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Talking Books
Talking Books is a free library service available to U.S. citizens whose low vision, blindness, or physical handicap makes it difficult to read a standard printed page. Talking books are books recorded on tape cassettes. A new memory card cartridge has just been introduced and will eventually replace all the cassette tapes. The collection of Braille, talking books, magazines, and playback equipment is loaned to individuals who meet the eligibility criteria of the National Library Service. In addition to the collection of books and magazines, volunteers narrate and monitor recordings, repair cassettes and playback equipment, and provide home delivery to new patrons.
Non-fiction books cover topics similar to those offered in a mid-size public library and include biographies, poetry, humor, religion, and history. The fiction collection ranges from mysteries and westerns to best-sellers, romance, and suspense. Library patrons receive bi-monthly catalogs of newly released books as well as a yearly catalog and may request specialized catalogs such as romances, mysteries, and science fiction.
Local cooperating libraries throughout the United States mail NLS audio books, magazines, and audio equipment directly to enrollees at no cost. Braille books and magazines are also available to patrons at no cost.
Eligible people are blind persons whose visual acuity is 20/200 or less in the better eye with correcting glasses, or whose widest diameter of visual field is no greater than 20 degrees, or people whose disability preventing the reading of standard printed material, or people who are unable to use standard printed materials as a result of physical limitations. The disability may be either temporary or permanent.
To apply for service, call 1-888-NLS-READ (toll free) during normal business hours and follow the prompts. Your call will be connected to the appropriate library.
Over 90 popular magazines in Braille or on cassette are available free of charge from the Library or are mailed directly to subscribers. You may call the library to inquire about the availability of any particular title. We have a list of peridocials here.
The Arizona Braille and Talking Book Library
In Arizona more than 65,000 visually and physically disabled people are eligible to use free services offered by the Arizona State Braille and Talking Book Library, 1-800-255-5578. Services include the loan of recorded books and magazines, the loan of a player to play recorded material, the loan of Braille books and magazines, and free mailing privileges. There is no charge for the service. When you have finished reading the book you put it back in the little box it was mailed to you in, turn the address card over and put it back into the mail. No stamp needed.
Volunteers in Arizona record several books each year that are about Arizona and the Southwest and, additionally, record other books that are of more general interest. You may call the library to request a bibliography of locally produced books or to inquire about the availability of any particular title.
Their entire catalog is available for online browsing. To request books online call 602-255-5578 or toll free (in state only) 1-800-255-5578 or send an email to btbl@lib.az.us for your username and password.
The Library offers both DVD and VHS collections of described videos that patrons may borrow for a two-week checkout. Described videos have a second audio track with a narrator's voice describing the action on the screen during breaks in the dialog and sound effects. To view described videos, just use your DVD or VCR player as you would with any other video.
They also put out a quarterly newsletter you can read or listen to online, or have mailed to you.
Foreign Language Materials
There are a few non-English audio and Braille materials produced and offered by Talking Books and other organizations. Spanish audio and Braille books are distributed just as English language books are produced and distributed. Talk to your local library. They also provide several foreign language audio magazines in Spanish, French, and German. They acquire audio books and Braille books in many foreign languages from various domestic and foreign producers. These materials may be borrowed through cooperating libraries on interlibrary loan from the National Library Service.
Some cooperating libraries and institutions such as Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, and the Jewish Braille Institute, produce foreign language materials that are generally available on loan. These materials are listed in the International Union Catalog. Call your library for a copy.