As the new online service finds its feet, Library and Learning Centre manager Kerry Byrne said that the collaboration of regional libraries has resulted in a significant advancement in library services.

Speaking to the fast-paced and connected world readers have found themselves in, Ms Byrne said the service is targeted at providing accessible and quality literature.

“We need people to read and to be able to read good literature,” she said.

While Ms Byrne said the traditional book is far from gone, the online service provides readers with a wider and more accessible option for sourcing reading material, with local readers already accessing their local library from remote locations and overseas.

“The book will never disappear,” she said.

“This is providing another service to local readers.” 

Ms Byrne said that while Kindle devices remain exclusive to Amazon, all devices including smartphones and tablets are compatible with the new system, accessible via the Glen Innes Severn Council website.

Coordinated with free Google Play and App Store apps, the BorrowBox system collects the high-rolling names in Australian and international literature in one online location.

As the local library plans to petition the state government to address underfunding and to call for support in revitalising local libraries, Ms Byrne and her team have coordinated a number of services and activities from NSW Library Council grant funding to establish new social spaces and activities.

As the local library continues to develop its services, Ms Byrne said activities like local artist Nathan Dawson’s cartooning workshop have proved incredibly popular among holidaying students, booked out in a day.

Users looking to access the BorrowBox system can install the free app and log in using their library membership number and the final four digits of their membership number as a password.