Regional
Digital Collections
There are various ways to access digital resources from your local library. Click each icon below to visit the site!
Libby from Appalachian Regional Library (formerly Overdrive)
Appalachian Regional Library provides eBooks, magazines, and audiobooks through Libby's website, accessible from any web browser. If you're
on your mobile device, click here to download the app for your Apple or Android device.
Libby from Northwestern Regional Library
A special partnership with our neighboring Northwestern Regional Library system (Alleghany, Stokes, Surry, and Yadkin counties) makes available downloadable eBooks and audiobooks from that library system for cardholders of Appalachian Regional Library (Ashe, Watauga, and Wilkes counties). Click above to access these collections; sign in with your library card number as an Appalachian Regional Library user.
NCKids Digital Library
NC Kids Digital Library offers e-books, audiobooks, streaming videos, and Read-Alongs. This collection was specifically designed for Pre-K through 4th grade students.
NC Kids Digital Library is sponsored by NCPLDA: NC Public Library Directors Association, NCGA: NC General Assembly, with assistance from the State Library of North Carolina and supported by an IMLS federal LSTA grant.
NCKids Level Up Digital Library
NC Kids Level Up Digital Library offers e-books, audiobooks, streaming videos, and Read-Alongs for 4th-8th grade students.
Kanopy
Kanopy is the best video streaming service for quality, thoughtful entertainment. Find movies, documentaries, foreign films, classic cinema, independent films and educational videos that inspire, enrich and entertain. Cardholders also have access to Kanopy Kids, a collection of films and TV series selected for children. Kanopy and Kanopy Kids are only available to patrons of Ashe County Public Library.
Find funding for your non-profit! Candid is a nonprofit organization that provides information and resources for nonprofits and the social sector. Candid's mission is to connect nonprofits with the resources they need to be successful. Access to Candid is only available inside the walls of Appalachian Regional Library locations.
Foundational Directory Professional
NCLive
NC Live can be accessed anywhere you have an internet connection, from within our libraries, at home or on your mobile devices. All you need is your FREE Appalachian Regional Library card number! (If you don't have one yet, stop by soon.)
With content and indexing from more than 50,000 newspapers, journals, magazines, encyclopedias, ebooks, e-audio, and streaming video titles, NC Live offers users the highest quality, most authoritative, subscription resources in the information marketplace. Students, faculty, and staff from any of North Carolina's community colleges, independent colleges and universities, and public universities, as well as patrons from the state's public libraries can access all of NC Live's content at no cost.
Tech Help Sessions - "Book a Librarian" 
Library Staff Members are available to you for one-on-one help in downloading eBooks, audiobooks, and more to your tablet, smart phone, or other device. Call or stop by the Reference Desk of your library to set up an appointment time!
Digital Watauga
Connect to our local history by accessing Watauga County’s historical images, documents, and other materials.
Visit the Digital Watauga website for online digital collections of the High Country's archival memories, including the work of late local photographers such as Palmer Blair and George Flowers.
We provide access to Ancestry Library and their wonderful genealogy resources on-site at all Appalachian Regional Library locations. You must be in the building to access this resource via any device with internet connectivity.
Appalachian Regional Library Events
Holiday Closings 2024-2025
2024 Holidays and Library Closings
November 28th – 30th (Thursday - Saturday) – Thanksgiving
Watauga Only - December 19 (opening at 1:30 PM) - Staff training
December 24th - 26th (Tuesday - Thursday) – Christmas
December 31st (closing at 5 PM) - New Year's Eve
2025 Holiday and Library Closings
January 1st (Wednesday) – for New Year’s Day
January 20th (Monday) – Martin Luther King Jr. Day
April 18th & 19th – Good Friday and the Saturday before Easter
May 26th (Monday) – Memorial Day
June 21st – (Saturday) Watauga County Public Library only: Boonerang (meeting
room and bathrooms will be open)
July 4th (Friday) – Independence Day
July 5th (Saturday) -- Ashe County Public Library only: Christmas in July
September 1st (Monday) – Labor Day
October 4th (Saturday) – Wilkes County Public Library only: Apple Festival
November 11th (Tuesday) – Veterans Day
November 27th – 29th (Thursday - Saturday) – Thanksgiving
December 24th - 27th (Wednesday – Saturday) – Christmas Holiday
December 31st – ( Wednesday) Close at 5:00 pm
FAQs
What is the cost of a library card?
Library cards are FREE for permanent residents of Ashe County; non-residents who work full-time in Ashe County; and property owners in Ashe, Wilkes, and Watauga counties or any adjacent counties (Alexander, Alleghany, Avery, Caldwell, Grayson, Iredell, Johnson, Surry, Yadkin). Library cards cost $10 per year for non-residents who don’t work full-time in Ashe.
How can I get a library card?
Getting a library card is easy! Visit our circulation desk with a valid photo ID that includes your current address OR a valid photo ID and proof of residence (a piece of mail, a lease, etc.). If your primary address is a PO Box, please bring proof of your physical address as well.
Special Circumstances
- Non-residents who work full-time in Ashe County must provide a paystub as proof of employment in addition to the items listed above.
- Children and teens under the age of 18 can obtain a library card. A parent, responsible family member, or legal guardian with a valid library card must be present to create a card for anyone under the age of 18.
How do I login to my account?
Click on "Online Resources, then the "My Library Account" link above. You must enter your library card number and your PIN number. Your PIN number is the last 4 digits of the phone number we have on record for your account.
How do I place a hold?
Simply click on “Search our catalog” at the top right corner of the main webpage. Login in to your account (see the instructions above).Search for the book by title or author and then click on “place hold” and select the pick-up library where you would like to pick up the book. You may also suspend and cancel holds when logged into your account.
How do I renew what I have checked out?
If you look at the top right corner of the library website, you will see “Search Catalog”. Click on that and you will be able to sign on the catalog to renew items. Login in using your card number and PIN (the last 4 digits of the phone number we have on record for your account). Once logged in, you will see a small tab in the upper right hand corner listing the number of items you have checked out. Click on this tab and you will be given the option to renew any materials you currently have checked out. Unfortunately, if you have any fines accrued on your account, you cannot renew online. You can always call the library to renew before or after your items are due.