Libby — Free Library Books and Audiobooks

Free books on your phone, paid for by your library

Libby is a free app from a company called OverDrive. You sign in with your library card and it gives you the entire ebook and audiobook collection of your local library — on your phone, tablet, Kindle, or computer. No fees, no late charges, no ads. The book quietly disappears off your device when the loan period ends, just like a real library book.

I tell every customer 60+ about Libby. Two reasons. One: the audiobooks are a quiet miracle for anyone with eye trouble — same books you'd buy on Audible for $20 each, free. Two: the libraries in Portage County have been quietly negotiating massive ebook collections behind the scenes, and almost nobody knows. The Akron-Summit collection alone has over 100,000 titles.

Step 1 — Get a library card (still free, still 5 minutes)

If you live in Portage County and don't already have a library card, the network you want is NEXT Public Library Cooperative — which is the shared catalog covering Portage County District Library (Garrettsville, Aurora, Pierce-Streetsboro, Randolph, Windham), Reed Memorial in Ravenna, Kent Free Library, and a few others. One card works at all of them.

How to get one:

• In person — walk into any Portage County branch with a photo ID and proof of address (utility bill, mailed envelope). Out the door with a card in 10 minutes. Free.
• Online — visit portagelibrary.org or reedlibrary.org and look for "Get a Library Card." They'll give you a temporary digital card good for instant Libby use, with the real plastic card mailed in a few days.

If you spend much time in Summit County, the Akron-Summit County Public Library (akronlibrary.org) also offers a free card to anyone who lives, works, or attends school in Ohio — yes, including Portage County residents. Two cards = two collections = more selection on Libby. Worth it.

Step 2 — Install Libby

On your phone or tablet, open the App Store (iPhone/iPad) or Google Play Store (Android). Search Libby. The publisher should say OverDrive, Inc. — that's the right one. Install it (free), open it, and tap "Yes, I'll find my library." It uses your location, finds your nearest one, and asks for your card number. Type in the digits from your library card and your PIN (usually the last four of your phone number — call the library if you don't know).

From there, you're in. The app looks like a magazine, with the catalog along the bottom.

Step 3 — Borrow your first book

1. Tap the magnifying glass and search for a title or an author — anything from John Grisham to Lisa Wingate to Tom Hanks reading a Tom Hanks book.
2. If it says Available, tap Borrow. If it says Place Hold, tap that — it'll text or email you when it's your turn (usually a few days to a few weeks for popular titles, same as the physical library waitlist).
3. Pick the loan length — 7, 14, or 21 days. I always pick 21.
4. Tap Open Book (for ebooks) or Open Audiobook. That's it.

The book lives in your Shelf (the bookmark icon along the bottom). Tap it to keep reading or listening. At the end of the loan, it auto-returns — no late fees ever. If you want it longer, tap Renew a few days before the end. If nobody else is waiting, the renewal usually goes through.

Step 4 — Audiobooks on the go

This is what really hooks people. Audiobooks in Libby work exactly like Audible — you can:

• Adjust the playback speed (0.75x if the narrator is rushed, 1.25x if they're slow).
• Set a sleep timer for bedtime.
• Add bookmarks.
• Pick up exactly where you left off when you open the app again.
• Listen with the screen off and the phone in your pocket.

And it works in the car. If you've got CarPlay or Android Auto, Libby shows up right next to your music — tap to play.

Step 5 — Send books to your Kindle (a quiet trick)

Got a Kindle Paperwhite or Kindle Scribe? Libby will send the ebook straight to your Kindle — same as if you bought it from Amazon, but free. When you borrow a book, tap Read With... and pick Kindle. It opens Amazon, you sign in, click Get Library Book, and the book appears on your Kindle the next time it has Wi-Fi. Lovely.

(This only works for ebooks, not audiobooks. Audiobooks stay in the Libby app.)

Big print and accessibility tricks worth knowing

• In any ebook, tap the middle of the page and then the Aa icon — you can crank the font size up to almost magazine-cover huge. Beats most large-print library shelves.
• Change the background to sepia or black to ease eye strain.
• For audiobooks, the iPhone's "Speak Selection" or the Kindle's text-to-speech can read aloud for hours.
• Libby supports OpenDyslexic font — buried in the Aa settings — which a lot of folks with macular issues find easier to read.

Bonus — Hoopla for the stuff Libby doesn't have

Most Portage County libraries also subscribe to Hoopla, which is a different free service. Same idea — your library card unlocks the catalog — but Hoopla has movies, TV shows, comics, and music in addition to ebooks and audiobooks. It's separate from Libby; you install the Hoopla app, sign in with your library card, and you're in. There's a limit of about 4–8 borrows per month per card (the library pays per use).

Between Libby and Hoopla, the only streaming service most of my retired customers actually need is Netflix.

What I help people with on a Libby visit

• Walk into the Atwater post office (closest one for me) and head to Reed Memorial in Ravenna to get the card together.
• Install Libby on the phone, tablet, and Kindle.
• Search for the first three books — usually one she's been wanting and two recommendations.
• Show how to make the type big.
• Set up Hoopla too, since the libraries usually have both.
• Add the library's holds-pickup phone number as a contact.