Frequently Asked Questions

The Accessible Books Bank is a discovery tool or online catalogue designed to help you find Canadian books in accessible formats. It is the only service in Canada that allows readers, educators, librarians, families, and the general public to find Canadian books in accessible formats in one place.

The Books Bank allows you to:

Browse books that are available as ebooks, audiobooks, large print, braille, and other formats
Use search and filter options to find books by title, theme, grade level, format, and more
Read book descriptions and reviews, watch supplementary video content, and find out more about the authors and illustrators
Purchase books through links to retailers and wholesalers

Everyone.

Around 20% of the Canadian population has a print disability of some kind. This could be:

A learning disability: An impairment relating to comprehension
A physical disability: The inability to hold or manipulate a book
A visual disability: Severe or total impairment of sight or the inability to focus or move one’s eyes

The need for accessible books for these readers is urgent.

Accessible books also benefit readers who do not have print disabilities, and who may prefer or learn better from alternate formats such as audiobooks.

Accessible books allow young readers to have equal access to information, shared experiences with peers, the opportunity to explore interests of their choosing, and to become more fully engaged learners.

An accessible book is a book that has features which make reading possible for people with disabilities. It is one that can be read in ways other than reading print.

Alternate formats take many forms. It might be an ebook that can be listened to with voiceover or text-to-speech. It could be a commercial or specialist audiobook. It could be a large print book or an ebook whose font size is malleable. It could be braille—either a physical braille book, or a digital braille book that can be read with a refreshable braille display. It might simply be a well-built ebook with good structure and image descriptions and for which the end user can change the font, the type size, the line spacing, etc., to create a comfortable reading experience on the device of their choosing.

The Accessible Books Bank contains books by Canadian authors and illustrators that are available in accessible formats. Explore hundreds of titles, from pre-school to grade 12, in English, French, and Indigenous languages, fiction and nonfiction, popular genres, and classroom-ready themes.

When you click on a book, scroll down to the “Formats” section to see all the formats in which the book is available. Most books will list a print format (hardcover or paperback) as well as an accompanying accessible format (ebook, audiobook, etc.).

Some of the books in the Bank are only available through the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA) or the National Network for Equitable Library Service (NNELS). These titles have not been made accessible by publishers (yet) and are not for sale to the general public. CELA and NNELS create these titles specifically for users with print disabilities.

CELA and NNELS are services for Canadians with print disabilities for which you or your local public library must register. These titles are clearly identified in the Books Bank, and contain links to CELA and/or NNELS where applicable.

In 2021, the CCBC initiated our Accessible Books for Young Readers project, which offers a comprehensive approach to addressing accessibility barriers and promoting inclusive reading experiences. To date, we have created:

A playlist of videos about accessible books on the Bibliovideo YouTube channel
A monthly column in the CCBC newsletter written by people with lived experience to underscore the importance of accessible books.
Reviews of accessible books in Canadian Children’s Book News magazine written by reviewers who have personal experience using the formats.
New graphic icons to identify accessible kids’ books to aid in discoverability.
Webinars for educators, librarians, and other users to share best practices and information that inspires action.
A webpage as the go-to destination for info on Canadian accessible books for young readers.
The Accessible Books Bank: an online, searchable catalogue to allow readers, educators, librarians and others to readily locate accessible Canadian titles for kids and teens. There is no other such service available in Canada.

With a project grant from Canada Book Fund, we have become the leader in promoting the production, discoverability, and use of accessible Canadian books for children and youth. We collaborate with organizations such as Braille Literacy Canada, the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA), eBound, Dyslexia Canada, Government of Alberta Public Library Services Branch, Literacy Quebec, National Network for Equitable Library Service (NNELS), and others to build a community dedicated to raising awareness of the need for accessible books, helping publishers produce them, assisting teachers/librarians in using them, and publicizing how to locate them.

“Lack of accessibility features has made reading out of reach for many. Accessible book collections not only serve this compelling need, but also offer differentiated choices for all students. Necessary for some, good for everyone.” — Anita Brooks Kirkland, CEO, Canadian School Libraries

Funded by the Government of Canada/Financé par le gouvernement de Canada