Unlimited Checkouts for 1st Harry Potter Book in April

"When in doubt, go to the library." - Ron Weasley.

In this case, the virtual library... No waiting for Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone in both ebook and downloadable audiobook! Use Overdrive or Libby to check out the first Harry Potter book, which is available for unlimited users to check out simultaneously in April.

#HarryPotterAtHome

Digital library cards now available!

Digital library cards now available! Did you miss out on getting to the library for a card before everything closed? You can sign up on Overdrive/Libby for a temporary digital library card that will allow you to check out our ebooks and downloadable audiobooks. You'll enter your cell phone number to demonstrate that you live within our regional library system.

Big Library Read: Funny, You Don't Look Autistic available for unlimited checkouts

It's time for a Big Library Read!

Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic: A Comedian’s Guide to Life on the Spectrum by Michael McCreary

This title is available to unlimited simultaneous borrowers from March 23 to April 13 in both ebook and audiobook format through Overdrive and Libby with your Pioneerland library card.

Like many others on the autism spectrum, 20-something stand-up comic Michael McCreary has been told by more than a few well-meaning folks that he doesn’t “look” autistic. But, as he’s quick to point out in this memoir, autism “looks” different for just about everyone with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Check out books from the comfort of home

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

Everyone knows that you can get books by visiting the library, but did you know that you can download books even if you’re at home?  All of the regional public library systems in Minnesota have downloadable ebooks and audiobooks available for checkout.

 

In Pioneerland Library System, we have a contract with Overdrive to provide our ebooks and downloadable audiobooks.  They are available to check out through both the Overdrive app and the Libby app, which are free to download from your electronic device’s app store.  You also have the option to read books on your computer without an app, using the OverDrive Read feature.

As of March 12, Pioneerland had 4,560 ebooks (the ones you look at to read like a print book) and 1,621 audiobooks to download.  New books are added all the time.  You can view our collection by visiting our online catalog and clicking on “Download ebooks,” by going directly to pioneerland.overdrive.com, or by going into the Overdrive or Libby app and searching for your local library.

You will need to have an active Pioneerland library card in order to check out our downloadable books.  So your first step is to get a library card, if you don’t have one.  If you have never had a card with us before, or if it was so many years ago that you’re no longer in our system, visit one of our libraries and bring along your driver’s license or Minnesota ID.  If you have moved and the address on your ID isn’t current, also bring a piece of mail delivered to you at your current address, 

something with your name on it, as proof of address.  You’ll also fill out a one-page application. Kids under age 18 need to have a parent or legal guardian accompany them to the library to get the card and sign the application, since the parent is the responsible party for a minor and kids normally don’t have an ID. 

Your first library card is free.  It takes about five minutes to get your card set up.

If you have had a library card in the recent past but you have lost it, visit the library and let us know that you need a replacement card.  We’ll ask to see your photo ID to look up your account.  A replacement library card costs $3.

If you still have that blue library card but you haven’t used it in a while, bring it to the library or call us with your card in hand, and ask us to check on whether your card needs updating.  Everyone’s account needs to be updated annually in person at the library, even if they have been using it to check things out.  When we update your card, we take another look at your ID, so bring that along.

This would be a good time to visit the library and spend a few minutes getting your card ready to use.  If you end up needing to stay home for a while, you may need some entertainment – and our ebooks are free to use.  You can’t even get overdue fees on them.  After three weeks, if you don’t return them, they will return themselves. 

There is a limit of five downloadable books on each library card at one time.  You can return them early to make them available to other people and to free up a slot on your account for a different title. 

Downloadable books work like print books in one sense: the library pays for each copy, and only one person can check out a copy at one time.  So if someone else has an ebook checked out, you will need to add yourself to the waiting list.  You’ll be notified by email when the book is available for you to check out.

Our digital book collection offers titles for all ages and interests.  You can check out books to entertain and educate the kids or yourself.  When you’re preparing for some possible time sequestered at home, remember that a library card is a great tool to get now.

