New library app a boon for Manatee residents

For less than the price of a decent used car, Manatee County’s library system is delivering access to more than 7,000 newspapers, books, journals and magazines from around the world to its card-carrying patrons.

It’s just another way, Library Director Tammy Parrott said, of satisfying one of her organization’s main missions.

The county in March launched access to PressReader, which presents page-turning digital versions of publications from around the world, in 60 languages. The service costs the county $19.000 annually, and users can sign up for free connections directly through the PressReader site or smartphone app.

What’s there to read? Well…

Got a hankering for the latest edition of Estonia’s leading news source: MK Estonia? It’s there.

Can’t lay your hands on the March issue of Moteur Boat: Le Leader De La Presse Bateau a Moteur? You’re covered, at least in terms of motor boat news, written entirely in French.

And if you’d seen the March 11 edition of the South China Morning Post, you’d know President Donald Trump could be heading to China for a summit “as early as April," according to the lead headline.

“One of the big things libraries do is connect people,” Parrott said. “They can connect people with other people, with things they want to read, things they want to do, things they want to learn."

She said PressReader is just another way to accomplish that which libraries have been doing for generations.

But far-flung exotic titles aren’t the end of it. Dozens of domestic newspapers and magazines are also part of the bargain that ordinarily would cost individual users about $30 a month. Beyond simply a reading platform, PressReader also includes beyond-print features such as audio presentation of content, translations between 20 languages, customizable newsfeeds and sharing capabilities.

Parrott said for a community such as Lakewood Ranch, with so many winter residents and transplanted folks from other states, PressReader is an ideal way to keep up with news from back home. She added the breadth of the service’s offerings would be impossible to reproduce in a tangible form.

Browsing through the many titles recently, Parrott said she found something to read for which she wasn’t necessarily looking — Foreign Affairs magazine, founded in 1922 as “the leading forum for serious discussion of American foreign policy and global affairs."

“That is not a magazine we are going to carry, because it’s more of a specialized function as a magazine, but it piqued my interest," she said. “So then, I was connected to that content. It’s a nice way for us to bring an even broader collection to our citizens and library users here in Manatee County.

Access to PressReader requires a Manatee County library card. Patrons can download the PressReader application or visit the website and add their library card credentials directly. Parrott said library personnel at each of the county’s eight locations can help, either in person or via telephone. Sarasota County also hosts PressReader access for its patrons.

“We are thrilled to bring Manatee County this world-class digital reading experience that includes newspapers and magazines from around the globe,” said Manatee County At-Large Commissioner George Kruse – who is also a liaison to the Library Advisory Board. “With PressReader, users can stay informed, entertained, and connected with their library card.”