Purchases are considered based on our Collection Development Policy.

Quick Overview of Selection Criteria:

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• Popularity (bestsellers)

• Patron demand (requests.) Titles that do not have wide appeal to the rest of the District will be sought through Partner libraries or interlibrary loan.

• Favorable reviews in professional review sources such as Booklist, Library Journal and New York Times Book Review, Ingram Advance, NPR, Montana Book Awards, and Library Reads

• Currency and current relevance

• Accuracy of information, authoritativeness, author’s reputation and significance as a writer, reputation and standing of publisher

• Literary value, awards and honors

• Diverse viewpoints on controversial issues

• Format (whether the item will hold up to library use)

• Subject areas (See breakdown of subject areas below.)

• Materials appropriate to people of all ages

• Montana subject

• Availability of material in other local library collections

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*DVDs that are available from a Partner library will not be considered for purchase unless they are a current year release. Television series more than two years are not considered for purchase.