Crazy About Audiobooks

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

Audiobooks are the fastest-growing reading format in the U.S.  According to the Audio Publishers Association’s 2019 survey, 50% of Americans age twelve and older have listened to an audiobook, the highest percentage ever.  Our e-book supplier, Overdrive, is also seeing substantial growth in downloadable audiobook checkouts nationwide.  Checkouts have increased an average of 32% a year since 2012.

The most common location to listen to audiobooks is in the car, but listening at home is almost as popular.  More than half of all audiobook listeners say they’re finding time in their lives to add audiobook listening to the time they spend reading print books, making it possible for them to finish more books.  The typical audiobook listener is between the ages of 18 and 45 and a fan of podcasts.

 

Pioneerland Library System offers downloadable audiobooks for checkout through our Overdrive service.  There are currently 1,484 downloadable audiobooks in our collection.  These can be accessed through the Pioneerland website on a computer or through the Overdrive or Libby app on a phone or tablet.  They are free to check out with a Pioneerland library card, and they never incur late fees.

One of our newest downloadable audios is The Chain by Adrian McKinty.  This New York Times bestseller is a psychological thriller with a chilling premise: a stranger has kidnapped your child in order to get their own abducted child back.  To get yours back alive, you must pay a ransom – and kidnap someone else’s child. 

Another new offering in Pioneerland’s downloadable audios is The Gone Dead by Chanelle Benz.  The Tonight Show featured this book among the finalists in its summer reads contest.  A young woman returns to her childhood home in the Mississippi Delta for the first time since her father’s death when she was four years old.  She finds the isolated shack she inherited unsettling to visit, and she begins to unravel the mystery of her father’s accident.

We also have audiobooks on CD at the Litchfield Library and all of the libraries in the system.  The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo is one of our newest additions.  This bestseller was one of Reese Witherspoon’s book club selections.  Young dressmaker and dancehall girl Ji Lin accidentally finds a severed finger that’s being sought by an 11-year-old houseboy to bury with his master’s body, leading them onto dangerous crisscrossing paths.  Every reviewer commented on the way the author vividly created 1930s colonial Malaysia. 

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams isn’t a new book; it was published in 1979.  The library recently added the audiobook version on CD, read by Stephen Fry.  This wacky story of an ordinary British man who is rescued from the destruction of Earth by his undercover alien friend is a classic the family can enjoy together – at least teenagers and older. 

Other new audiobooks on CD at the Litchfield Library include 21 Lessons for the 21^st Century by Yuval Noah Harari, Journey to Munich by Jacqueline Winspear, Inspired by Rachel Held Evans, and Plum Rains by Andromeda Romano-Lax.  Pick one up, or download one, and maybe you’ll become an audiobook fan, too.

New extended checkout times on DVDs, audiobooks

by Beth Cronk

Do you check out movies and audiobooks at the library?  Now you can keep them longer!  Pioneerland Library System has lengthened checkout times on these materials.

Videos are now due back one week after they are checked out instead of five days.  This will allow people who only come to town once a week, or those who come to storyhour at the library once a week, to make use of our movies.  It also makes sense now that we offer many seasons of television shows on DVD; most people need a little more time to watch those. 

You may still have six DVDs checked out on a library card at one time.  To check out more, you’ll need to return some.  Fines for late movies are $1 per day with no grace period, up to a maximum late fee of $3 per movie. 

Audiobooks are now due back 4 weeks after they’re checked out, the same as print books.  Most people don’t get through a book any faster by listening to it than by picking it up and reading it, so I think many of our audiobook users will like this change.  People who are going on road trips often use our audiobooks, and many times they need longer than our previous 2-week checkout period.  We thought about how people use this format and the library system made this change to better serve your needs.

So what will you check out with these new longer checkout times?  Here are a few ideas from among our new audiovisual offerings:

The Book of Negroes is a new miniseries from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It tells the story of a woman kidnapped from Africa and sold into slavery in South Carolina.  She escapes during the American Revolution and makes her way to New York and other places in pursuit of freedom.  Reviews say it’s difficult but extremely compelling to watch.  The series is based on the book “Someone Knows My Name” by Lawrence Hill, also published under the title “The Book of Negroes.”

