The struggle to find Prince Harry’s memoir “Spare” in Charlotte

State of play: The tell-all book came out on Jan. 10 and local bookstore Park Road Books sold out of copies by 1pm that day — they had lots of preorders.

• As of Wednesday, 46 more copies had been ordered.
• Copies are also nearly impossible to find at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

By the numbers: The library has holds for both physical copies and digital ones. As of Friday:

• Print book: 873 holds/205 copies (180 of those on order)
• Digital ebook: 623 holds/92 copies
• Physical audio: 185 holds/23 copies (18 of those on order)
• Digital audiobook: 752 holds/97 copies

What they’re saying: The library considers factors like past circulation data for established authors and series and reviews from Library Journal, Booklist and Publishers weekly, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library spokesperson Krystel Green tells Axios.

• Print copies are ordered at least two-three months in advance. Here the library needs to be proactive instead of reactive. It’s difficult to get reorders, because they’re competing with other libraries and booksellers Green says.
• Digital items are ordered on publication date.

• “Digital selection has the benefit of being able to be reactive to demand,” Green says. “In digital purchasing, titles ordered become available within 24 hours.”

What’s next: A book may remain in the library’s collection for years.

• “It all depends on how often it gets checked out,” Green says.

Zoom out: Copies aren’t just flying off the shelves in Charlotte. The same thing is happening in cities like Austin, Des Moines, Houston and Phoenix.

My thought bubble: I’m more interested in English football (soccer) than the royals, but if the latter is for you, I hope you find a copy of “Spare” soon!