jcplReading may be a solitary act but it is one that makes you part of a community. It’s true that when diving into a new book you do so alone, but once you’e finished you’re part of a group of people who have discovered the same book. People who read the same genres and authors share a common bond. They have an immediate connection and conversation starter. You read alone but you get recommendations from librarians, friends and family who have read similar books to what you’ve enjoyed.

As a librarian you have the power to create these unique groups within your community by curating specific digital collections on your OverDrive-powered website.  You can highlight read alike titles based off current bestsellers or you can create collections of titles you own large numbers of copies of that would be perfect for book clubs. You can even create collections for your summer reading programs based on age or grade or approach broader topics like, “Perfect books for your next vacation” or “Books to get your health and fitness on track.”

To start curating collections, log into OverDrive Marketplace and select Switch to Curate from the SHOP drop-down menu (if you don’t see theSwitch to Curate option, talk to your Marketplace administrator about getting you “Library site admin” permission).

MCPLOnce you’ve switched to curate in Marketplace, you’ll be able to build collections of titles that you own and then publish them immediately to select locations on your public-facing website. If your public-facing site offers multiple languages, you’ll be able to enter a translated name and description for each collection so that you can publish curated collections in every language you offer.

You can find illustrated, step-by-step instructions for creating, editing, publishing, and removing curated collections in the “CURATE” section of the Marketplace User Guide (located in Marketplace under the SUPPORT tab).

 

Adam Sockel is a Social Media Specialist with OverDrive