We’ve updated the look and feel of our website to improve accessibility. We’ll officially be going live with it in mid-September but have decided to do a soft launch of the website in advance.
Some highlights–
Responsive formatting. The new site easily adapts to any size browser and mobile or tablet screen, making it look great and accessible.
Clear menu language. We wanted you to easily locate the things you need from our website menus.
Catalog search. You can easily search for materials through the search box at the top of the home page.
Feel free to visit test.sailsinc.org to check out the new site. Drop a comment on this post if you find anything broken or if there’s something you’re looking for that you can’t find.
One service SAILS will no longer be offering after June 30th is Novelist, the readers’ advisory tool. Since Enterprise, the online catalog, has similar tools available to help you find your next read, the membership decided to explore purchasing databases that will fill in the gaps created by the loss of the statewide resources. For more information on how to use the tools within Enterprise and what resources will be available July 1st, please visit – https://sailsinc.org/reader-resources.
Additionally, we encourage you to apply for a BPL ecard. Anyone who lives, works, or goes to school in Massachusetts can register for a free Boston Public Library eCard at bpl.org/ecard and gain access to a wide range of digital resources covering newspapers, magazines, streaming media, genealogy, and more. You can view the resources available to you with your BPL ecard here: bpl.org/popular-online-resources
Starting Tuesday, July 1st, 2025, the transaction fee for paying fines online through the SAILS Mobile App or online catalog will increase from $.85 to $1.25 per transaction.
The transaction fee only applies to payments made online with a credit or debit card. You will still be able to pay in person at your local library via cash or check with no additional fee.
On Monday, June 16th, we will be removing the “Text This To Me” option from the SAILS Online Catalog search results page.
If you’re a frequent user of our online catalog, you might have seen the “Text This To Me” button while searching for items. This button is located in the same location as the “Place Hold” and “Add to My Lists” buttons. You might have also noticed a “Text It To Me” option on the “Actions” drop down at the top of the search results page.
Unfortunately, our vendor has informed us that as of June 17th, 2025, this service will no longer work with all phone carriers / service providers. As a result, we will be disabling it from the online catalog to avoid any confusion. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes to our patrons who regularly use this feature.
Done with your current read and want to pick up something similar? Interested in discovering a new genre but don’t know where to start? Or maybe you need a cover to grab you before you’ll even consider picking up a book?
Whatever your reader needs are, the SAILS Online Catalog has the tools to help you find your latest and greatest read!
Of Interest to Readers
The “Of Interest to Readers” tab is a great feature on the SAILS Online Catalog that allows you to find great read-alike recommendations based on that last book you fell in love with.
Type in the name of that last title you enjoyed. From the search results list, click on the title you’d like a readalike for. (Note: The “Of Interest to Readers” tab only appears on physical materials, so EBOOK and EAUDIO items won’t show you read-alike options.)
Once you have the item entry pulled up, you should see the tab “Of Interest to Readers.” Click on it.
The “Of Interest to Readers” tab features a range of information that can include:
Information about the book and/or series
More books by the author
Read-alikes with active links to their listings in our catalog
Librarian lists where this book appears
Professional reviews and book awards
Tags with active links that will pull up more books to browse
Limit Search Results
Whether you choose to do your own subject/genre search or use the Fiction Finder (see below) to do it for you, you can further narrow down your search for the perfect read through the “Limit Search Results” filters.
The “Limit Search Results” pane is a great way to narrow results to a particular library, format, or age range. You can also use the Subject filters to look for sub-genres or topics that you’d like to see. For example, maybe you click on the Fantasy block of the Fiction Finder (see below).
Doing that will bring up a huge list of books that all fall under the genre of fantasy. But maybe what you’re really looking for is a fantasy book with dragons and epic battles. Under the “Subject” filter, we can select the following to find books that further fall into those interests.
You can also use the tabs across the top of the search results to look only at specific formats!
“For Readers”
While on the homepage of our online catalog, look for the “For Readers” link. You can usually find it in one of the columns to the side.
Clicking this link will bring you to a page filled with additional links and information, including popular titles across the SAILS Library Network and the Fiction Finders!
What’s a Fiction Finder? It’s a quick, easy way to do a genre search. Clicking any of the blocks will take you to a listing of all books in the SAILS Library Network that fall under that category.