Grantchester is the new BBC miniseries that was broadcast on PBS after Downton Abbey this year.  This gentle mystery series features young vicar Sidney Chambers and an overworked inspector solving crimes in an English village.  It features a diverse group of characters and the high quality writing and cinematography we’ve come to expect from British television.  This series is based on the mystery book series by James Runcie. 

On the audiobook front, we have T.D. Jakes’ Instinct: The Power to Unleash Your Inborn Drive.  The author focuses on discovering one’s natural aptitudes and applying lessons learned from past experiences. Jakes is the senior pastor of the nondenominational megachurch The Potter’s House in Dallas, and a producer of the movie “Heaven is for Real.”

We also have the audio version of Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel.  This post-apocalyptic novel was a finalist for the 2014 National Book Award.  Rather than focusing only on crisis like most novels of this genre, this one follows a troupe of actors and musicians who travel between communities after a pandemic, living by the Star Trek quote, “Because survival is insufficient.” 

Libraries are full of stories.  You can find them on the pages of books, but you can also find them on CDs and DVDs.   Come in and explore all of our different kinds of materials and bring home a story you’ll enjoy.

Listen while you drive

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

Audiobooks are very popular for car trips and commuters.  Some people also listen to them for entertainment at home while they’re working on other things.  This summer while you’re driving up north, canning peaches, or staining your deck, try an audiobook from the library to so that you can have the pleasure of reading when you can’t look at the pages of a book.

Litchfield Library has a substantial collection of books on CD.  We also have kept some books on tape that have still been getting checked out.  Some of you must still have tape players in your cars or stereos. 

The newest option is downloadable audiobooks from our Overdrive service at http://pioneerland.lib.overdrive.com, the website where you can check out e-books.  To find the audiobooks, you can choose “Audiobook fiction” or “Audiobook nonfiction” from the menus at the top of our Overdrive page.  You can check out and download our audiobooks for free using your library card, and then listen to them on your smartphone, your iPod or other music player, or your computer.  Like our e-books, they automatically return themselves after three weeks, and you will never get an overdue fine on them.

Our newest downloadable audiobooks include The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson, the first young adult fantasy novel from the bestselling author; The Housemaid’s Daughter, historical fiction set in apartheid-era South Africa; and The Man Called Noon, a classic western by Louis L’Amour.

Among our newest audiobooks on CD at Litchfield is Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson.  This is a gritty story of a social worker in rural Montana who meets a malnourished 11-year-old boy with a father who is a paranoid survivalist.  Reviewers say the well-written novel has a very strong sense of place and the people who live there.

We have one of the most recent Stone Barrington novels on CD, Carnal Curiosity.  Stuart Woods’ adventure novels are always popular.  In this 29^th installment, Stone gets involved with a beautiful woman who is part of a group orchestrating thefts from the wealthiest people in the country.  Critics say this fits the usual pattern of Woods’ novels but that it’s entertaining anyway.

The latest Sisterhood novel from Fern Michaels is Kiss and Tell.  We have it in audiobook form at Litchfield.  The Sisterhood is a group of vigilantes, mostly older women who go outside the law for justice when the legal system can’t provide it.  In this novel, the Sisterhood learns of shady dealings at an assisted living facility, so they get the group back together to beat a con artist at his own game.

Nantucket Sisters is a new novel by Nancy Thayer that we have on CD.  This is truly a beach read, telling the story of two girls who spend every summer together in Nantucket while growing up.  They are from different social classes, but they’re best friends who grow up to become involved with the same man. 

All of these are definitely adult books.  Many families enjoy listening to children’s audiobooks together on a car trip, so consider browsing in our children’s department for something that will appeal to everyone who will be traveling together when you have kids in the group.  Our library staff will be happy to help you find something that will be right for you.

For your listening pleasure

by Beth Cronk, head librarian

The 2014 Grammys were awarded last night.  As with most awards, all of the nominees offer some great material.   I’ll highlight here the Grammy-nominated and Grammy-winning music and audiobooks that our library has available.  Whether you’ll enjoy particular recordings or not is of course a matter of your own taste.  Is there anything as debatable as whether a song is good or not?

