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Although Dare County Libraries are currently closed to the public, convenient “no staff contact” curbside pick-up of requested library materials such as books, DVDs and magazines is available. Hundreds of library users each week have been making use of this free and convenient service.

There are two options for requesting materials for curbside pick-up. Call library staff anytime during weekday hours to request specific titles, authors, subjects or genres. Parents can request materials for their children as well. Not sure what you want to read next? Call the library and staffers will ask a few questions about other books or authors the caller has enjoyed and they will pick some titles. The public may also check out the library system’s new webpage www.darenc.com/reading for more information about recently added book titles that may be of interest.

Library customers can also request library materials from home using the online catalog at www.earlibrary.org. It’s easy to do but those with questions can call or visit the website www.darenc.com/reading for step-by-step directions. When requested items are available, library staff will call to schedule an appointment to pick up items at the library using curbside pick-up. For items that need to be returns, the book drop in front of each library branch is always available, as are book drops in Southern Shores, Nags Head and Rodanthe. “We ask everyone, please, no donated items in our book drops at this time,” stated the Dare County Library press release.

Weekly preschool story hours will resume “virtually” for the month of September. Every Wednesday beginning September 9, parents can call and schedule a time to pick up a story hour activity packet to take home and enjoy with their child. Story hour packets will be available at all three Dare County Library locations starting Wednesday mornings at 10 a.m. through 5 p.m. on Friday. The following Wednesday mornings, a new kit will become available.

For children in grades 1-12, the libraries are offering a brand new “Fall Into Reading Challenge” to encourage reading by Dare County students while they are learning from home. Children who track their reading for pleasure can be entered into a prize drawing consisting of 20 prizes countywide, courtesy of the Dare County Library Foundation. Participating children need to read for pleasure for at least 15 minutes for 40 days between September 1 and October 23, 2020. To get a tracking form and all of the details, call the library during weekday hours or print out the “Fall Reading Challenge” tracking form from www.darenc.com/library.

The Dare County Libraries offer a full array of digital content such as eBooks, eAudiobooks, Digital Magazines, and online non-credit courses all available 24/7.  To find out more about all of these resources please visit www.darenc.com/VirtualLibrary.

Recent additions and enhancements to digital offerings include the all-new Creativebug, an online collection of over 1,000 award-winning online videos by top designers and artists. Participants can learn drawing, lettering, painting, printmaking, sewing, quilting, paper, knitting, crochet, jewelry, food, plus party and holiday ideas and over 100 classes designed for kids. Free Creativebug classes vary from several minutes to several hours depending on the techniques or project demonstrated. Each class comes with downloadable PDF instructions, materials list, patterns or recipes. Closed captioning and transcripts are also available.

RB Digital Magazines (formerly Zinio) now offers hundreds of magazine titles for borrowers instead of only a few dozen. Browse and find digital magazines on almost any subject that may be of interest. Read your favorite magazine from cover to cover, including the latest issue and back issues on your computer, tablet or mobile device.

The library has also made available thousands of additional titles in the Cloud Library collection of eBooks. Browsers will now see a much larger collection of classics, nonfiction and children’s titles than were available last year.

Readers need a library card account number to access these resources. Those who do not have a library card account can apply from home at www.darenc.com/Online-Library-Card. For more information or assistance, visit website at www.darenc.com or call a specific branch of the Dare County Library during weekday hours: Manteo 252-473-2372, Hatteras 252-986-2385 or Kill Devil Hills 252-441-4331.

READ ABOUT MORE NEWS AND EVENTS HERE.

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