A coworker of mine at Pikes Peak Library District recently wrote an article about the lost art of browsing for the winter issue of our quarterly District Discovery magazine. In the article, he talks about how simply taking a moment to browse, especially at physical locations, enriches our lives. Ever since reading it, I have been thinking about what browsing opportunities exist in my own life. We live in a fast-paced world with constant demands on our limited time. Much of the technology in our lives has adapted to make the most of the time we do have by identifying what we like and catering content recommendations based on that. Music and TV streaming services will show you lists of content based on what you streamed recently. If you’re an eBook reader, many eBook apps are similarly designed to show you books based on your recent reads. Even online shopping apps show you items based on others you have viewed or purchased. These tailored lists are convenient, but they take away much of our browsing experience and limit our potential to discover something new.

Reflecting on my favorite books, I realized that my coworker had a point about browsing. I discovered many of my favorite books by browsing outside of those catered lists. Sometimes browsing has led me to books that would ordinarily appear in content catered to me, while other times I discover entirely new delights that would not have crossed my screen. I found my favorite Colorado-local fantasy author (fantasy being my favorite genre) Carol Berg while browsing the new fiction shelf at my university’s bookstore some time ago. Browsing the Bonus Borrows section on the Hoopla app led me to the travel memoir “Bicycling with Butterflies,” which I greatly enjoyed even though it was wildly different from my usual reading. While browsing the comics and graphic novels shelf at Library 21c for more of my usual favorites, I discovered another book outside of my usual that illustrated the history of France shown through changes to a fictional house in Paris over the course of 750 years. I might not have discovered any of these if I hadn’t taken the time to browse.

In my experience, whether you’re looking for books, video games, magazines, board and yard games, music, or movies, the library is one of the best places to browse. I can spend as much time as I want leisurely browsing without feeling pressured to spend money as I would at a store. My browsing usually starts with my favorite sections where I can look for favorite authors or series before shifting to experimentally pulling books that look interesting. After that, I often drift off to other sections I have less interest in. That’s how I fell into a fascinating art photo book by Simon Doonan that opened a window into the intersection of art and fashion in the first half of the 1900s.

Take time this month to stop by your favorite Library location to do some browsing of your own. You never know what you’ll discover.

Carla Bamesberger is the Public Relations and Marketing Manager for Pikes Peak Library District. Besides reading and touting all that the District offers, this Coloradoan enjoys spending time with her husband and pets, biking, crafting, and gaming. She can be reached at cbamesberger@ppld.org or by calling (719) 531-6333, x6259.