Blake Shelton was nominated for best country solo performance for the song Mine Would Be You.  The romantic ballad was also nominated for best country song.  This track is on Shelton’s Based on a True Story, which was nominated for best country album.  Shelton has gained new fans through his recent work as a coach and judge on the television show The Voice.  No awards for him last night, but country fans may really enjoy this CD anyway.

The Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell album Old Yellow Moon won the Grammy for best Americana album.  Crowell joined Harris’ Hot Band in 1975 as a guitarist and harmony singer.  On this album, the duo sings four original songs written by Crowell, as well as Hank DeVito’s “Hanging Up My Heart”, Roger Miller’s “Invitation to the Blues”, and Allen Reynolds’ “Dreaming My Dreams”. 

To Be Loved won the Grammy for best traditional pop vocal album.  This Michael Bublé CD includes standards such as “You Make Me Feel So Young”, “Something Stupid”, and “Young at Heart”.   Bublé became a jazz and old-fashioned pop singer because he grew up listening to his grandfather’s collection of jazz records.

You may not realize that audiobooks win Grammys, too.  Stephen Colbert’s America Again: Re-becoming the Greatness We Never Weren’t won the Grammy for best spoken word album.  We have the unabridged version of the book, read by the author.  The host of The Colbert Report delivers his customary political humor and satire.  The book is based on the premise that America is the greatest country and perfect in every way, but that it’s broken and needs Colbert’s ideas to pull it back from the brink.

Billy Crystal’s audiobook is also nominated for best spoken word album.  Still Foolin’ ‘Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’mGoing, and Where the Hell Are My Keys? is a memoir of Crystal’s life, with a focus on what it’s like to age.  Now 65, Crystal avoids the clichés of Hollywood memoirs and makes his writing as funny and sweet as his much-lauded stand-up routine.  We have the unabridged version of the book, read by the author.

You can find all of these CDs at the Litchfield Library.  Checking out CDs can give you a great way to pass the time in the car or to discover new music that you’d like to buy on CD or iTunes.  Remember that copying music from a library CD to your own computer would be creating an illegal pirated copy. 

Other libraries in our system have different CDs available that you can order or check out at those locations.  For example, the Grove City Library has Grammy-winning and Grammy-nominated CDs available by Daft Punk, Imagine Dragons, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, David Bowie, Alicia Keys, and Little Big Town.  You can visit them to check out those albums or order them to be picked up at the Litchfield Library. 

Taste wine, view history, find documentaries: The fine things of life, brought to you by the library

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

On Thursday, October 25^th, the Litchfield Public Library Foundation will be holding a wine, cheese, and chocolate tasting to celebrate the tenth anniversary of our beautiful library building.  The fundraiser will be held at the Litchfield VFW at 915 East Highway 12 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. 

Several local authors will be displaying and selling their books at the event: Nancy and Joe Paddock, Tim Bergstrom, Dean Urdahl, Steve Dille, and Barb Felt.  Tickets are on sale for $20 per person, benefitting the foundation.  You can buy your tickets ahead of time at the library, at the liquor store, or from a library board member.  You can also buy tickets at the door.

I have learned from Everett Reilly, who is organizing the event, that wine is not the only beverage that will be served.  Three beers, two hard ciders, and five nonalcoholic beverages will be available to sample, in addition to 36 varieties of wine.

Besides our big offsite event, there are some things to take note of within the library building lately.  If you haven’t seen the Litchfield Library history display in our display cabinet, stop in to look at it before it goes away.  Jim Milan from the G.A.R. Hall put together an interesting and fun display on the history of the Litchfield Library, going back to 1875 when the Litchfield Library Association was chartered under Minnesota law and began issuing stock.  Some of the original books from the library’s years in the G.A.R. Hall are there to see, along with photos of the library locations.

We have done a bit of rearranging of our audiovisual materials on the adult side of the library.   We used to have our fiction VHS tapes on the same short shelf as our fiction DVDs.  Our nonfiction DVDs and VHS tapes were on a separate shelf with books.  Our audiobooks were set up in a similar way.  All of this made it harder for most people to find documentaries, exercise videos, concert videos, and nonfiction audiobooks.  The VHS and cassette formats also get used much less now, although some do still get checked out.

