Want to borrow a copy of ‘Spare?’ Get in line at the library

“Spare,” the triple threat that features a memoir, the British royal family and its secrets, arrives this week at Siouxland Libraries, much to the delight of hundreds of impatient readers.

The memoir written by Prince Harry describing his difficult relationship as a second son has been available for about a week, but shipping issues delayed its arrival at the library. On Wednesday, however, librarian Beth Berg was notified that her order had been shipped. In the meantime, she has ordered additional copies from Amazon, and those are to arrive within hours.

The initial order of 20 print copies and the additional five from Amazon will go into circulation immediately, delighting the more than 150 wannabe readers who placed themselves on a waiting list to read the memoir.

More than 65 other library patrons will be able to start reading the large-print editions of “Spare.”

Those who reserved the library’s e-books, e-audiobooks and audiobooks on CD already have begun to check out those versions of the books, but there still is a waitlist with more than 200 people on it.

Berg serves as Siouxland Libraries’ collection development and cataloging librarian. Her oversight includes the purchasing of library materials like e-books and audiobooks.

The interest in “Spare” has set records at Siouxland Libraries.

“This is the most we’ve bought,” Berg said. “We usually don’t buy more than 20 copies of a book. But as a general rule, we try to limit wait times for people to three months or less. We monitor the number of holds and purchase more copies as needed.”

The interest in “Spare” meant that to keep the waiting time workable, additional copies needed to be purchased.

The popularity of “Spare” follows a recent thirst for memoirs, Berg said. For example, Jeanette McCurdy’s memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died,” which came out in August 2022, has 40 people waiting to read one of Siouxland Libraries’ 11 copies. Matthew McConaughey’s “Greenlights” and “The Storyteller” by Dave Grohl also were in demand.

Some readers enjoy the confessional mentality found in books like “I’m Glad My Mom Died” and “Spare,” said Berg, who has worked at Siouxland Libraries for 13 years. Reading someone’s story can be compelling when told in the first person.

“They give us a glimpse into that person’s life. ‘Spare’ takes it to the next level,” Berg said. “Royalty is a life that’s so ‘other’ to the lives that people live, our normal day-to-day lives. We’re getting a glimpse into that life, and some of the intrigue that’s there. That’s kind of what is drawing people to the book.”

It’s drawing in a lot of people. In the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, the book has sold more than 1.4 million copies. It is reportedly the fastest-selling nonfiction book of all time.

But what goes up someday will go down. In a year or 18 months, much of the interest in “Spare” will wane. What does the library do then with its 25 print copies?

“It kind of depends on how much they’ve been used,” Berg said. “We will probably deselect or weed back some of the copies that are sitting on the shelves.”

Books pulled from the shelves might be donated to nonprofits. The other option is to sell them to an online used-book retailer that gives the library a small payment that goes back into the library fund.

If you’re interested in reserving a copy of “Spare,” Siouxland Libraries is rolling out a new way to search for it or any other book. Vega, which can be accessed here, offers an easier way to determine what versions of a book are accessible, whether it’s print, audio or an e-book.

“It rolls up all of those formats together into one return, so it’s really easy to see which format you’re getting,” Berg said. “You can place a hold on whatever format you want. It’s a better way to search.”