I’m constantly surprised by the number of people who come into our library and have no idea what I’m talking about when I say, “Have you tried our Playaways?”

If that question confuses you too, let me share with you one of the fun new ways to listen to an audio book. I am pretty sure that if I didn’t work at a library I wouldn’t have found these cool new gadgets either.

A Playaway is an audio book that looks more like an ipods. It’s smaller than a pack of cards and holds the entire book inside its cute little case. All you do is plug in headphoness and push the play button. It even comes with a lanyard so you can hang it around your neck, if you like listening to books while you walk the dog.

I tried our first Playaway on a road trip to Grandma’s house last year, and borrowed three different titles from the library. They were a hit with my kids. There was no need to drag along a personal CD player, there was no switching out of discs when one ran out, and there was no need for keeping track of slippery discs that seem to love hiding under van seats.

I was a bit nervous about them being stolen out of our car when we stopped at rest areas, especially considering they didn’t technically belong to us and I don’t like owing money to the library. So I quickly tucked them into my purse before we went inside. It worked like a charm.

By pushing the pause button my son could hold his place in the book, and I didn’t have to worry about the device being lifted out of our unoccupied car or falling behind the seats. It made me think how handy this would be on long subway, train and plane trips also. It’s easy to tuck a few in your bag, just in case your child needs a couple of back up titles.

I know. I know. A lot of people will say “…but a book reader device holds hundreds of books.” And to that I would say three things. One, not all of us can afford to buy our kids (or ourselves) book readers yet. Two, this little thing is much smaller and easier to carry around than a flat tablet, and can easily fit into a child’s pocket. And three, kids seem to be very excited about the idea of a book being inside a tiny ipods looking device. At our library many reluctant readers have been eager to try out this new book reader. It makes them feel like they’re using something entertaining, like an ipods, which is only a good thing when it comes to getting books into the hands of kids.

Of course Playaways come in hundreds of titles for kids but also hundreds of titles for adults. Most of the latest best sellers can be bought (or borrowed) in this format. As they gain popularity, libraries and schools are increasing their collections. It’s the logical next step to making audio books easier to use and enjoy.

I will say this - they are not cheap. A lot of thekid's book versions start at 39.99 and go up from there. But the most logical step, that helps your whole community of readers, is encouraging your local school and public librarians to purchase more for their collections. Check out the ones they do offer and show them, by increased circulation numbers, that it’s an item worth buying. For many kids (and adults) it’s a great new way to have access to great books.