We now have all of our adult DVDs on one side of the shelf: new releases first, followed by general movies, with nonfiction down at the end.  I’ve already noticed more nature and history documentaries going out. 

On the other side of the shelf, you can find all of our adult CDs.  Closest to the desk are fiction audiobooks.  In the middle are nonfiction audiobooks.  Furthest from the front desk are our music CDs.  I hope this arrangement will help you find a wider variety of materials you’d like to watch and listen to.

If you want to find VHS tapes and audiobooks on cassette, we still have some.  They are at the end of the bookshelf nearest the CDs and DVDs. 

Our children’s movies and audiobooks are on the children’s side of the library.  We put movies that are rated G or that are clearly geared to a young audience (Sesame Street, Thomas the Tank Engine) in that area.

I hope to see you at the library’s Wine, Cheese, and Chocolate fundraiser at the VFW.  I’ll be there with my husband, and at least one other library staff member will be attending.  And I hope you’ll come to the library to look at our library history display and to find some DVDs and audios that you’ve never noticed before.  The library has a history to be proud of, we strive to stay useful to you in the present day, and our library foundation is always working toward a bright future.  

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.

Listen While You Read!

By Jan Pease

Have you discovered the collection of audio books in the children’s department? For several years we have developed this collection, which is a great source of entertainment. But books on cd serve another important role in the library.

Struggling readers often benefit by listening to a book while reading the print version. This works best if the audiobook agrees with the text word for word. Our collection of audiobooks for children contains titles that are unabridged to make it easy for the reader to follow along in the book while listening to the words as they are seen. Our collection isn’t perfect, but I try to have both the book and cd version of a title available.

New, wonderful audiobooks include “Dave the Potter,” by Laban Carrick Hill. This wonderful picture book describes the slave who created pottery in the 1800s in South Carolina.

“Princess Posey and the First Grade Parade,” by Stephanie Greene and Stephanie Sisson, “Otis,” by Loren Long, and “Bear’s Loose Tooth,” by Karma Wilson are audiobooks of picture books suitable for younger readers.

“Troublemaker,” by Andrew Clements, is for slightly older students. Andrew Clements writes stories about school, a subject he understands because he taught school for seven years before beginning his career in publishing and writing. The audiobook version is narrated by Keith Knobs, who has appeared in movies, television and live theater.

We also received some interesting print titles this week which are suitable for older readers.

“Five Ancestors,” by Jeff Stone, is a series of seven books that follow young adventurers with martial arts skills, who find their destiny after their monastery is destroyed. This series received a lukewarm reception from professional reviewers, but is loved by the young readers who discover it. I purchased it because boys requested it and told friends about the series. I recommend these books for anyone who likes adventure novels, but especially for reluctant readers. Titles in the series include “Tiger,” “Monkey,” “Snake,” “Crane,” “Eagle,” “Mouse,” and “Dragon.”

“Silence,” by Becca Fitzpatrick, continues the “Hush, Hush” series that has become very popular with teens. I purchased this series because of the number of students requesting it. Fans of the “Twilight” series tend to love this romance with fallen angels as the paranormal twist.

Whether you’re looking for audio books or a romance to sink your teeth into, Litchfield library has something for you. I’ll see you at the library!

Free ebook lending now available for Kindle

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

I have two important things to tell you about our ebook lending service. It’s free to use. And it’s now available for Kindle users.

We don’t charge for the privilege of using our downloadable book service. We loan our ebooks and downloadable audios in much the same way that we loan our print books and books on CD. If you have a Pioneerland library card in good standing, you check them out with your barcode for free. There’s no charge to download the software. There are not even any late fees, because the downloadable books return themselves on their due dates, unless you go into your software and return your ebooks early.

I’ve discovered that the reason people think we charge for our ebooks is because there’s another library’s website that looks like it could be ours, and that particular Litchfield Public Library charges $20 to use their ebook service. If you do a Google search of “litchfield public library”, your first result may be the library in Litchfield, Illinois. They are a Carnegie library founded in 1904, like we are. They are still in their original building, but it was remodeled around 2000, like our current building was. Their hours are nearly identical to ours. And they have the same Overdrive ebook button as we do. I can understand how multiple people have believed it was our website. The internet makes the world very small. It’s just as easy to get to the website for a library in another state as it is to get to ours.

