Facing tighter budgets in part due to this year's economic slowdown, more Utah County residents are opting to forgo bookstores and check materials out for free at their local libraries.

Provo City Library has seen a 10 to 12 percent increase in circulation in the past eight months, said Director Gene Nelson. Compelled to be thrifty, people are checking out more books across all genres and age levels, he said. It's part of a trend that usually arises every time the economy slows down, he said.

"When things are rough, people have that discretionary money that gets a little tighter," Nelson said. "It's tough to lay down $25 for that new hardcover."

Use of the library's public computers is also up, Nelson said. Often there are people waiting in line in the evenings, which is especially unusual given the time of year, he said.

"Even during the summer, when it's kind of a slower time for computers because most of the college kids aren't here, we're still seeing lots of people at our computers," he said.

Nelson said the book-lending industry has mixed feelings about the situation: On one hand, new faces are showing up daily and taking advantage of services; but the fiscal tightness also impacts purchasing and makes it tougher to keep up with demand, especially with inflation driving up the cost of books.

"We survive largely off property taxes," he said. "When those start going down as far as the revenue, that impacts what we can spend. Inflation makes it tough to buy stuff."

Still, he said, it's more encouraging than anything to be doling out new library cards every day.

"It's exciting for us to see a lot of people that we haven't seen before come into the library," he said. "The tough thing is even when you anticipate it, there's only so much you can do."

In Orem, Director Louise Wallace said attendance at library events has nearly doubled in the past year, from 19,000 to 32,000. Use of the library's online resources is also up, she said. She said those kinds of increases are typical in her experience, and she expects circulation numbers to follow when they come in later this year.

"It is common that in economic downturns, library use increases," she said. "That was a significant jump over last year."

The evidence suggests book retailers are feeling the negative consequences of the trend: Since the beginning of the year, supermerchant Barnes & Noble's total revenue slid from $1.85 billion between November 2007 and February 2008 to $1.16 billion in the next three months -- a decrease of 37 percent.

• Ace Stryker can be reached at 344-2556 or at astryker@heraldextra.com.