Why I Love the Libby App

When my kids were younger, I used to frequent the library almost weekly, even more during the months of June, July, and August when the summer reading programs were in full swing. During the height of the pandemic, my visits came to a screeching halt. I was focused on keeping my job as a magazine editor and trying to launch a podcast. I knew there was an app called OverDrive that was supposed to allow you to check out books from the library digitally on your Kindle, but I found it clunky and difficult to use. Around 2022 I discovered the Libby app, which is owned by OverDrive but much more user-friendly. All I had to do was download the app to my phone, find my local library, enter in my current library card number, and voila, I was connected to so many resources I didn’t know what to do with them at first.

Through the Libby app I’ve been able to request and read books, magazines, and audiobooks, all for free! What’s even better is that I can “send” books directly to my Kindle for easier reading. I manage all my loans in the app, and if I request a book, and it comes in while I’m still reading another one or know I won’t get to it quickly enough, I can request the book be sent to the next person in line without losing my own place. The book will usually come back to me within 10 days, if not sooner. Last year I participated in the Goodreads Reading Challenge, and the majority of my books came from my access to the Libby app. I read books like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, In Five Years by Rebecca Serle, Matthew Perry’s autobiography Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, The Rewind by Allison Winn Scotch, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café by Fannie Flagg, The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, Yellowface by R.F. Kuang, and much more. 

Through the audiobook feature, I listened to Hello Sunshine by Laura Dave, I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy, and Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister. I learned that I don’t love listening to books on audio—I feel like I can read faster than I can listen and with the Gillian McAllister novel, which was told in reverse, I found myself very confused and wishing I could flip back and forth in a physical book. I’ve shared my love of the app with so many friends who didn’t knew it existed and they are having a blast exploring the titles available. The only downside I’ve found is that occasionally I will request three or four books at the same time, all with drastically different wait times, and they will all become available within three or four days of one another. #booknerd problems, right? That’s why I love the “pause my hold” feature as it gives me time to finish a current book before starting another. 

I’ve just finished The Women by Kristin Hannah and am about to start The Christie Affair, a historical work of fiction featuring the life of Agatha Christie by Nine de Gramont. I recently joined my neighborhood book club and was able to request our May book through the app. Now if I could only find the time to write reviews for all these fantastic books . . . 

Have you been able to try the Libby app? What do you like or not like about it? 

Renee Roberson is an award-winning writer who also produces the weekly true crime podcast, Missing in the Carolinas.

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5 comments a love of reading, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, Libby app, Renee Roberson, support for libraries

The Comfort of Reading Books More Than Once

I have a running list of comfort foods I like to indulge in—Wisconsin mac and cheese (topped with parmesan chicken breast) from Noodles and Company, chicken and dumplings from Cracker Barrel, a nice, cheesy, New-York style slice of pizza, cupcakes . . . the list is pretty much endless.

To that effect, I have favorite “comfort” books I read over and over. This never ceases to surprise my husband, who has never been much of a reader. Both my kids do the same thing, though, and I laugh a little to myself every time I see my daughter check a book she’s read at least 20 times out from the library once again.

When I was a child, my parents moved us around a lot and the one stable thing I had in my possession was my collection of paperbacks. I read Judy Blume, Lois
Duncan, Christopher Pike, and the Sweet Valley High series over and over and over. Now, my collection has progressed somewhat, although I don’t have as many. Elin Hilderbrand’s books top my list of comfort reads—especially The Blue Bistro. Opening the pages of one of her novels instantly transports me to a place I long to visit, Nantucket, Mass. When I reread Jodi Picoult’s novels I often pick up on hints that I previously missed.

I guess for me, I like to slip back into familiar books the way I would slip into a cozy old sweater. I feel like I know the characters by heart—like I’m part of their world, entrenched in the lives and their homes. I often stumble across things I missed in previous readings—mostly because I was in a rush. I like to revisit books where I know what’s going to happen and don’t have to put a lot of thought into what I’m reading, much like the way I’d rather order up my favorite cupcake than take a chance on trying a new flavor. In this article I found in The New York Times, the writer says “Going back to a book is a way of daring that past self to find new evidence for that old love."

And did you know that researchers believe reading a book a second time can have emotional benefits? On a first read, readers are focused on what is happening in the story—the main events. On the second read, one can savor the emotions ignited by the book more deeply. This happened to me when I read The Help by Kathryn Stockett a second time. I was in such a rush to finish the book the first time I didn’t connect with it on as deep of a level as I did the second time, when I became filled with anger, sadness, defiance, grief, and triumph.

