Easy-to-use audiobooks

Like many readers, I have a growing to-be-read list and not nearly enough free time to enjoy each book. This is why I love audiobooks! Imagine being able to read while you work, cook, clean, or enjoy hobbies like knitting, painting or coloring. As a strong advocate for audiobooks, I cannot say enough good things about the Libby app! Libby is a free app where you can enjoy ebooks, digital audiobooks, and magazines from your public library. With Libby, users don't have to worry about subscription fees, in-app purchases, or late fees. You can stream titles with Wi-Fi or mobile data, or download them for offline use and read anytime, anywhere. All you need to get started is a library card. Don't have a library card? No problem! Stop by the library with a photo ID and proof of address to sign up. Libby is available on all iOS 10+, Android 7.1+, and newer Amazon Fire tablets. Once you've downloaded the app, you will be prompted to search for your library. Search for Tiffin-Seneca Public Library and enter your library card number to start browsing titles. To use Libby: • Tap Search to find a specific title, author, or series, or tap Library to browse the catalog. • Once you've selected a title, you will be prompted to borrow the item if it is available now or place a hold for the next available copy. • Your borrowed titles will appear on your Shelf for future use. To start listening to an audiobook: • Tap Shelf at the bottom of the screen.• Tap Loans at the top of the screen.• Tap Open Audiobook.• Tap the Play/Pause button above the timeline.• While listening, you can set a sleep timer, change the playback speed, and more. For those of you who already use Libby, there has been an update to the "Deliver Later" feature which is now called "Suspend." If you are not ready for a title, you can suspend your hold. Suspending a hold lets you keep your place in line for a title until you're ready to read it. This keeps titles circulating, which helps the library make the most of funds used to purchase digital materials. When you're ready to read the hold you've suspended, manually unsuspend it. It will be delivered when you reach the top of the wait list and someone returns the title. The Tags feature is my favorite way to organize titles. You can create as many tags as you'd like and save titles for future use.Tags I've created and use daily include: TBR (to-be-read books), DNF (did not finish), Mystery/Thriller, and Romance. Libby has also created tags such as Notify Me, Borrowed, and Sampled. The Notify Me tag can be clicked for titles not yet available to place on hold. Additionally, Libby automatically tags books that you've borrowed and titles that you've sampled. If you'd like to learn more, visit https://www.tiffinsenecalibrary.org/download to watch the training video "Get Started with Libby". Tiffin-Seneca Public Library is honored to provide free digital services to our community. If you have questions regarding Libby or any of our other apps, please do not hesitate to stop in the Library. Staff members are happy to walk you through the steps of downloading and navigating our digital services. Mandi Whitaker is a public services librarian at the Tiffin-Seneca Public Library.