Before moving to Renton, my family lived in Kirkland and we were faithful users of the KCLS. It was a shock to move down here and find out Renton wasn’t a part of that system. However, the shock soon gave way to gratitude. Let me tell you why I prefer the Renton Public Library:

1. Shorter wait times. When a great new book comes out, I am usually about No. 10 on the waitlist for two books in Renton compared to being No. 216 for one of 13 books. I found I’d get the book months before my KCLS friends. Sometimes I walk in and the new bestseller is waiting for me on the shelf. It’s like hitting the reader’s lottery.

2. The whole series. If I find a great new book, I can pick up the next one in the series at the Renton Library. KCLS must have a policy against keeping series together because, unless the series is more than 12 books, there isn’t another one in that library. One always has to request them. In my experience, book No. 4 comes in weeks before book No. 2, making it a long, painful process to read the series.

3. Late fee policies. The Renton Library is very generous with late fees, giving a three-day grace period to return the book. They even send out reminder notices a couple of days before the book is due. The KCLS charges a late fee on the due date if you return the book during the last 20 minutes the library is open. They also notify about overdue books, about a week or two after the due date with the resulting fines.

The City of Renton has a precious pearl in our library, and that’s before we even bring up the helpful friendly staff. If we choose to lose our library, we will never get it back.

Leiana Smith

Renton