The Abilene Public Library would like to announce new services for our cardholders. Effective Thursday, December 15, three new services will be available. These new services include a Restricted Access Juvenile Library Card option, a Kids’ catalog limited to searching only juvenile books, and an On Order Review Catalog for juvenile and young adult books considered for purchasing.
Parents and legal guardians will now have the option to register their minor children for Restricted Access Juvenile Library Cards. These cards are available free for residents within the Abilene city limits and $10.00 for non-residents. Restricted Access cardholders are limited to only checking out juvenile books owned by Abilene Public Library. They will not have the ability to borrow/transfer materials from other libraries, acquire materials through Interlibrary Loan, or access digital eBooks/eAudiobooks or streaming content through Libby or Hoopla. Additionally, these cards will not have access to the Internet in the library computer lab.
Secondly, we invite you to make use of the “Kids’ Catalog,” providing search results for only juvenile books in our collection (no digital content). You may access this catalog by: 1) Visiting the library’s website at www.abilenetx.gov/apl and clicking on the “Kids’ Catalog” link, or 2) Accessing the regular online catalog, then clicking the image link on the left-hand side of the screen labeled “KIDS.”
Finally, Adult Resident cardholders may access the “On Order Catalog” to review future orders for both the juvenile and young adult book collections before being purchased. This will allow an opportunity for community input prior to their acquisition. To access this collection, visit the library’s website at www.abilenetx.gov/apl and choose the image link labeled “On Order Catalog.” You will be prompted to enter your 13-digit library card number and PIN to authenticate yourself as a valid user. If this is your first visit to this catalog, make use of our instructional guide online by choosing the text link labeled “Help Using This Catalog.”
If you would like to make a comment, simply select the “Comment On This” button and complete the On Order Comment Form in its entirety. All comments will be sent to Library Administration and shared with the Library Advisory Board. At its regular meeting, the Library Advisory Board will make its recommendation on potential orders. The Board’s recommendation will be shared with the library director, who will make the final decision on the materials ordered.