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Abstract
It is a fact that book circulation is declining in many hospital libraries. Some observers have postulated that the Internet is to blame for this trend or that residents with greater and greater patient care demands on their time don't have time to read. Yet, these same residents must still juggle the demands of treating patients, studying for tests and boards, and the rapidly changing face of medical information.
This paper takes an informal survey of the books residents carry with them in their lab coats and examines the trend toward small light books as an important one for the library collections that should not be ignored. Are residents reading less or are hospital librarians missing what they need? Only the circulation numbers can tell the tale.