This is One Thing, a column with tips on how to live.
I’ve read 104 books so far this year, and I’ve paid for maybe 10 of them. It’s not that I don’t want to support authors in every way I can … but honestly, if I had to buy 100 hardcovers a year, I wouldn’t be able to afford my reading habit. That’s where Libby comes in.
Libby is a godsend. I am evangelical about Libby. I am in love with Libby. I am pedantic about Libby’s virtues.
Oh, right: Libby is an app. The cutesy name is, of course, short for library. Through Libby, I connect my Los Angeles Public Library card (though you can use any city’s library card), and then I can borrow all the books my heart desires, free of charge. Obviously, everyone knows that libraries are a thing, but Libby brings the concept of “borrowing from a publicly funded supply of books” into our age of convenience and multimedia. I’m a Kindle person, and on Libby you can sort books by format: audiobooks, paperbacks, e-books, etc.
If you’re borrowing a digital book, you can download it right there in your home (or on vacation, or on your commute), no going to a physical library required. If a title is popular and all the digital copies are checked out, you can place a hold, and your phone will vibrate with an alert when it’s available. And after the loan is up, the book will automatically become inaccessible. No need to actually go and return anything. It’s all so easy that it feels like cheating.
Also, Kindles: amazing devices. I have a Paperwhite, so as far as the reading experience goes, it basically looks like a book. I can turn my phone on silent and go into another world for a while. And there are no notifications on my Kindle.
So, go renew your library card, and borrow all the books your heart desires. Particularly ahead of the holidays, so you have something to escape into when you want to leave family dinner early. Shout-out to Benjamin Franklin; no need to thank me.
