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Since opening its doors in 1913, the Andalusia Public Library has seen many upgrades over the years, and one of those is eBooks.

According to APL Director Mona Simon, the library first began offering eBooks in March 2021 as requests by citizens of the City of Andalusia.

“I had already started looking into it because eBooks are very popular. The library had never used eBooks before. When I went to speak to the city about it, they wholeheartedly approved. After I was approached about it through e-mail, I thought we should look into offering them,” Simon said.

They come in handy for APL patrons because they are electronic. She said, “The public can go on tablets, phones, or computers and download an app called cloudLibrary by Bibliotheca. They go on there and follow the prompts. You must have a library card and a PIN. Once you have all that in place, you can begin accessing eBooks.” cloudLibrary allows readers to borrow eBooks and audiobooks, save reading lists and mark their favorites, and view their digital borrowing history.

Simon added that the public loves viewing the eBooks, and the library shares an account with the Opp Public Library. “This is beneficial because anybody with a library card has access. The mutual relationship we have with their library helps offset expenses.”

Right now, APL offers only fiction eBooks, but Simon said a few audiobooks are also included. “For the most part, people seem to want the eBooks. When I find an audiobook on something really popular, I’ll get that. I do have some audiobooks, but it’s mostly fiction. We take requests though if anyone inquires about a certain book,” she said.

The Andalusia Public Library is located at 212 South Three Notch Street and is open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information e-mail library@cityofandalusia.com or call 334-222-6612. Patrons can visit the APL website at https://www2.youseemore.com/andalusia or go to their Facebook page under the same name.

“We’re continually getting new books, and I try to make an order every month. If you have a specific request, you can call it in or send us an e-mail. We will be happy to accommodate the request as best as we can,” Simon said.