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Arizona Talking Book Library

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Arizona Talking Book Library

Since 1970, Arizona Talking Book Library has been a Regional Library of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress.

https://www.loc.gov/nls/ Arizona Talking Book Library provides books, magazines and other library resources in alternate formats for all Arizona residents whose visual, physical or reading disabilities prevent the reading of conventional print materials. Our lending library includes audio books and magazines; movies with audio descriptions; and Braille books and magazines by postage free mail. Other resources include: BARD: Braille and Audio Reading Download website; Newsline: Audio newspapers over the phone, online and on mobile devices; Greater Phoenix Digital Library: Downloadable eBooks, audio books, music and more.

02/03/2026

February is Black History Month! Join us in celebrating the achievements and contributions of Black Americans to US history by finding these titles on BARD or requesting them from your librarian today!

Cathy Williams: From Slave to Female Buffalo Soldier by Phillip Thomas Tucker (DB 59297) - Post-Civil War Missouri. Account of buffalo soldier Cathy Williams, purportedly the first African American woman disguising herself as a man to serve in the U.S. military. Prize-winning historian traces Williams's escape from slavery, civilian employment as Army laundress, 1866 enlistment, and ultimate independence as a businesswoman.

Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue by Adrian Miller (DB 108776) - In Black Smoke, Miller chronicles how Black barbecuers, pitmasters, and restauranteurs helped develop this cornerstone of American foodways and how they are coming into their own today. It's a smoke-filled story of Black perseverance, culinary innovation, and entrepreneurship. Though often pushed to the margins, African Americans have enriched a barbecue culture that has come to be embraced by all. Miller celebrates and restores the faces and stories of the men and women who have influenced this American cuisine. This beautifully illustrated chronicle also features 22 barbecue recipes collected just for this book.

For more information about us and the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/tbl

01/16/2026

Monday, January 19th, is Martin Luther King Jr. Day! This holiday celebrates the life and legacy of King Jr., who made great contributions to the Civil Rights Movement.

We will be be closed for the holiday, and normal business hours will resume on January 20th.

If you would like to learn more about his legacy, check out King: A Life by Jonathan Eig (DB 115189). In this revelatory new portrait of the preacher and activist who shook the world, the bestselling biographer gives us an intimate view of the courageous and often emotionally troubled human being who demanded peaceful protest for his movement but was rarely at peace with himself. As he follows MLK from the classroom to the pulpit to the streets of Birmingham, Selma, and Memphis, Eig dramatically re-creates the journey of a man who recast American race relations and became our only modern-day founding father―as well as the nation’s most mourned martyr.

For more information about us or the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit our website at azlibrary.gov/talkingbooks

01/15/2026

Winter weather is cold, so why not read an audiobook that brings the heat?

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid (DB 118107), which has recently premiered as a TV show, follows rival hockey players Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov. Pro hockey star Shane Hollander isn’t just crazy talented, he’s got a spotless reputation. Now that he’s captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, he won’t let anything jeopardize that. Boston Bears captain Ilya Rozanov is everything Shane’s not. The self-proclaimed king of the ice, he’s as cocky as he is talented. No one can beat him—except Shane. They’ve made a career on their legendary rivalry, but when the skates come off, the heat between them is undeniable. As their attraction intensifies, they struggle to keep their relationship out of the public eye. If the truth comes out, it could ruin them both. But when their need for each other rivals their ambition on the ice, secrecy is no longer an option…

Before you binge the TV show, find this title on BARD or request it from your librarian today!

For more information about us and the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/talkingbooks

01/12/2026

¡Oye! ¿Tienes preguntas sobre BARD? El seminario web de Muchas Caras de BARD del martes 13 de enero se presentará en español. Una visión general de BARD 2.0 será el tema del programa, que comienza a las 4 p.m. hora del este y dura una hora. La presentación y tambien todas las preguntas y respuestas se llevará a cabo en español. Se puede encontrar mas del programa a https://www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/many-faces-of-bard/ NLS reanudará la programación en inglés de The Many Faces of BARD en febrero.

Hey! Do you have questions about BARD? The Many Faces of BARD webinar for Tuesday, January 13, will be presented in Spanish. An overview of BARD will be the topic of the program, which starts at 4 p.m. Eastern time and lasts one hour. The presentation, as well as all the questions and answers, will be conducted in Spanish. Find more information about the program at https://www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/many-faces-of-bard/ NLS will resume English programming for The Many Faces of BARD in February.

01/09/2026

January is Glaucoma Awareness Month!

According to the National Institute of Health, glaucoma, a group of eye diseases that damages the optic nerve, is a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in the U.S. If you or someone you know has experienced vision loss due to glaucoma, you qualify for our free audiobook and braille service!

For more information about us and the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/tbl

01/05/2026

The start of a new year is a great time to set goals for yourself in the next year! Whether they are broad goals like spending more time with family and friends or specific goals like reading a certain number of books, setting a New Year's resolution or two can be a great way to kickstart your year!

We've listed some of our resolutions at the Arizona Talking Book Library in the image below - what are your resolutions for 2026? We'd love to hear about them in the comments!

