This monthly wrap-up is extremely late. April was a busy month, and many of my books on hold became available. It was thrilling and very overwhelming.

Here is what I learned this month:

If you request books and place them on hold around the same time, they will all become available around the same time.
I have mentioned this before, but this has been a wonderful experience to sample many titles without the buying them or feeling pressure to read the full book.
The first book in a series almost always has a long hold, BUT the following books usually do not have a hold.
Libby will allow you to push back a hold as many times as you like. This is a wonderful feature. If I push a book back three times, I remove it from my hold list.
It is best to keep track of which books you have for 14 days and which you have for 21 days. (If you use multiple library cards)
My libraries have a more extensive digital collection updated frequently with new titles. When I went to the two libraries near me, they did not have the more recent titles I was looking for in their physical selection. However, they did recommend I check on Libby OR consider ordering a copy from Amazon.
I request the same title from multiple libraries to see which will become available first. Suppose I start a book from one library and do not finish it. It typically becomes available from a different library. So I can finish the book within a week of returning the first copy without renewing my loan.
When searching for a title on Libby, you can see if that title is available at other libraries (if you have those cards linked to the Libby app). You can also request the book from that same list.

HOLD LIST

I have worked to clean up my hold list. It is a work in progress as I find new books and loose interest in others. The wait list for some titles is ridiculous.