To be sure you’re going to our ebook service, go to http://pioneerland.lib.overdrive.com/. We have bookmarks at our desk that have this URL on them; pick one up if you want a handy way to remember the address.

And if you’re looking for our local website, go to http://litchlibrary.blogspot.com/. I’ve added our address and phone number to the top of the page to make it more clear that we are the Litchfield Public Library in Minnesota, not the one in Connecticut, or Illinois, or Nebraska, or Arizona…. You get the idea.

The big ebook news for the week is that library lending for Kindles is finally here. We knew it was coming, but we didn’t know when. Amazon and Overdrive have been developing this for a few months, and now they’re slowly and quietly rolling it out to all of the libraries who use Overdrive for ebooks. It just became available to us on the 22nd. Now when you click on an ebook title, you’ll see two formats: Kindle and Adobe EPUB. If you have a Kindle or use a Kindle app, download the Kindle version. I haven’t tried it myself, but I understand that part of the process will bring you to Amazon’s site, and that you may have to login with your Amazon account. One thing that is different about borrowing a library book for your Kindle versus buying one from Amazon is that you can’t download using your 3G connection. To borrow a Kindle library book, you need to be using WiFi or have your Kindle connected to your personal computer by a cable.

Now all of you who bought Kindles, but then regretted not being able to use it for library books, can join in on the fun. I think it was a smart business move by Amazon to make this possible.

If you have suggestions about ebooks or downloadable audiobooks that you’d like to see us offer, let me know. The purchasing is done centrally at Pioneerland headquarters, but they welcome suggestions.

An Ebook Update

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

Our downloadable ebook and audiobook service is catching on!  In Pioneerland, we just got started in June.  We now have had about 500 unique patrons use the service.  There have been 1200 checkouts so far.   We currently have 458 items in our electronic collection, and we’re adding more all the time.

We’re able to get some “best-seller” lists to see what’s popular in Pioneerland downloadables.  The books that have been checked out the most since our website rolled out are the ebook version of Bad Blood by John Sanford and the audiobook of Heaven is for Real.  The titles that are most in demand right now are The Help, Split Second, and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

I know many of you are getting started with library ebooks and need a little guidance on how it works.  Here are some of the important things to know:

You can get to our Overdrive website by going to our catalog, choosing “Download ebooks” below the search boxes, and clicking on the box that says “Downoad audiobooks, eBooks”.  From there, you can browse the new titles, search for a particular book, download the software you need to borrow books, or find answers to your questions.  You can also go directly to http://pioneerland.lib.overdrive.com/.  We also have a mobile site with a very long URL.  We have a link to it on our Litchfield Library blog if you’d like to find it for your mobile device.

One question we’re often asked is which readers and devices our downloadables can be used on.  You can find out by clicking on the blue “compatible devices” button on the left side of the Overdrive site.  You’ll find that most e-readers, MP3 players, and computers work with it.  Kindle still doesn’t work with it, but Amazon is saying that it will by the end of the year.  You can also download to an iPad, iPhone, Blackberry, and a variety of other devices. 

There is some variation in how you download to different devices and which titles work with which device.  If you have an e-reader, such as a Nook or Sony e-reader, you’ll need to download Adobe Digital Editions to your personal computer.  You can do this by clicking on “Adobe Digital Editions for eBooks”, under “Getting Started” on the top left corner of the Overdrive site.  It’s very quick and easy.  You will need to set up an Adobe ID as part of that process, but that just involves registering an email address with Adobe, which will come up as you download the software. 

Once you have the software set up, you check out ebooks on your personal computer and transfer them to your e-reader while it’s attached by its cable.  It isn’t possible to download to library computers and transfer books to your e-reader; it has to be done on your own computer.

If you want to download audiobooks, you’ll need to install Overdrive Media Console, which is also listed under “Getting Started” in the corner.  Again, you’ll check them out on your computer and transfer them to your MP3 player, much like iTunes and other music download services.  Some audiobook titles will work on one device but not another.  They will also work on e-readers, but it all depends on which formats your e-reader or MP3 player handles.  Some of the audiobooks are in WMA format, and some are MP3.  Once you figure out what your device can play, you’ll be able to look at each title to see if it will work for you.  Some audiobooks can be burned to CDs; this depends on publisher permissions. 

