So we all know by now that Overdrive is a great place to find something to read, even while the library is closed. And we also know that our librarians are available to help you learn to access these materials, even though you can’t visit us in person. But did you know Overdrive contains a few other features that can help you to better connect to your next read? Read on:

BPLs Lucky Day Collection: Recently, individual consortia in Massachusetts have opened up their Overdrive collections to pretty much any library card holder in Massachusetts. This means, with just your Chelmsford card, you can connect to any of eight different Overdrive collections to find the book you want, including that of the Boston Public Library. BPL features a collection called Lucky Day, where you can have access to available,  in-demand titles right away, for 14 days on a first-come-first-serve-basis, similar to the physical Fast Tracks you know so well when our library is open.

Deliver Later: This is great if the next book you have been waiting so long to read becomes available but you have already reached your checkout limit, or, you are simply not ready to access your book. Now you can log in to your account and click “Deliver Later”. Doing this will preserve your place in a hold queue (select up to 180 days in the future), but will pass the current copy along to the next person in the queue. Seems like the best of both worlds for you and the next person waiting!

Coming Soon!: Did you know that you have the option to place yourself in a queue for titles that aren’t even in Overdrive yet? You can see some of the titles that will likely be in high-demand, and will soon be added to the collection. The latest from James Patterson, John Sandford, John Grisham are in there, but so is the highly anticipated novel The Prettiest Star, by Carter Sickels. Here’s Entertainment Weekly’s take on this one.

What’s currently being checked out: Want to check out what your neighbors are reading? See what’s popular by scrolling to the bottom of whatever page you are viewing and clicking Check Out What’s Being Checked Out Right Now. View a real time scroll of specific items being checked out in real time, as well as a count of how many borrows per day, per month, and per year. Then borrow or put yourself on hold for something that looks good. When we’re all back together, maybe you and your neighbor will have common books to talk about!

Author Interviews: Did you know that Overdrive contains a whole collection of recorded interviews with some of your favorite authors? Professional Book Nerds is a podcast by some of the people that work for Overdrive, selecting and negotiating titles for lending. This collection accessible through Overdrive, includes interviews with authors such as Lee Child, Tana French, Kwame Alexander, Dav Pilkey, Colson Whitehead, James Patterson, and much more. Browse by selecting Collections – Featured Collections – Author Interviews.