_
Are they "laughable" from the point of
view of someone who is "NEW TO CHESS"?


That all depends on the library, but for the most part I would have to say yes.
There usually are too few beginners books there should be several copies of
something like " Idiots' Guide to Chess,' so that several learners could check
them out at once. Suppose two people wanted to study together. I don't know
how libraries decide how many copies of books to order, but at least two copies
of some chess books wouldn't be too many. I always liked the article in the
Encyclopedia Britianica for a basic introduction if no other chess book
happened to be accessable because usually the encyclopedia doesn't circulate.