When I read the book Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan again as an adult, after having moved through my high school and teenage years, I read the pages with a more seasoned viewpoint of things. I’ve had teachers and professors that used “tough love” as a way to make me a better writer. It made the central death in the novel all the more poignant, and senseless. I hope to one day publish a book that others will enjoy reading more than once, too.

Do you have any books you read over and over again? Share your favorites in the comments below!

Renee Roberson is an award-winning writer and editor who also works as a Blog Tour Manager for WOW! Women on Writing. When she’s not working on client projects, she enjoys spending time with her family and writing young adult and middle grade fiction. Visit her blog, Renee's Pages, for more musings about books and writing.

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4 comments a love of reading, emotional benefits of reading, reading books for comfort, reading books more than once, Renee Roberson

Building a Love of Reading through Storytelling

I dedicate this post to my father who was the best storyteller I know. It was his stories that became the building blocks for a lifetime of reading and writing.

A friend recently asked “what’s the key to making your children love books so much?” I suppose until that moment I hadn’t given it much thought. I love books, our children love books. I thought that was the simple correlation. I love seeing things through the eyes of a child and our older children were able to tell me a little bit about their love of reading. After a few conversations with them, I realized the answer was a little more in-depth than I had originally imagined. The first stories our children fall in love with are stories we tell with our own voices and their first works are found scribbled on pieces of scrap paper and may not contain a single recognizable letter. I now firmly believe it is the art of oral storytelling that helps build a love a reading and ultimately a love of writing because children want to share their own story.
My youngest daughter loves to hear my voice. I began talking to her while I was pregnant and she hasn’t tired of the sing songy way I tell her about my day. I may be singing the recipe for banana bread, making up a song about her beautiful blue eyes, or belting out the latest Taylor Swift song. My daughter doesn’t care what it is; as long as it’s my voice she is soothed, pleased, and entertained. Similarly, my youngest son who is nearing two really enjoys learning through song. He is beginning to recognize the rhythm of the ABC song, Twinkle Twinkle, and other standard children’s tunes. He also can say simple words like “book” and his favorites are by Dr. Seuss. He enjoys the rhythm and rhyme whether it’s being sung or read and his love for physical books is already apparent.

The older children who are 7 and 8 were the ones who really brought me to my theory about storytelling and a love of reading. They love making up their own stories; give them an object they’ve never seen before and they’ll give a lengthy explanation about what it is and where it came from. The story will change if they play long enough and one minute the long stick will be a telescope on a pirate ship and the next it is a walking stick for an elderly woman on her way to catch a train. They love telling stories as much as they love having them read to them. Now they are reading as part of their school work and they are flying through the reading levels because they can’t wait to hear the next story or find out exactly why a deer’s eyes make a reflection when the headlights hit them.

My theory is this: A child’s curiosity leads them to love a good story and a good story encourages the love of reading and a good storyteller encourages a love of writing. My father traveled as a young man. He worked for the Manitowoc Company (a local company building large cranes) and his position was to travel to customer sites and help oversee the building/re-building of the crane after it arrived. The crane had been put together at the manufacturing plant but was disassembled for transport to the customer. My father would help the customer’s workers to put all the pieces back together again. Sometimes this took several weeks. He had quite this job by the time I was born, but he still recalled the stories with plenty of enthusiasm.

I loved hearing about the pilot who would fall asleep during a familiar flight, the snobby restaurant staff who wouldn’t seat a gentleman unless he was wearing a coat and tie, the flirty stewardess who looked forward to the handsome business men, and the stories go on and on. The first book I remember falling in love with was “The Secret Garden”, but the first stories were the ones my daddy would tell me during a bath or just before bed. Even if we as parents are not writers or avid readers, we can help our children love reading and writing if we share family stories with them. Even a quick story about our day at the office is interesting to our children and helps them understand a world that may be completely foreign to them.

What was the first story you fell in love with? Was it written and published or just a familiar family story? Who or what do you credit for your love of reading and/or writing? Please share your thoughts in the comments – it’s always fabulous to hear from YOU!

Photo Credit: Oh! Photography 

Crystal is a church musician, business owner, active journaler, writer and blogger as well as a dairy http://bringonlemons.blogspot.com/
farmer. She lives in Reedsville, Wisconsin with her husband, four young children (Carmen 8, Andre turning 7 next week, Breccan 20 months, and Delphine 11 weeks), two dogs, two rabbits, four little piggies, and over 200 Holsteins. You can find Crystal blogging and reviewing books and all sorts of other stuff at:

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2 comments a love of reading, a love of writing, children reading, children writing, love reading, reading, storytelling, teaching children, the art of storytelling, writing