A love letter to Libby (the app)

We first met at the library. I had searched ‘Paul Auster’ on the computer and found that the only physical copy of his novel ‘4 3 2 1’ was on hold. Wracked with jealousy and overflowing with bitter disappointment, I turned to the window facing the river and saw you there in A3.

Was I vulnerable? Were the conditions just right? What were the chances that we would meet at this particular time in this particular place? I was drawn in by your hues of mahogany and aquamarine and, if there is such thing as love at first sight, this was it.

I took out my phone and saw (such fortune!) I was already connected to the wifi at the Elma Turner Library. I typed each letter of your name into the App store search bar. El Eye Bee Bee Why. It rolled off my tongue, through my fingers, and onto the screen.

You were so interested in me in our first conversation. What was my nearest library? Did I already have a card? Did I know the number on it was the key to your heart?

And as we got to know each other better, I came to realise that you weren’t just an attractive mahogany and aquamarine icon on the screen of my iPhone 8.

You had depth.

Might we read the New Yorker together? Would we eat a meal inspired by Anthony Bourdain or try for something calmer, more settled: 500 recipes for our brand-new air fryer?

And if we couldn’t take our eyes off each other, that would be no matter because you provide shelter to thousands of audiobooks. Such a treasure trove of variety, if our love for each other felt light and free like Marian Keyes or dark and uncontrollable like Charlotte Bronte, our moods were equally catered for.

And what I loved most about our love is that it never became stale. You'd bring something new to our lives every week, the latest magazines, the hard-to-find novels, facts, stories and hope.

I’m not a possessive guy; I know you’re available to anyone with a smartphone and an internet connection and, although I would love it to be just you and me, what you offer the world is too important to jealously guard for myself.

They say you should set free the ones you love and that is what I will do for you.

The Libby App is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play and is free to download. Libby has around 2000 active users per month with an average of 5,600 eBooks and 3,400 audiobooks lent out monthly.