E-Audiobooks—From Emily Bronte to Dr. Phil—Now
Available Free From the Los Angeles Public Library
To the list of things
you can do while stuck in traffic, climbing the Stairmaster,
eating lunch at your desk or just relaxing at home, you can
now add listening to a downloaded best-selling book, thanks
to the new e-audiobook service from the Los Angeles Public
Library. Debuting August 15, the free service is available
24/7 on the library’s Web site, www.lapl.org.
With a library card and an Internet connection, patrons can
select from hundreds of fiction and non-fiction titles, then
download the complete work as an audio file to a PC or laptop,
MP3 player, PDA (personal digital assistant), and smart phone.
The file can even be burned to a CD for convenient play in
a car, home, office, boat or other location.
The library has long
offered a large collection of audiobooks in cassette and
CD formats, but this marks its first foray into digital audio
technology. “Audiobooks are in such
high demand that we can barely keep them on the shelf,” says
City Librarian Fontayne Holmes. “The new technology makes
this popular resource even more accessible and widely available.”
Among the initial 400
titles offered are classics such as Emily Bronte’s “Wuthering Heights,” Herman
Melville’s “Moby Dick,” and Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” Non-fiction
selections include a wide range of language learning titles,
Dr. Phil’s “Getting Real,” Richard Phalon’s “Forbes
Greatest Investment Stories” and Peter Hyman’s “The
Reluctant Metrosexual.” New titles will be added on a
continuous basis. Soon, a wide selection of classical music
will be available for download.
Library cardholders
can check out up to five e-audiobooks at a time. If a title
is not available because it has been checked out, users can
be added to a waiting list and will be notified via E-mail
when the title becomes available. E-audiobooks are loaned
for 21 days, then automatically “returned” and
made available for other users.#
The Los Angeles Public
Library serves the largest urban population of any library
in the country. Its Central library, 71 branch libraries,
six million books and state-of-the-art technology provide
everyone with free and easy access to information and the
opportunity for life-long learning. For further information,
visit the Library’s Web site at www.lapl.org.#
