My New Book Bestie - HOOPLA

I’m a big fan of the local library. Like, all of them. This summer, I forced my kids to go on a “Great Library Tour of SoCal,” where we started a library card collection (currently at 9). Yes, I forced them to enjoy it. And why do I love the library? Because everything is FREE. Seriously, don’t sleep on that library card! Activities for kiddos, state parks passes, access to powerful air conditioning - FREE! In addition to physical books via traditional library check-out, ebooks and audiobooks are also available for $0 with your library card via apps like Libby, Hoopla, and CloudLibrary. Perhaps you know all this already. But if this is your first ride on the merry-go round, let me throw my unaffiliated two cents in for why you should sign up for the Hoopla app, yesterday. Yes, Hoopla is free, like the other library apps. However, while Libby and CloudLibrary often have long hold times for materials, Hoopla gives you instant access - no waiting! Do they have everything? No. Are some things available on Hoopla that aren’t available on the other apps? Absolutely. For example, audiobooks on my TBR for Pierce Brown’s Red Rising series, Robin Hobb’s Assasin’s Apprentice Series, and Sarah J Maas’ Crescent city are available on Hoopla, but only on ebook with the Libby app. Hoopla also gives access to multiple types of media - music, movies, comics, and tv shows. You can borrow a “bingepass” to access collections from the BBC, Hallmark +, and other tv series, including a metric ton of kid-friendly content. My linked library card allots me 6 Hoopla loans per month, which so far has been more than sufficient. Will report back when I max out and try to use another library branch card. Happy reading/listening/watching my bookish girlies!