If you are going to download to a mobile device such as an Android or iPad, you will download Overdrive Media Console to your device directly.  Then you check out books on your mobile device, without a need to connect it to a computer. 

If you click on the “guided tour” or “help/FAQs” button on our Overdrive website, you’ll find answers to many of your questions.  If you need more help, talk to our library staff or send a support request through the help page.

Downloading books seems so complicated until you get started.  Once you iron out the wrinkles of getting the first book onto your device, it’s really easy.  Then when you want a new book to read on Saturday night, you don’t have to wait until the library is open.  Or if you’re snowed in (if we even want to think about that in September), you can check out a book without leaving the comfort of your home.  I hope you’ll give it a try!

An Unexpected Journey

Pioneerland Library System is making its first foray into the world of eBooks, and so am I.  More on the Pioneerland announcement later, but first I have to confess that I am a reluctant eBook reader.   I like the feel of a book, the smell of a new book opened for the first time, and the comfy feeling of settling down with a cup of coffee and a good read.  I love to sit on the beach beside Lake Superior and lose myself in Jane Austen’s cozy world while the waves crash and the seagulls squawk.

The knowledge that I could easily carry fifty books on the eReader that fits in my purse pushed me into this new journey, and it’s been interesting, to say the least.  I’ll summarize what I’ve learned.

First, I knew I wanted to be able to borrow eBooks from libraries that are willing to lend them.  This eliminated one of the major ereaders, although Amazon.com has announced that their Kindle will be compatible with library borrowing later this year.  Second, I had to decide from the many options available, depending on how much I wanted my device to do.  I decided to get a basic, black and white device that doesn’t let me browse the internet or check emails.  I just want to read books.

Here is the announcement: Pioneerland has just launched a website that allows patrons to download eBooks and audio books.  The address is http://pioneerland.lib.overdrive.com/.  (Don’t add a “www” before the word Pioneerland.)  This site contains everything you need to equip your home computer to download audio books and eBooks.

You will download the Overdrive Media Console if you are interested in downloading audio books.  You will download Adobe Digital Editions if you are planning to download eBooks.  A guided tour is available, which takes you through the process step by step.

 When you’re ready to start, click on “Getting Started” on the digital media homepage.  I followed the instructions, and was surprised at how easy it was.  For eBooks, after the free software is installed on your computer, visit adobe.com and set up a user name and password for digital editions.  This lets you authorize your computer, and you then authorize your device with the same user name and password.

  When you check out an eBook from Pioneerland, it opens in Adobe Digital Editions.  To put the eBook on your device, you connect the device to your computer, and as if by magic, the name of your device shows up on the bookshelf of Adobe Digital Editions.  You just drag the title over to the name of your device, and you’re ready to read.  You may return your book early, or wait until the due date, when your eBook will automatically be returned.   You must delete the title from your device, which is easy to do while your device is connected to your computer. 

Be aware that the Pioneerland website has this disclaimer: “Please note that you may download Audio books and eBooks to your personal computer or mobile device at your home or office but it is not possible to download them at Pioneerland Library System workstations.”   You can, however, register your device on the wireless connection in the library and download a purchased or free book directly to your device.

At this time, I know that Hennepin County Library, http://www.hclib.org/  is one of the few library systems in Minnesota who permit library card holders from other regions to register and use their extensive library of eBooks.   ELM, the Electronic Library for Minnesota, http://elm4you.org  offers netlibrary.org, a collection of mostly nonfiction titles.  I haven’t tried putting anything from ELM on my eReader.

Other sites that will inform you about free and inexpensive titles that are available to download are http://online-novels.blogspot.com; http://blog.booksontheknob.org; http://www.kobobooks.com; and http://dailycheapreads.com.   Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and Google all have free and inexpensive books to download, as well as more expensive items to purchase. The Bartleby Project, http://www.bartleby.com, and the Gutenberg Project, http://www.gutenberg.org are also sources for free books. http://ebooksinlibraries.blogspot.com/ has all kinds of information and links about using eBooks from public libraries.  There are many, many more sites that you will find if you search.  I have learned that sometimes the free titles will open only online on your computer, but sometimes you can also add them to your device.   It simply involves trial and error.  

