• Get connected; Go on line; Download; and Read!

Get connected; Go on line; Download; and Read!

That's what patrons of a consortium of 15 Maryland County Public Library Systems Began doing in February. Established through an initiative, which as of this writing provides 761 E-book titles and growing, the E-books are provided in the same way as physical books in that a library cardholder can "check out" a book for three weeks and read it. In addition to being able to download the books, another difference is that there are no late-fines. Instead, the book simply cannot be read after three weeks from the date of download.

Several copies of each book are available at any one time depending on the popularity of the title. The consortium purchases the E-books from Digital Overdrive, which are available in accessible PDF's or audio formats, depending on the availability of the title. If you are a patron of one of these county libraries/systems:
Anne Arundel County Public Library
Baltimore County Public Library
Caroline County Public Library
Carroll County Public Library
Enoch Pratt Free Library
Frederick County Public Libraries
Harford County Public Library
Howard County Library
Montgomery County Public Libraries
Prince George's County Memorial Library System
Southern Maryland Regional Library Association
Calvert Library
Charles County Public Library
St. Mary's County Library
Or Washington County Free Library.

Simply have your library card in hand, log onto:
http://maryland.lib.overdrive.com
and begin "checking out," downloading and reading.

This innovative approach to library lending is revolutionizing the way Marylanders read books. Libraries that were previously too far away or otherwise inaccessible are now within reach of a connected Internet capable device.