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Darian Reed

Mrs.DeBock

English IV Honors

25 March 2017

Essential Question: Why is investing in books from a bookstore more beneficial to readers than

borrowing books from libraries?

Working Thesis: The benefit of purchasing books outweigh the benefits of borrowing books from

libraries since purchasing books gives readers a greater freedom.

Refined Thesis: Bookstores, unlike libraries, give readers the opportunity to be more creative

with their books, explore a vast collection of unlimited uncensored stories, as well as give

readers a warm and friendly experience than numerous libraries struggle to produce.

Annotated Bibliography

Astor, Dave. "Is It Best to Buy or Borrow Books?" The Huffington Post. 28 Sept. 2011. Web. 23

Mar. 2017.

Dave Astor shares his viewpoint on buying and borrowing books while describing

his experience with libraries and bookstores. He supports libraries more than he does

bookstores since he feels that borrowing books make him more productive in his reading

life. The article only takes into consideration printed book, discluding ebooks and

audiobooks. The author also feels that bookstores are more concerned about the profit

made from the books rather than being concerned over the books and the readers. Though

the author prefers libraries he does not deny that bookstores have benefits. This viewpoint

on libraries can be used in my paper as a counter argument about how libraries can be

more beneficial than bookstores for some readers.

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Berger, Adam. "Print Vs. Digital Media: Overview." Points of View: Print Vs. Digital Media, p.

1. EBSCOhost, 1 Mar. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

The article gives a brief overview of the creation of ebooks, and how ebooks are

supposed to be beneficial to the reader in a few ways. Adam Berger points out that ebooks have

begun to replace printed books for quite a few people. Numerous readers see the benefits of

reading ebooks. This article, though it supports ebooks, says that a select group of people will

continue to read print books simply because it is a personal preference. Adam Berger also takes

note that publishing companies are going to have to raise the prices for ebooks because

publishers do not want to lose the profit that the company usually makes by producing and

selling printed copies of the books. The information in the article can be used to support my

thesis that talks about the other benefits bookstores have other than just the selection of their

printed books.

Karp, Gregory. "Why Buy When You Can Borrow Instead?" Tribunedigital-chicagotribune.

Chicago Tribune, 15 May 2014. Web. 23 Mar. 2017.

Gregory Karp has broken down the benefits of going to more modern libraries. The

modern libraries he describes offer more than books. For example some of the libraries that the

author has visited offer ebooks, audiobooks, and movies. Based off of the authors experience

some libraries have recently been lending out materials such as baking pans so that a person is

not required to go out and buy a baking pan that they will only use once. These libraries are

trying to draw in more readers and people in general in hopes of keeping libraries from being

made irrelevant by technology. The libraries described by the author contain vast databases that

contain copies of older newspapers and magazines for people who need the sources at their
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fingertips. This article is one that can be used to describe the counter argument to my thesis since

it discusses the many benefits of modern libraries.

Poulton, Lizzie. "A Book of Their Own: How Owning Books Affects Children's Literacy." A

Book of Their Own: How Owning Books Affects Children's Literacy | National Literacy

Trust. National Literacy Trust, 7 July 2010. Web. 23 Mar. 2017.

This article talks about how children of the most recent generation are more likely to

have phones than they are to own a book. Studies in the United Kingdom have shown that a

childs literacy is more likely to be better if the family has books in the home than if the family

relies on schools to supply the children with books. Other studies have shown that when families

have books at home it not only increases the childs literacy level but it also improves the literacy

of the adults in the household. Programs across the country are trying to motivate children to

read more and for parents to invest keeping books in their homes in hopes that the family will

have an improved relationship with books and reading. This article will back up my thesis since

the article highlights the benefits of families owning books and how owning books is beneficial

to all readers.

Rippel, Chris. "What Libraries Can Learn from Bookstores." WebJunction. N.p., 21 Mar. 2012.

Web. 23 Mar. 2017.

Chris Rippel highlights the differences between libraries and bookstores as well as how

libraries could benefit from making a few more changes in order to draw in more readers. Some

of the benefits of bookstores that the author lists are the music, the lighting, and the layouts of

the shelves and books. The author implies that the atmosphere of bookstores are part of the
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reason why bookstores draw in more readers especially since some people feel as though

bookstores feel more welcoming when a person enters the building. The article states the belief

that libraries should put more consideration into smaller details about what the library looks like

inside since it can affect whether or not a person picks out certain books over others. The article

draws attention to details that support my thesis about how the atmosphere in bookstores are

more welcoming than the atmosphere of a library.

Vaughn, Vanessa E. "Counterpoint: E-Books Offer Significant Advantages over Printed Books

That Will Attract New Readers." Points of View: Print Vs. Digital Media, p. 1.

EBSCOhost, 1 Mar. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

Vanessa Vaughn discusses about how ebooks are more advantageous than printed books.

She briefly mentions the fiscal benefits from reading ebooks instead of printed books, but the

main point of the article is that ebooks help students in school understand and analyze books.

Based off of the some surveys and research studies have shown that a percentage of adults in the

United States currently own or have owned an e-reader in the past. The author also talks about

studies that have shown the improvement in literacy due to ebooks. This article supports my

thesis that buying books is more beneficial for the reader since the article talks about the benefits

of ebooks, which are mostly offered in bookstores, as well as how ebooks have helped the nation

with its overall literacy rate.