Unfortunately, the local town library does not have the budget or space to house every book. That is the job of the Library of Congress, but only for American publishers. The LoC also has an extensive, but not exhaustive, collection of foreign published works as well.
From LoC”s website: “Please note: The Library of Congress does not keep a copy of every title ever published.” The primary mission of the LoC is to be the library of CONGRESS. It is not the “Library of the United States”, not a national library. So, no, it is not the job of the LoC to “house every book”, even for just American publishers.
Unfortunately, the local town library does not have the budget or space to house every book. That is the job of the Library of Congress, but only for American publishers. The LoC also has an extensive, but not exhaustive, collection of foreign published works as well.
From LoC”s website: “Please note: The Library of Congress does not keep a copy of every title ever published.” The primary mission of the LoC is to be the library of CONGRESS. It is not the “Library of the United States”, not a national library. So, no, it is not the job of the LoC to “house every book”, even for just American publishers.