Credit where due, I got this idea from a comment on Chris Arnade’s excellent Substack.
I live in a small town - we have a great public library but it is correspondingly small and thus there’s not a lot of material to choose from. I also enjoy audiobooks but Audible’s business model is the most annoying thing on the Internet.
So, what to do?
The answer is Libby. Spelled like the pumpkin.
Chances are, one of the large public library systems in your state - in my case it was the Free Library of Philadelphia system - will let you apply for a library card completely online, instantly.
Once you’ve acquired that “card” - you can sign in to that system with the Libby app. Et voilà - an enormous selection of e-books and audiobooks at your disposal, for “free”.
As I routinely remind my kids: ain’t nothing free. Your public library is of course funded by your tax dollars.
The ordinary library rules apply - you have to sign things in and out and you have to wait for items that are currently lent out and thus unavailable. No big deal.
All in all, it works fantastically well. Highly recommended!