Do your taxes or read a magazine -- which would you rather do?

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

We will be getting tax forms at the library.  This is the answer to a very frequent question we’ve been getting.  The fiscal cliff you heard so much about at the end of last year was resolved, at least for now, in the first days of the year when the House of Representatives passed the Senate’s compromise deal and the President signed it into law.  Once that was done, the IRS was able to create tax instructions based on the new law.  Because of this, tax season is delayed this year; it begins January 30. Various minor schedules have been arriving at the library.  We have gotten an email from the IRS saying that some of the major forms and instructions have been shipped to us.  I am hopeful that we will have them by the time you read this article.  Once we have them, we will set up a table in the library’s entry with the forms and booklets for you to take home.

After  you’ve been working on your taxes for a while, you’ll need a break.  Take a look at our brand-new magazine database, Zinio, where you can read popular magazines cover to cover on your tablet, phone, or PC.  The pages look just like they do in the print version, with photos, advertisements, and all.  Some are even enhanced with audio or video features. 

You can get to this service by going to www.pioneerland.lib.mn.us and clicking on the Zinio button.  You’ll see instructions for using it and a link to follow to get to the magazine website.  You’ll need to have an active Pioneerland library card in good standing.  To begin, you’ll set up an account with your library card number, email address, a password you create, and your name.  You’ll get a set-up email from Zinio with a link to follow. Then you’ll be able to view the titles Pioneerland offers, but to actually view the issues, you’ll also need to set up an account with Zinio.  If you follow the instructions on our website step-by-step, you shouldn’t have a problem.

You can view the issues online using your web browser, or you can download issues to your device.  Downloading may work well for those of you who do not have high-speed internet at home: bring your Kindle Fire or iPad to the library to download the latest issue of Apple Magazine or Bicycling, then read it at your leisure at home or on your vacation.

There are two differences from our e-book service that I think you’ll appreciate.  Multiple people can read issues at one time, so there’s no waiting for someone else to return the one you want.  And you never have to return them.  If you want to download an issue of Do It Yourself and keep it on your tablet for months so that you can work on the projects, you can do that.  You won’t return the magazines, but you can delete downloaded issues if you want to free up space on your device.  And as long as you have internet access, you don’t need to download them at all; you can simply view all of the magazines we subscribe to, currently 100 titles.

Back issues are not available.  All of our digital magazines will be available only from the starting date of our subscription to this service. 

Some very popular magazines are not available through Zinio because their publishers are not offering them in this format, including People and Sports Illustrated.  Newsweek is available.  It has stopped publishing in print and is only available electronically now.  Other popular magazines we offer electronically include National Geographic, Cosmopolitan, Taste of Home, Reader’s Digest, and Woman’s Day. 

Come to the library to pick up your tax forms in February or afterwards.  Or come to the library website to read some fun or informative magazines. We strive to provide you the materials you want in the format you want to use.

Social & cultural activities, tax & testing resources, and ebooks available through the library

Game night

Have you thought about coming to game night at the library? We’re still hosting some kind of gaming each Monday night at 6:30. Our most successful type so far has been Dungeons and Dragons. We had a lively group for that a few weeks ago: adults and children, male and female. Their creative storytelling and their laughter showed how much fun they had playing. We’re going to give Dungeons and Dragons another go next Monday, March 5th.


On March 12th, the following week, we’ll be using some new, borrowed games on the Wii: Wii Play and Wii Rock Band. Wii Play includes billiards, fishing, shooting range, and several other virtual games. Rock Band involves singing and playing songs using guitar and drum Wii controllers. It’s my very favorite video game – a great way to pretend for someone who wishes they were in a band. If you want to play on our Wii but want to try something other than our Wii Sports game, drop by to give either game a try.

Tax forms

We are the only place in town to pick up tax forms, unless you go to a tax preparer. We’ve recently gotten some more of the federal booklets that many of you have been looking for. Not everything is available here in print, but you can find tax forms and instructions online at www.irs.gov and taxes.state.mn.us.

Test proctoring

With the huge increase in online college classes, there has been a corresponding increase in the need for proctoring services. We can proctor tests for you. Contact us for more details to set this up.

Will Weaver event

We will be hosting Minnesota author Will Weaver on March 15th. He will be at the library in the afternoon during our middle school book club time; students are welcome to come even if they don’t normally come for book club. Then he will be presenting a public program in the evening at the high school, brought to you by our Legacy funding.

Ebooks & audiobooks

Our downloadable book service is still under extremely high demand. We have about 900 titles available now, with more added all the time. Almost everything is checked out at any given time because of the popularity of ereaders, tablets, and MP3 players. Add yourself to the waiting lists for titles you’re interested in, because the waiting lists do move very quickly.

If you buy ebooks, consider going through our Overdrive site to make those purchases. When you do, a portion of the profits comes back to Pioneerland for us to use to buy more ebooks for the library. This even works for all kinds of purchases made through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books On Board, IndieBound, and Powell’s Books – it doesn’t have to be an ebook, or even a book at all.

Whether you’re looking for something social or cultural, something you can access conveniently from home, or a practical service such as proctoring or tax forms, we strive to provide something for everyone in the community. Let me know if I can help you find something you’re looking for.