Written by Christina Cooper

Many of us here at Storrs Library love reading before going to bed, and we bet you do too. Did you know Storrs offers a digital resource that will allow you to read thousands of ebooks and digital magazines, or play an e-audiobook on nearly any device? If you’re tired of propping up a copy of A Tale of Two Cities on a pillow, you can instead be lulled to sleep listening to it read aloud. Intrigued? It’s time to download Libby.

Libby is an app that allows users to download items from our digital collection onto personal devices. On our website, longmeadowlibrary.org, click on Books and More, then choose e-Resources to find Libby. Once you’ve installed the app and logged in with your library card, you can search and borrow items from eight library networks across Massachusetts. You’re not likely to run out of material with this much at your fingertips.

The Libby app is compatible with most devices, including phones and tablets from Apple and Android, Sonos systems, Google Home and Amazon Echo, but not including Kindle. (Libby’s help page can show you a workaround for Kindle devices.) Readers can stream books and magazines, or download them to peruse offline.

With our digital collection, you can read books on a train, or on a plane, on your own, even with your phone. Or in the house, or with a mouse. You can even read in a box with a fox. (Yes, we have Green Eggs and Ham and many other children’s selections in Libby, too.)

Ready to put our digital collection in your pocket, but hoping someone can walk you through the process? Stop by the library; our Storrs Reference Desk staff is ready to help. Now nothing stands between you, your snuggly bed, and a charming narrator’s voice telling you, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.