An
article in the Star Tribune about the imminent launch of
Bookswim--the "Netflix for books"--finally prompted me to go check out the site, which has been hyped for months and months.
One of the reasons Netflix succeeds for me is its fairly deep collection (sure, only 75,000 titles, but film has only been around for a century)--the ability to find small documentaries and all-but-forgotten queer films from the 70s that I can't get at my local bricks-and-mortar video store (because they have limited shelf space and can only afford to stock greatest hits).
Bookswim is
not following this model, which surprises me. Their cheapest rental plan is (on "sale" now) $23.99 per month for 3 books at a time--a rate I would only be willing to pay if I could rent things I can't find readily on the shelves at my local library (by readily, I mean not through ILL or with a long holds list--ILL is lovely but still a slow process, and if I could speed up my access to less popular titles with Bookswim, I might). I'd go gaga for a service that would permit me to borrow the thick lit, design, and art journals that most public (and even academic) libraries don't subscribe to (like
1913: A Journal of Forms). As a graduate student, I'd have loved to be able to keep obscure ILL books as long as I needed them without racking up fines.
But Bookswim co-founder George Burke says, "If you're into Bavarian architecture from the 16th century, that stinks for us because we have to go out and buy that book...We're limiting our inventory based on what's shippable, what's rentable, and what doesn't cost us too much to buy in the first place." I searched for
Stuck Rubber Baby, a 1990s graphic novel by Howard Cruse that's available at my local library, and got this message: "Sorry. Whatever jibberish you just searched for did not produce any book results." An author search on Ulla Dydo, a literary critic, produced the same results. A search on popular author Dave Eggers yielded only his most well-known book,
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
Lost Girls by Alan Moore, a giant erotic graphic novel trilogy that I was bummed that my local library did NOT purchase (because I really wanted to read it and it cost $75), was also "jibberish."
I browsed the poetry section, and was initially impressed: the first page of results got me not Maya Angelou or Mattie Stepanek, but
The Age of Huts by Ron Silliman,
A Book of Prophesies by John Wieners, and
Urban Myths by John Tranter. Huh. Further browsing found that the collection seemed to be weighted towards Australian and Canadian poets and publishers Salt Modern Poets and Auckland University Press. A quirk (especially since Bookswim only ships to the USA)? I wonder if these presses
donated books to Bookswim...if so, small presses and DIY publishers take note: this might not be a bad way to get more widespread attention for your catalog. Though I also wonder how often those books will be checked out from Bookswim.
Bookswim is focusing on paperbacks over hardbacks, which means it could be hard for a customer to get her hands on a new hardcover
NYT bestseller (another Netflix strength is getting the most new popular titles quickly--and a library weakness is long request lists for hot new books). Even with the paperback focus, I imagine book delivery and return could pose a challenge for city customers with tiny mailboxes.
Some are saying Bookswim will be great for people who physically can't get to the library, and it may. Before plopping down $23.99, though, check and see if your library has a free at-home delivery service. Many do. Bookswim advertises "no late fees" like Netflix--but if you're only getting 3 books out at a time, could you really rack up more than $23.99 worth of late fees at the library (video store fines are far higher than library book fines)? Most libraries have a "maximum fine per book" that stops way short of $23.99. Another selling point is that Bookswim is great for people who don't have time to stop at library--but do they have time to read $23.99's worth of books a month?
One Bookswim feature I
do admire is the customer's ability to simply keep and pay for a book she likes. From the site: "Love a book? Keep it! Just log on and let us know that you love the book. You'll simply pay a DEEPLY discounted price for the book and we'll send you your next order." That's a service more than a few library patrons would appreciate...
Unexpected (to me) source of great graphics for collage, browsing pleasure, etc: Google Patent Search. Had occasion to use it for the first time today and noticed that the graphics/patents on the main display changed every time I hit "refresh." Check out this funky shark protector suit. Or this "device for cooling infant's brain". Or Monkey Doll. Or this aerial view of a planned merry-go-round. Then print some out and make yer own coloring book. 