In a time where library funding is being threatened, we wanted to highlight some awesome stories from our SAILS Library Network member libraries that have been making the rounds on social media this week.
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) shared this comment from an Attleboro Public Library patron about why their library means so much to them for National Library Workers Day (April 8th).
Lakeville Public Library and Seekonk Public Library were also featured on the MBLC Facebook page this week as part of the Empowered by Libraries campaign with patrons sharing how local library staff have impacted their lives!
And multiple public libraries across the SAILS Library Network posted for Right to Read Day, to celebrate and champion the freedom to read.
Today (April 10th) is Take Action for Libraries Day, and it’s not too late to support your local library. Here are some ways to get involved:
Visit Show Up For Our Libraries for information on how you can tell federal leaders why your library matters to you and why libraries should continue to be supported.
Our State Representatives want to hear how the president's executive order can affect you and your families. Please use this form to share your thoughts/stories. If the state loses federal funding through the Institute of Museum and Library Services, we could lose the Commonwealth Catalog, which gives us access to borrowing physical items from libraries across MA. Over 20,000 items were shared in and out of our network last year.
Our budget for books for the Overdrive/Libby eBook collection could be cut by more than $91,500. The network has already spent about $247,000 this year for over 6,000 items. Our member libraries have spent $610,385 on 27,000 items. We have more than 72,000 active holds with an average waiting time of 70 days. The demand is there and having an online collection lets people in all life situations access their library's resources.
On March 14, an order was issued to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the federal agency which distributes federal funds to libraries, museums, and archives. This e-book and e-audio platform is supported in part by IMLS grants. Learn More to see how you can show up for your library.
And when you're done learning about the executive order, share with our state reps how and why you value your library services. Here's a form to tell your story.
If you’re a frequent user of Overdrive or Libby and you’re looking for your next read, why not try one of the Libby Book Award winners? Libby announced the finalists for this award back in February with the winners being selected just this week!
The winners are…
Fiction Book of the Year: The Women by Kristin Hannah
Nonfiction Book of the Year: The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson
Young Adult Fiction Book of the Year:Heir by Sabaa Tahir
Audiobook of the Year:The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson
Debut Author of the Year:The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
Best Book Club Book:Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
Best Business Book:When We Are Seen by Denise Young
Best Comic/Graphic Novel:Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls
Best Cookbook:Anything’s Pastable by Dan Pashman
Best Fantasy:The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst
Best Historical Fiction:James by Percival Everett
Best Horror:Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle
Best Memoir & Autobiography:Knife by Salman Rushdie
Best Middle Grade Book:Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
Best Mystery:We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
Best Picture Book:Little Shrew by Akiko Miyakoshi
Best Romance:Funny Story by Emily Henry
Best Romantasy:House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas
Best Science Fiction:The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
Best Thriller:One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon
You can view all of the Libby Book Award winners and finalists in our Overdrive collection here or in the Libby app here. (If you’re on your device using the Libby app, just scroll down on the SAILS main page until you see the Libby Book Awards curated collection!)
And watch the official winner video on Libby’s YouTube page:
Are you stuck in a reading slump? Maybe you just finished your last five-star read and are now looking for another? Our online catalog – Enterprise – has a really cool feature called “Of Interest to Readers,” which allows you to seek out read-alikes with just a few clicks!
Using this feature is easy!
First, head on over to our online catalog. Use the drop down at the top of our main page – sailsinc.org – to select your home library’s Enterprise page. (Or simply scroll up to the top of this article once you’re done reading to access the dropdown menu!)
Next, type in the title of that last book you fell in love with. Enterprise will pull up a list of results – some physical materials and some digital downloads. The “Of Interest to Readers” tab only appears on a listing for a physical material, so use the tabs at the top of the results or the filters off to the side to navigate to a physical material listing for your title.
Once you have the item entry pulled up, you should see the tab “Of Interest to Readers.” Click on it.
The “Of Interest to Readers” tab features a range of information that can include:
Information about the book and/or series
More books by the author
Read-alikes with active links to their listings in our catalog
Librarian lists where this book appears
Professional reviews and book awards
Tags with active links that will pull up more books to browse
We hope this feature introduces you to new books you can fall in love with this February! We encourage you to reach out to your local library for more assistance with this feature if you need it.
