DAPHNE, Ala. — Tonya Young, director of the Daphne Public Library said library patrons will soon be able to check out materials without even coming in to the library.

The library will join other libraries in the state on May 31 to share electronic books for checkout online.

“It is a subscription service that we are joining and we are supposed to go live on their website on May 31,” Young said.

“We have seen an increase in people asking for access to e-books,” Young said. “In the past couple of months our checkouts have actually gone down. We feel like maybe a lot of people got e-readers for Christmas. We think we will bounce right back up to where we were as soon as we go on this.”

Young said once Daphne has officially joined the site, all patrons will have to do is log in with their library card number.

“People will be able to log onto this site from their personal computer with their Daphne library card and then they can look through all the materials. They can put things on hold and check things out for two weeks or one week. There is everything from books to listen to, books to read on an e-book reader, music. There are all sorts of things available,” Young said.

The program Daphne is joining is Camellia Net.

“Everybody in Alabama that pays to belong to Camellia Net, everything those libraries buys, goes into the pot and we all share it. They won’t just be able to use what we purchase, they will be able to use what Gulf Shores purchases, what Orange Beach purchases, any other library that is on there, even Cullman. If they buy something, our patrons can use it,” Young said.

The material will work on all e-reading devices except the Kindle.

“As you look at each item it will tell you whether you use it on an iPod or an iPad or your computer or an e-reader. We can’t buy four different versions of the same thing,” Young explained.

The service can be found at camellia.lib.overdrive.com.

Young expects the program to be beneficial to the library.

“There are already 15 libraries in the consortium and there are at least three more from this area joining in May,” Young said. “We are expecting that they will be flying out like hotcakes.”

Young does not anticipate e-books replacing real books at the library anytime soon.

“I think it will be the type of thing where we try to carry on with both because a lot of people who are studying or doing artwork or cooking, and our older folks, and a lot of young people just really like to have that book. It is a really different experience. I think both will be popular,” Young said.