The most important thing I learned is this:  it is almost too easy to download and purchase eBooks directly on a reading device, especially for a book addict like me.  See you at the library!

Small Changes at the Library

By Beth Cronk, head librarian

We’ve had a few small changes at the library recently that I’d like to share with you. The first is temporary, but it will be obvious: we’ve got road construction. Marshall Avenue in front of the library is being blocked off as I write. Most likely it will be a beautiful stretch of street again by mid-summer, and in the meantime you can reach the library by Third Street and get into our parking lot. It’s Minnesota; road construction doesn’t surprise us.

Another change is online. We have a new blog. You can find it at http://litchlibrary.blogspot.com. When you go there, you’ll see a beautiful photo of the library that we’re using through a Creative Commons license. You’ll see a list of our hours. And you’ll find the library columns that we publish in the newspaper. If you ever read one that you want to share, there are built-in options to email an article, share it on Facebook or Twitter, or choose another option to share our blog posts with others.

In the bar on the right side of our blog, you’ll find links to the Pioneerland library catalog, to our Litchfield Public Library Facebook page and Twitter account, and to MnKnows, the Minnesota digital library I mentioned in my last article. I hope that having these links handy on the top of our blog will make it a one-stop shop you can go to for library information, the way our former website was. Below those links, you can participate in an American Library Association/public radio survey on your use of the library, subscribe to our blog posts, search the site, and find basic information about the library: our address, phone number and email address. It will all need some tweaking to improve the layout, but Google makes it so easy to create a blog that we were up and running within an hour.

If you go to our former address, http://litch.com/library, you’ll be re-directed to http://litch.com/living-in-litchfield/library. This is our Chamber of Commerce page, where you can still find our contact information and a link to the Pioneerland catalog. Whether you go from the Chamber’s page or our Litchlibrary blog, you can get to the catalog to search or to sign into your account.

Here’s another small change, this one a physical change inside the library: we’re in the process of separating our DVDs from our VHS tapes and our CDs from our cassettes. The largest sections, the movies and audio books on the adult side, are done. The rest will shift as we have time. We’re preparing for an inventory later this year which will require the formats to be separated. I think it’s a positive change that I plan to keep permanently. We’ve had requests in the past to separate the audio books this way so that patrons can look for just the format they can use. I hope that this will help you if you only have a DVD player or a VCR and not the other, so that you can browse the format you’re using.

We’ve also started adding “new” stickers to the newest movies and audio books on the adult side so that you can spot new releases, or at least new additions to our collection. I’ve added some classics, and we’ve gotten many wonderful donations recently, so some of those will be tagged as new items, as well.

One last change that I hope you’ll enjoy is the addition of a few popular music CDs to our mostly-classical CD collection. I’ve started working from lists of core music collections for small public libraries, adding just one a month. You’ll find two significant Beatles albums on our shelf now – without the CDs themselves, which are stored behind the desk like DVDs. Recently someone donated a Jonas Brothers CD, so that’s been added for a little bit of recent music.

I would be thrilled to accept donations of music CDs that you no longer want. We can’t accept cassettes or vinyl records, and we can never promise to add donations to our collection until we’ve had a chance to review them. But I would love to grow our music collection faster than our budget will allow, and your music donations could be great assets to the library. Please keep in mind that if you’ve copied a CD onto your MP3 player, you should keep the original instead of giving it to us. Copyright law forbids copying music that belongs to someone else, and if the library owns the CD, it’s illegal to make a copy of it for yourself. But if you don’t listen to it anymore or you’ve gone to all iTunes, all the time, we’ll be glad to receive it.

With a new manager, there are always some changes, and other changes are driven by outside forces. My goal is to keep our library running as smoothly as ever and to adjust things to serve the public better whenever I can find a way. I hope the small tweaks in how we’re doing things will help you find what you’re looking for at the library.