A library card is a must have, in my opinion, but if your schedule doesn't allow for time to peruse the public shelves, The Wall Street Journal has a handful of alternatives that might work for you. The downside: they'll cost you.
- Paperspine.com: WSJ compares the service to Netflix, which sends books to your mailbox for a fee. There are no late fees like you'd get at the library and two-way shipping is free, and monthly plans start at $14.95 for up to three books at a time. If there's a title you want for your collection, members can purchase over 400,000 unused titles up to 50 percent off.
- Bookswim.com: The starter plan lets you rent up to three books a month for $19.98 without shipping or late fees, and if you can't bear to give it back, you can buy the book for second-hand prices.
- Booksfree.com: With plans starting at $10.99 a month, the service rents out paperbacks and audiobooks in CD or MP3 formats.
- Audible.com: Download audio books, podcasts, and audible magazines from this Amazon owned site. It costs $7.49 for the first three months and $14.95 per month thereafter.
Source: Getty
Rick Cardona
Start London
Karen Millen
I've used Audible.com, but you can get so many podcasts for free it seems a shame to pay.
1Not buying books from Barnes and Noble was one of my ways of economizing this year. Though the library may seem a bit out of the way, majority of them let you search for the books online and place a hold so you can just go in and pick up your books. A great thing about public libraries? Umm hello, they are all free
My county has multiple libraries but if one book is only available at one branch, they bring
it to my local branch without a problem. The Library is also great to rent DVDs. New releases are a bit of a wait, but its saving you money in the long run. Thanks to my library I have nearly
16 books with me to read and it cost me $0 
2My county's library system provides home delivery service, which I only use if I need to put a hold on a book that's checked out or if it seems to only be available in branches that are sort of far away.
3Um, the whole point of the library is that it's FREE. Why the heck would you pay to check out books? Seems kinda dumb to me. I personally LOVE the library. I probably go there at least twice a month to get new books. It's like shopping, only it doesn't cost any money!
4I've considered the netflix-style book services because my city libraries don't have the best selection, they don't have dropboxes to return books, meaning I have to return the book during library hours (which can be tough when I work 9-5 and libraries are only open for a few hours on Saturday and closed Sunday.) Also, parking is on-street, which can be a serious pain. The library system in my home town was great and I realize now that I took it for granted.
5I use the library more than ever. I encourage people in Philadelphia to go too and save our neighborhood libraries from the budget cuts.
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