Thursday, June 6, 2013

E-books for seniors

June is Seniors’ Month, a time where senior citizens are celebrated all across the nation. The City of Kawartha Lakes Public Library is also showing its support and appreciation for the many contributions this group has made to our great country by ensuring these citizens enjoy a long and healthy retirement. One way to do so is to provide access to library materials in a variety of formats that make reading more accessible to senior citizens. In addition to books on tape and large print books, the public library has a large collection of e-books available.
E-books are becoming increasingly popular among senior citizens as they offer more flexibility than paper books. Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of e-readers is that you can adjust the font style, as well as the size of the font, to one that is easy for you to read. The large font option expands the options for books to read as you are not restricted to the books available in large print. Most e-readers have the option to read without a backlight so it does not feel like you are reading from a computer screen.
Another advantage is that e-readers are light to carry. You can carry over one thousand books around in one e-reader that weighs under 15 ounces. The light weight is nice for travelling or even for sitting outside enjoying the summer weather. You can borrow several e-books from the library and not have to worry about carrying them all.
You can borrow e-books from the library’s collection anywhere that has access to internet, without having to visit the actual branch. You can get all of the e-books from the library’s website. The library has a large collection of e-book titles available – over 54,553 and counting! Another benefit of e-books is that you do not accumulate late fines as when the loan period is up the book is automatically “digitally returned”. For more information and for a quick-start guide go to the library’s website at www.city.kawarthalakes.on.ca/library   and then click “E-services”.  The City of Kawartha Lakes Public Library offers assistance to people learning how to use their e-readers. Call your local branch to book an appointment for a one-on-one e-reader workshop.
It is important for everyone, particularly seniors, to keep their mind active and keep reading as they age. Research by the Canadian Institute for Health Information cites that reading can help prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia. In fact, seniors who read regularly are 2.5 times less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease compared to those who do not read. 

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