Interlibrary Loans
What is an Interlibrary Loan?
An Interlibrary Loan service (also known as “ILLs”) is a service that your library offers you when a book or material you are in need of is not available at your local library but may be obtainable at another library. Currently, due to cuts at IMLS, we are only available to provide this service for large print books and audio books on CD.
What information is needed to request an Interlibrary Loan?
You may request an Interlibrary Loan (ILL) by coming to Long Beach Library and filling out a request form. Most of the time, an ILL can be found with just the following information: Title, Author, and Year Published. However, the more information you give us, the easier it is for us to locate your request.
May I email an Interlibrary loan request to your library?
Yes, you can. Follow these instructions: Include in the TEXT of your email the following applicable items: your name, phone number, and library card number, the date, title/subject of item you are requesting, and author of the item, the type of material you are requesting (large print book or audio book), any specific information to that title (Example: If you only want abridged, please specify.) In the subject of your email, place “ILL request for Patron” as your subject.
How can I submit a request through Apollo?
Apollo has a feature for placing Reserves or Requests through our library that is featured in its system, but it is not used for Interlibrary loans. Follow the steps to logging into your account. See “How do I login to Apollo?” Once you are logged in, click on the Reserves/Requests tab. You will see a sentence that says, “Is the library missing something? You can request that we purchase it or borrow it from another library (Interlibrary Loan/ILL). Click on the word “request” and fill in the information required for our librarian. Also, please make sure that your preferred method of contacting you once your Interlibrary loan is received has the correct information.
What are the fees for requesting an Interlibrary Loan?
There is no longer any charge to our patrons for requesting a book through Interlibrary loan.
How long will I be able to keep the book or material?
Lending periods vary from library to library; most allow at least two weeks. It is best to pick up your ILL request as soon as you are called and told that it is available.