If you want to learn more about anything mentioned in our resolutions, or if you have any questions about our services, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/tbl

[Image Description: A Polaroid-style photo of the Arizona Talking Book Library building pinned to a scrapbook page with stickers, fake flowers, and other decorations.

The image text reads:
My Resolutions in 2026:
1. Try the new features on the DA2 machine
2. Check out a Culture Pass to visit a great Arizona museum
3. Participate in the Summer Reading Program
4: Use the My Talking Books on Smart Speaker skill]

01/01/2026

Monty and all of us here at the Arizona Talking Book Library wish you a Happy New Year!

We will be closed today, January 1, but will resume normal business hours on Friday, January 2nd, at 8 AM.

12/30/2025

NLS patrons check out millions of items each year — in 2024, it was 22,188,638 items, to be exact — and now we’re taking a look at your 2025 reading year with our first installment of NLS Playback.
We tracked downloads and circulation statistics and are pleased to present the top four fiction titles in both audio and braille. Stay tuned tomorrow for the top nonfiction books!

Top fiction books, audio:
1. “A Christmas Carol (DBC29176)” by Charles Dickens
2. “Bent But Not Broken (DB129528)” by Mary Monroe
3. “Alliance Space (DB130476)” by C.J. Cherryh
4. “Hidalgo (DB129545)” by Jose Luis Trueba Lara

Top fiction books, braille:
1. “Someday (BR25124)” by David Levithan
2. “Castillos de Carton (BRG04696)” by Almudena Grandes
3. “Guiding Emily (BR25594)” by Barbara Hinske
4. “The Exchange (BR25484)” by John Grisham

What were some of your favorite reads of this year? Let us know in the comments below!

[Image: NLS Playback graphic]

12/22/2025

We will be closed this Thursday, December 25th, for the Christmas holiday. Our normal business hours will resume on Friday, December 26th, at 8 AM.

12/12/2025

Winter doesn't officially start until December 21st, but many places throughout the state have already seen snow! People usually think of the desert when they think of Arizona, but our great state has plenty of places that see wonderful wintery weather every year. But have you ever wondered more about the snow that makes our landscape look so beautiful?

In the book Snow : A Scientific and Cultural Exploration (DB 97985), author Giles Whittell explores how snow dictates where we live, provides us with drinking water, and has influenced countless works of art and more. Whittell also uncovers compelling mysteries of this miraculous substance, such as why avalanches happen, how snow saved a British prime minister's life, where the legend of the yeti comes from, and the terrifying truth behind the opening ceremony of the 1960 winter Olympics.

Find this chillingly good title on BARD or request it from your librarian today!

For more information about us or the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/tbl

12/09/2025

Are you looking for some seasonal reads to celebrate the holiday season? Find these titles on BARD or request them from your librarian today!

Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliot (DB 124977) - Snow is falling, holiday lights are twinkling, and Abby Cohen is pi**ed. For one thing, her most annoying customer, Seth, has been coming into her café every morning with his sunshiny attitude, determined to break down her carefully constructed emotional walls. And, as the only Jew on the tourism board of her Vermont town, Abby's been charged with planning their fledgling Hanukkah festival. Unfortunately, the local vendors don't understand that the story of Hanukkah cannot be told with light-up plastic figures from the Nativity scene, even if the Three Wise Men wear yarmulkes. Abby puts out a call for help online and discovers she was wrong about being the only Jew within a hundred miles. There's one other: Seth. Seth's parents have been badgering him to bring a Nice Jewish Girlfriend home to New York City for Hanukkah, and if Abby can survive his incessant, irritatingly handsome smiles, he'll introduce her to all the vendors she needs to make the festival a success.

Christmas in a Cowboy's Arms by Various Authors (DB 97368) - This anthology of holiday romances includes six authors known for their Western settings. Leigh Greenwood's story "Father Christmas" features a man searching for gold stolen by
his mining partner who instead finds himself a family. Some strong language and some explicit descriptions of s*x.

Seven Spools of Thread: a Kwanzaa Story by Angela Shelf Medearis (DBC31029) - When they are given the seemingly impossible task of turning thread into gold, the seven Ashanti brothers put aside their differences, learn to get along, and embody the principles of Kwanzaa. Includes information on Kwanzaa, West African cloth weaving, and instructions for making a belt. For preschool to grade 2.

For more information about us and the services we offer, call us at 602-255-5578 or visit azlibrary.gov/tbl

12/04/2025

December is National Cookie Day! It's the perfect excuse to get yourself an extra cookie for dessert (or any time of day)! We'd love to know what your favorite cookie is in the comments below!

And if you're looking for some new cookie recipes to treat yourself to this holiday season, check out Good Housekeeping: The Great Christmas Cookie Swap Cookbook : 60 Large-Batch Recipes to Bake and Share (DB 121381), which includes a collection of recipes from the 'Good Housekeeping' kitchens for sixty different types of Christmas cookies, all yielding more than eight dozen cookies and perfect for a holiday cookie swap.

Address

1030 N 32nd Street
Phoenix, AZ
85008

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 5pm
Thursday	8am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 5pm

Website

https://azlibrary.gov/talkingbooks

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