Home Library Service: Jon’s Story

By Lucy Neill | 22 September 2026

Our volunteer Jon shares his story about being part of the Home Library Service and the people he’s helped across the county.

Jon’s Story

As a lifelong Ipswich resident keen to give something back to the community and a bibliophile concerned about the future of public libraries, I jumped at the opportunity to join Suffolk Community Libraries’ Home Library Service as a volunteer in September 2023.

In the three years since, I have met some wonderful people with fascinating stories. One borrower told me about her wartime childhood and love of Agatha Christie. One gentleman reminisced about his career as a psychiatrist while holding forth on Somerset Maugham and Graham Greene.

Another interspersed stories of her arrival in Ipswich with meandering lectures on the genius of Len Deighton. And one borrower told riotously funny stories about her adolescence while lapping up books on wartime Britain and the French Resistance.

All my customers really appreciated the service we deliver, valuing the opportunity to read great books, discuss what they loved (and hated!), or simply to have a chat and offer a new friend some tea and biscuits.

I loved every minute, including the challenges of tracking down books in genres I’m less familiar with, helping customers who were unsure what they wanted to read, and finding suitable alternatives when we did not have a particular title in stock.

As I step down from volunteering, I will cherish these memories and hope the service continues to flourish long into the future.

About the Home Library Service

যদি স্বাস্থ্য বা চলাফেরার সমস্যা আপনাকে বা আপনার পরিচিত কাউকে লাইব্রেরি শাখা বা ভ্রাম্যমাণ লাইব্রেরিতে যেতে বাধা দেয়, তাহলে আমাদের হোম লাইব্রেরি সার্ভিসের স্বেচ্ছাসেবকরা আপনাকে সাহায্য করার জন্য এখানে আছেন।

Let us know your favourite authors, genres, or topics, and our volunteers will select books for you and place the orders through the library. They’ll collect the books, deliver them to your home, and return any you’ve finished.

This service is completely free – get in touch with your local library to find out more and sign up.