TN Public Libraries Get Cheaper, Faster Book-Sharing Service

WKMS | By The Associated Press,

Whitney Jones

Published December 27, 2012 at 7:44 AM CST

Tennessee's public libraries will soon be able to share books cheaper and faster thanks to a new interlibrary loan service. The Secretary of State’s office says the Tennessee State Library and Archives has been paying about 200 thousand dollars annually to help libraries mail books to each other. But that amount only covered about half of the postage costs. With the new Firefly Courier service, a courier will drive to each of the state's 177 public libraries twice weekly. The state will pay about the same amount, but there will be no cost to the local libraries. The loan program will also expand to link public libraries with those at colleges and universities. The nonprofit Tenn-Share helped develop the service.

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Whitney Jones

Whitney grew up listening to Car Talk to and from her family’s beach vacation each year, but it wasn’t until a friend introduced her to This American Life that radio really grabbed her attention. She is a recent graduate from Union University in Jackson, Tenn., where she studied journalism. When she’s not at WKMS, you can find her working on her backyard compost pile and garden, getting lost on her bicycle or crocheting one massive blanket.

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