Everyday this week for National Library Week, we’re introducing you to the different departments of the New Mexico State Library.
The Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is part of the New Mexico State Library, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs. Also, we are a network member of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, which is part of the Library for Congress in Washington, DC. We work with the National Library Service, other network libraries, the U.S. Postal Service, and volunteers to lend you recorded books and magazines, and playback equipment free of charge. We have over 60,000 book and magazine titles on many different subjects. These titles include classical literature, new fiction, mysteries, romance novels, nonfiction and many others. Most books are recorded in English, but there are more than a thousand titles in Spanish and other languages.
The Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is a free program of the Library of Congress National Library Service and the New Mexico State Library. It is available to persons with visual impairments, reading disabilities, and some other types of disabilities. We currently have over 60,000 book titles and about 250,000 total copies. Our titles range from bestsellers to mysteries, romances, westerns, and some non-fiction as well. Magazines are also available through the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Newer books are distributed on digital cartridges that require an authorized player for listening and older titles that have been converted to digital format are available for download directly from the NLS.