 Technology User Group - hands reading an electronic braille reader.
Technology User Group
The next two Technology User Group meetings will be held on:
- Saturday, June 13 - New IOS Games
- Saturday, July 11 - Kindle App
All meetings begin at 10:00 a.m. and can be accessed by phone or Zoom.
Join Zoom Meeting:
Meeting ID: 656 203 7293
Call in Number:
1-301-715-8592
Meeting ID: 656 203 7293#
One Tap Mobile:
+13017158592,,6562037293#
 Podcast - microphone on black background
Listen to the latest podcast!
Youth Highlights
Unearth a Story/¡Desentierra una historia™! 2026 Summer Reading
Fossil Finds & Page-Turning Adventures: Your Summer Reading Expedition Starts Here!
Something BIG is stomping its way to the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Print Disabled. This year's summer reading theme, “Unearth a Story / Desentierra una historia™,” celebrates the joy of discovery that reading brings. The slogan encourages everyone to dig into a good book, uncover hidden histories, and explore the past. Did I mention there will be… dinosaurs!
Whether you're a tiny Triceratops or a sophisticated Stegosaurus, our Summer Reading Program has something for you! Grab your excavation tools and get ready to dig into some legendary adventures.
Program Duration: June 13th - August 15th
Additional details are forthcoming. Visit our website to learn more at: https://msla.maryland.gov/Pages/LBPD-Summer-Reading-Challenge.aspx.
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America 250
From June 15, 2026, through July 17, 2026, LBPD patrons will have an opportunity to explore key moments in Maryland history that ultimately shaped U.S. history. Told through a series of adventures, the experience will test patrons' knowledge via text-based Google Forms. More information is available on the library's America 250 webpage.
NLS Summer Reading
Inspired by the Unearth a Story summer reading theme, stories are everywhere — embedded in landscapes, preserved in archives, carried through families, and reflected in individual lives. Here's what has been confirmed for the summer so far (with more information to come) from NLS, the Braille Institute, and other partners! Learn more: https://www.loc.gov/nls/services-and-resources/summer-reading/.
Magazine Highlight
Please contact the library to subscribe to this or any other magazines. The following magazine is also available on BARD.
Asimov’s Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine edited by Sheila Williams and published by Dell Magazines, which is owned by Penny Press. It was launched as a quarterly publication by Davis Publications in 1977, after obtaining Isaac Asimov's consent to use his name.
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Hadley Partnership
The Maryland State Library for the Blind and Print for the Blind and Print Disabled (LBPD), a division of the Maryland State Library Agency (MSLA), is proud to announce a new partnership with Hadley, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing resources, social connection, and support to individuals experiencing vision loss.
Through this partnership, Maryland LBPD patrons will gain access to Hadley’s wide range of resources at no cost. With Hadley’s on-demand and live services, patrons will have access to daily living skills, recreation, braille education, and employment tools. Hadley also provides its members with a supportive peer community where they can share experiences and insights as they live with vision loss.
Some offerings from Hadley include:
- Daily living courses that cover reading, cooking, orientation & mobility, labels, guide dogs, and more.
- Adjusting to vision loss courses that cover various eye health concerns, seeking medical assistance, and communication tools for families.
- Recreation materials that cover gardening, gaming, birding, sports & exercise, and crafting.
- Technology education courses that cover Android, iOS devices, computers, books & TV, and smart speakers.
- Braille education by touch and by sight.
- Employment skills workshops covering assistive technology, how to talk with employers about low vision and blindness, and how to navigate common software applications.
To gain access to all of Hadley’s free resources, please click on this link to sign up for services. Providing your information will enable Hadley to contact you and tailor services to your needs. If you’re having difficulty navigating the Hadley website, please contact Ashley.Biggs1@maryland.gov (410-230-2430).
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Many of our patrons are subscribed to receive the audio version of Talking Book Topics (TBT). TBT is a bimonthly publication that lists books recently added to the National Library Service’s (NLS’s) audio collection and sorts them by popular genres. This list includes the book titles, authors, catalog numbers, and brief book descriptions.
