. Books are a way that people try things on to see what works for them, and a way they learn about the world. Kids also get books as presents quite often so there should probably be some accommodation for books in the house at some level. I know parents who live in small places and have limits on space generally and they still manage to make sure each kid has their own bookshelf. That said, the library is about more than books. There's socializing with other kids, learning to fulfill your own information needs, meeting other kids who may like different books, going to kids programs and, at some point, reading books that your parents may not even know much about (or like!). It's about meeting other adults who are really into books who can give you advice on what you read or listen to or watch and it's to interact with a community of voluntary readers (which isn't always what school is) in a public space that everyone supports. And just from a book-borrowing perspective, it's for being able to take home ten books and maybe deciding you only want to read six of them without anyone hassling you about money or anything like that. I still have a really special place in my life for the books I grew up with and had at home (Winnie the Pooh, Frog and Toad, Amelia Bedelia, Encyclopedia Brown) but I also have strong attachments to some of the cool books my library had that we'd never get at home (compendiums of comics, self help books, a million joke books) and those were important too. Device-based reading means, to some people, that you don't borrow books as often but it's still totally possible and there are some great resources like Open Library (where I work) and things like the http://en.childrenslibrary.org/ which are great for helping kids get a worldwide view of children's literature, even if they live somewhere that doesn't have as large a range of options.

Thank you for sharing your experiences and advice! It looks like the consensus is to both use libraries and build a personal library at home. I guess this is what I was leaning toward when I posted this question, so I'm glad to hear that others agree. I'm going to move towards purchasing a few more books than I have been for the past couple years.