Library

[josee]

Has anyone made use of the library on board the Volendam? Do they carry a good selection of recent and old titles? What about magazine and children's book? Also, is it English only or do they also carry a few french titles?
I am an avid reader of mystery and psychological thrillers. I dont feel like packing any books - it takes too much space and can pack extra shoes that way.

Josée

[JDee]

Most libraries on HAL ships are pretty decent, but have found that those on the "S" class (such as Voldendam) are somewhat better than those on the Vista class. The Zuiderdam library seemed to generate a lot of noisy traffic that is really not appropriate for a library. However, both libraries lacked any recently published good books. Both seem to have a lot of reference stuff.

Recent magazines are usually available during the library hours and cannot be removed. Magazine selection is varied, decent and current. When visiting ports such as St.Thomas, newspapers are also provided such as NY Times, WSJ, USA & such.

A good source of reading materials are the soft covers left by other passengers & don't have to be checked out. Returns on honor basis. Sometimes some good finds, so go early.

Can't help much about children's or non-English books.

Happy cruising....