Guys, if you haven’t figured it out yet, I read REALLY fast. Which means, I go through a LOT of books. And, while I would LOVE to buy everything I read…I am not Bill Gates. So, I have limited space, and a limited budget. *sigh*
I used to make weekly, sometimes biweekly trips to the library. And Indy has a great library system. Trust me–I’m used to small town libraries with a limited (although usually wonderful) collection. When I moved to the city, I couldn’t believe how many books I had access to. Suddenly, not only did I have one branch, I had several! I just had to request a book online, then my lovely librarians would pull it into my local branch from whatever location it was housed at. Awesome! Sure it took a little bit of wait time, but that’s ok. I didn’t mind that, because I have such an extensive list that I always knew ahead of time what I was going to read next.
I don’t remember where I found Overdrive. Maybe I saw an ad, or something on Twitter. But I know something caught my eye one day. “Wait…a library app? That exists?” So I downloaded it. And it has changed my entire reading world. Because now, I no longer have to drive to the library every week. I have access to all of the ebooks and audiobooks that the Indy libraries have in their files. And, now that I’m living in a neighboring county…I have access to THOSE files too. And if we move…guess what! I can have access to any of those libraries too. As long as I have a library card to a library who uses Overdrive for their ebooks–I can use the app to read.
What I love most about this app is that it is compatible with all of my devices: my phone, my kindle, even my computer. And it syncs to everything. So I can read a book on my breaks at work, then I can go home and read it on my tablet. Then, if I’m waiting at the doctor’s office, I have it on my phone too! To download it on my Paperwhite, I just have to click a few times on my computer first, and then it downloads automatically with WIFI.
I think one of the reasons I have read so much more this year is because I have so much more access to the books I really want to read. No more borrowing stacks of books and then running out of books that are just so-so. Don’t like the book I’m reading? Ok…download another one. It is so convenient.
Audio books work the same way, and most libraries have a huge collection. No more spending boukou bucks on Audible. No thanks. That’s a great product, I’ll admit, but I just don’t have the money for it, and I don’t listen to enough audiobooks to justify it. So, instead, I rent them from my library through Overdrive.
This app is so easy to use. Just enter your library card info and pin, and the app saves it. Then just start adding books to your wish list, hold list, etc. You can read the books on the browser, or download them to the app. I usually just read them on the browser rather than take up memory, because I read too fast to justify downloading them (which is why my screenshots show there’s no books on my shelf), but you can load them if you want.
If you aren’t using Overdrive yet, you should be. FREE BOOKS PEOPLE! Stop pirating. Support your local libraries.
As I Lay Reading 