Excuse my ignorance, but would someone please explain to me why anyone cares about usage statistics for books? I can understand that usage statistics for journals might enter into decisions about whether to continue subscriptions, but what decisions follow from book usage statistics? Since books are unique items, and a library has already purchased the book before any usage statistics are available, what does one do with the statistics one gathers about book usage? I can imagine that authors might find the information valuable, as usage might be some indicator of value, and even publishers might find the information useful, as a sign of what kinds of books seem to have a greater receptivity in the market than others. But why are these statistics important to librarians? Sandy Thatcher Penn State University Press