More than 50 people who used to work in Bruce County’s libraries and museums have been asked if they could work with seniors instead. To date, the former librarians and archivists have just been screening people as they enter the nursing homes, but they’ll soon be trained to take residents to meals, clean bed pans, organize rooms, and eventually, even answer some call bells.

“We’re more than just some reading material,” said Troy Myers, chief librarian of South Shore Public Libraries. “So we want to do what we can to make sure those social connections are maintained.”

Includes support in how residents can use virtual libraries to hold book clubs, learn things, go digital, etc.

In Toronto, nine TPL branches have been converted into food distribution centers in the past few weeks, in partnership with three local food banks. In Montreal the Grande Bibliothèque, the largest library in Quebec has been transformed into a daytime respite space for homeless people.

It can be tough to teach proper hand washing to kids. So the library put together a thread of kids books as hand soaps.

With public libraries across Canada suddenly shuttered in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, library leaders and workers across the country are quickly adapting to still serve people, primarily online. This article describes some of the initiatives across the country of libraries or library staff.

As part of the agreement, Mississauga library users could borrow up to 10 items in total from the Hamilton and Burlington electronic collections and place five more titles on hold. Mississauga library users would still be permitted to borrow 10 items from their local system, and place 20 titles on hold.

City resources are organized by sector and for each business approach to serving is indicated (e.g., pickup, delivery, online)

Clickable map of Canadian with links to Canadian independent books stores that offer delivery

Canadian publishers who have committed books to the program include Kids Can Press, Penguin Random House Canada, HarperCollins Canada, Breakwater Books, Simon & Schuster Canada and Inhabit Media. Donations are also being made by distributors like Raincoast Books and Publishers Group Canada and the Canadian Children’s Book Centre.

Fundraiser for the Calgary Public Library Foundation. A Shelf Isolation Read-a-thon combines our need to self-isolate, reading, community and supporting the Library.

Offerings include online resources — from learning new languages and computer skills, to learning new hobbies, gardening, health, business, ebooks and audiobooks, emagazines, and a poetry contest!

Spartacus Books is a nonprofit, volunteer-run bookstore and resource centre, run collectively for over 40 years. They are offering free delivery in the Vancouver area. Give them a book title or a preferred subject and they will find you good things to read!

Links to Toronto-based independent bookstores offering free delivery