visual guide | OverDrive Online Library

Browse and borrow books from your local library without getting off the sofa

OverDrive options

The Menu button allows you to control a number of options, such as the ability to sync books across devices. You can limit downloads to Wi-Fi only, to preserve a monthly data allowance.

Browsing books

This menu allows you to browse books by category, such as romance, fantasy or thriller. There’s also a search tool that allows you to search by title or the author’s name. Most libraries have a good selection of non-fiction books too.

Wish list

Your library has a limited number of copies of each ebook. If this book icon is black, the book is available to borrow now. A grey icon means all copies are on loan. OverDrive will email you when the book is available.

Lending limits

Your OverDrive account follows your library’s normal lending policies. MacFormat’s local library lets us borrow five books for 21 days each, and OverDrive automatically deletes books at the end of the loan period. You can also delete them yourself if you finish before then.

Audiobooks

Most local libraries will allow you to borrow audiobooks too. The audiobook controls in OverDrive include options such as a sleep-timer, so that you can listen to books in bed at night and leave the app to turn itself off after a specified amount of time.

Turning pages

OverDrive works a bit like a web browser, and each book has its own home page that provides more info about the book and the author. You can use these navigation controls to move forwards and backwards through a series of books. It’s also possible to read books in a web browser, so you can still read your books on devices that may not have the OverDrive app installed.