ECU Library's 2023 Wrap-up

Curious about what sort of things circulate the most in our collections? Take a look at our annual wrap-up! Our most-circulated item is the same as the last two years (drum roll...) iPhone chargers! 🎉Which isn't surprising, as we check out a large number of them at the Service Desk every day.

But we're more than just phone-charger salespeople - we've circulated a lot of other interesting items this year. We've even added a couple collections into the mix - our neurotools collection and our props section are both in their first years and doing well. All this data isn't just for fun, as it also helps us see what parts of the collection are resonating the most with our users, meaning that we know what we should be buying more of.

We also want to thank all of our community members for visiting us in the Library this year. We hope to see even more of you in 2024! If there are any items you think the Library should add to our collections, please visit the suggestions page on our website or send us an email at acquisitions@ecuad.ca.

There were 9363 book circulations this year, 20% of which were Course Reserve items. So it's unsurprising to see a few textbooks showing up on the most-circulated list! This is also the second year in a row with How to Think When you Draw topping our charts as our most-circulated set of books.

We had 541 circulation from our graphic novel collection, accounting for 5% of the total book-related circulations. This sounds small, but when you consider that the graphic novels take up only 2% of our book collection as a whole, it means that they are actually over-performing!

This is the second year in a row with In the Mood for Love topping our streaming list. To be fair, this list will skew heavily towards course-related films as they are obviously viewed the most. But it looks like folks are still watching movies for fun on Criteron-on-Demand as well (here's looking at you, The Fantastic Mr. Fox)!

Lessons from a Multispecies Studio is another repeat chart-topper! Buffalo is the New Buffalo also moved quickly up the charts this year thanks to our Summer Reading Salon.

Our games collection continues to increase in popularity every year! We had 560 games circulate, and that's not even counting the games that were played in the library without being checked out. Sushi Go! remains a favourite, but has dropped down into third place after coming in first last year.

The Neurotools are a new collection this year - tools that can support anyone, but that are built with special consideration for neurodiverse folks. Since its launch at the end of October, the collection has been popular - though we have already lost a few items that turned out to be more fragile than expected (RIP fruit squishes). We are actively seeking feedback, so let us know how else this collection can support you!

Thanks to many requests to use parts of our decor (particularly our plants) as set dressing for films and photos, we set aside particular items in our collection for this type of use. We needed to ensure that our plants didn't get lost and un-watered elsewhere on campus. This collection now includes our plinths, mannequins, as well as two plants, some small stools, a lamp, and a rug.

Phone chargers are, as always, the most popular single items that we circulate. This isn't surprising, as they only go out for a couple hours at a time - and everybody needs a well-charged phone these days! The Apple vs. Android battle is going strong, but Lightning cables are still by far the most popular charger. Better luck next time, USB-C!