Playaway

The Buena Park Library announces a new product --- the Playaway!!

Playaway is the simplest way to listen to audio on the go. Each Playaway comes with the digital content already pre-loaded on it and a battery to make it play. Simply plug in earbuds and enjoy.
No Cassettes. NoCDs. No Downloads. Just Play.

Each ultra-portable Playaway weighs only two ounces and comes packaged with earbuds and a standard AAA battery to allow for immediate listening. Additionally, Playaway has a universal jack that works with almost any type of headphone or mobility accessory.

Each Playaway holds an entire audiobook, regardless of length. Play time depends on the length of the title and can range from 25 minutes to 80+ hours.

Using only a few buttons, a listener can easily navigate back and forth through a chapter, adjust volume up and down, and even alter the speed of a narrator's voice.

Playaway has an automatic bookmark feature that remembers where you stopped listening and resumes at that point when turned on again.

What titles do you have?
You can search our catalog by the following subject heading: Audiobooks--Playaways. We have 16 titles now, but more are on the way. An example of a couple of the titles are: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

What else do I need to know?
The titles check out for three weeks.
There is currently a limit of 1 Playaway per person.
Earbuds will be provided if you do not have your own.
This collection is made possible by a generous gift from the Volunteer Guild of the Buena Park Library District.

Where to find books (other than the library)

Today's book blog from the L.A. Times called "Jacket Copy" talks about how the NEA's latest report discusses the demise of reading and the blog also announces another book store closing. [Such gloom and doom in the book world.] On a brighter side, they do report on another company that sells books: Starbucks. The latest offering in Starbucks stores nationwide is Beautiful Boy by David Sheff.

Remember when there used to be a book store in the Buena Park Mall? (Ahh, the good old days!) If anyone wants to check out a bricks and mortar bookstore now -- you must travel to Fullerton, La Habra, or Cerritos. Here is a list of the local area book stores:

Borders Bookstores

Cerritos
12741 Towne Center Dr.
Cerritos , CA 90703
Phone: 562/809-5775
Hours: 10am-10pm Every Day

La Habra
1310 South Beach Blvd.
La Habra , CA 90631
Phone: 562/691-8969
Hours: Monday - Thursday 9am to 10pm
Friday - Saturday 9am to 12am
Sunday 9am to 10pm


Barnes and Noble Bookstore

Amerige Heights Town Center
1923 West Malvern Avenue
Fullerton, CA 92833
714/871-9855
Hours: 9am-10pm Every Day


Or you could order your books through Amazon.com online --- remember to use the link from the Buena Park Library District's website so the Library can benefit from your purchases.

Bestsellers of a Century

Do you want to know which books were considered "the cat's pajamas" back in the 1920s? How about what books were "cool" in the '60s? Cader Books, in conjunction with People Magazine, have reprinted Publisher's Weekly hardcover bestseller lists for the years 1900 to 1998. (The site actually says "Bestseller Lists 1900 to 1995," but the titles are listed through 1998.) Choose your favorite decade/year at www.caderbooks.com/bestintro.html.

FYI: Publishers Going Digital

Random House Publishing Group will begin selling the individual chapters of a popular book to gauge reader demand for bite-size portions of digital texts. It will sell the six chapters and epilogue of Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die for $2.99 each. Random House will post Made to Stick, written by Chip Heath and Dan Heath, at www.randomhouse.com/madetostick. Customers will receive a digital link via email enabling them to download the chapter onto their computers.

Publishers are convinced that as it becomes easier to download books, and screen technology improves, an ever-larger number of readers will opt to receive digital content.

Separately, News Corp.'s HarperCollins Publishers said it will make a handful of its titles free online for a limited time, including a new novel from Paolo Coelho.
The books will be available at www.harpercollins.com.

Check out the article in the Wall Street Journal for further details.

Check Out Our Book Displays

Do you want to know "how to" do something...check out the how-to books on display. You will be able to find: how to knit; how to make animal housing; how to hula; how to restore your muscle car; how to grow a novel...plus much more!! A big thank you to Daniel and Vince for creating the display.

And thanks to Heather for the "We Love Valentine's Day!" display. Stop by to browse titles such as: Natural History of Love, Romance, Ten Poems to Open Your Heart, and True Love.