NLS recently changed how TBT is distributed to patrons by moving circulation of this publication to the network libraries. Maryland patrons who previously received the TBT subscription from NLS now get it directly from the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Print Disabled along with any other magazine subscriptions they read. If you subscribe to multiple magazines, including TBT, then you may receive TBT on the same cartridge as other magazines. We hope that this transition in TBT distribution will improve our patrons’ access to this informative magazine.
So how can you request the books you hear about on TBT? The easiest way is to simply email us at reference.desk@maryland.gov with a list of the book numbers you wish to receive. You can also find a TBT order form for each issue of TBT on NLS’s website at https://www.loc.gov/nls/new-materials/talking-book-topics/. If you need to have a printed copy of the order form sent to you each time TBT is published, then please contact our Reference Desk by email or by calling 410-230-2443. Please note that automatic mailings of printed order forms will only be sent out upon request and will arrive separately from the audio cartridges.
If you are not subscribed to TBT but would like to be, please contact our Reference Desk. We look forward to bringing you the latest and greatest talking books from the NLS collection!
"Preparedness in Your Pocket" is your preparedness partner in your pocket—a podcast that makes portable preparedness easy and accessible. Each episode is pocket-sized but packed with essential tips and information to help you stay prepared, no matter where you are!
Visit their podcast website: https://www.mdemergencyprepnetwork.org/Our-Podcast
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 May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month!
The Invisible Wild, by Nikki Van De Car
DB 129431
When the kanaka 'ōiwi sailed over two thousand miles across untraveled seas to the most remote island chain in the world, they encountered another people living there. They were two to three feet tall, strong, good, and kind, and bothered no one--they were the Menehune. When the Hawaiians came, the Menehune chieftains feared the changes they brought. So, on the night of a full moon, they called all men and their firstborn sons and ordered them to leave Hawai'i. In the early 1800s, the Kauai chief took a census of his people--and 65 were all that remained of the original people of Hawai'i. Flash forward to today: sixteen-year-old Emma comes across a boy from Hilo living in the woods, saying things that do not make sense. She soon realizes this boy has accessed the Menehune. She helps him hide until whatever spell has been cast over him is broken. Together, Emma and the Hilo boy have to figure out what the Menehune want before it's too late to save the only home any of them have known. For senior high and older readers.
Asian American Histories of the United States, by Catherine Ceniza Choy
DB 111234
Asian American Histories of the United States is a nearly 200-year history of Asian migration, labor, and community formation in the US. Reckoning with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the surge in anti-Asian hate and violence, award-winning historian Catherine Ceniza Choy presents a social history of the fastest growing group of Americans. Despite significant Asian American breakthroughs in American politics, arts, and popular culture, a lack of understanding of Asian American history permeates American culture. This ambitious book is fundamental to understanding the American experience and its existential crises of the early twenty-first century.
Homeseeking, by Karissa Chen
DB 126911
Separated by war and reunited after 60 years, Haiwen and Suchi navigate decades of love, loss and survival across continents, as their shared past clashes with their hopes for a second chance at life.
 Marylandia Updates
Romance
Just like Heaven, by Lacey Baker, narrated by Sabrina Dames
DBC 12488
As a successful criminal prosecutor, Preston Cantrell thrives in the hustle and bustle of Baltimore. Much as he loved his grandmother, the cozy streets of his hometown aren't enough for him – not when he can make a real difference in the city. To get back to his career, all he needs is a new home for the energetic puppy he inherited. But when the gorgeous woman who arrives to adopt finds the dog more appealing than he is, Preston is determined to plead his case.
International language books recently added to the NLS collection and available through a network of cooperating libraries. Many come to us from other countries via the Marrakesh Treaty (DBGs), but you will also find books produced by NLS (DBs) and converted from cassette tapes (DBFs).
Learn more and find great reads by visiting the magazine's webpage.
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