Getting started with CELA

Overview

celalibrary.ca provides immediate access to books, newspapers and magazines in formats that people with print disabilities can read, such as audio, digital text and braille.

What you can do on celalibrary.ca:

  • Find new titles and recommended reading
  • Search the catalogue or browse by category
  • Download or read books online, or place holds
  • View current and past loans
  • View and cancel holds
  • Set search preferences

Getting started with CELA: finding and getting books and magazines webinar recording (YouTube) 

Getting started with CELA: finding and getting books and magazines webinar transcript (Word)

Elderly woman in brown sweater using computer and smiling

Step 1: Sign up

Register online for your local public library’s CELA service, or ask for help at your public library.

If you are a resident of Quebec, you must first register with SQLA, Quebec's provincial accessible library service. Learn more on our CELA for Quebec residents page.

Step 2: Log in

To log in:

  1. Select the Log in link in the site banner.
    A new page will display.
  2. Your username is the six-digit library account number you received when you signed up for service. If you don’t know your library account number, please contact us.
  3. Select the Log in button.
    After successfully logging in, the My account tab will display in the navigation area of the page.

Tip: If you forget your password, select the Reset your password link. Enter your username or email address and then select Submit. Your password will be sent to your email address.

The navigation menus on the CELA website are as follows:

Banner. This navigation area contains links to Skip to content, Accessibility preferences and Accessibility tips. If you use a screen reader or magnification software, please read accessibility tips for important information about site navigation and layout.

Top navigation. The top navigation links to major sections of the library. Major sections include:

  • My account
  • Log in / Log out
  • Language (English or French)
  • Home
  • Newspapers
  • Magazines
  • Recommended
  • For libraries
  • Help

Search. A Search box appears below the top navigation on most pages. After the Search button, you can find options for Browse by category and Search tips.

Bottom navigation. The bottom navigation links to FAQs, information about CELA, subscription to Open Book newsletters, a suggestion box and contact information.

 

Step 3: Find a book or magazine

Search for a particular book or magazine

  1. In the Search box, enter a title, author or other key words.
  2. Select the Search button.
    The Search results page will display with a list of results.
  3. Navigate to the title you would like.

There are a couple of ways to discover new books, such as:

  • By taking a look at what's featured on the New titles page.

  • If you like a certain type of book, select the Browse by category link to browse by popular genres of fiction and non-fiction. Some categories have subcategories to help you narrow down your search. For example, "Spy stories" is a subcategory of "Mysteries and crime".

To find more details about a book or magazine:

  1. Select the link to the title of an item.
    The Full record page will display. You’ll find details about the ISBN, publisher, and more.

There are three main areas on the Search Results page: the Search box, Filter results and Search results.

Search box

A Search box with the terms you searched for displays at the top of the page. If you wish to revise your search terms, you can change them in the box.

Filter results

If you find thousands of items, you can easily narrow your search to the type of items that interest you. Under the Filter results heading, you’ll find various ways to narrow your search, such as by Collection, Languages and Formats. 

Search results

Your search results will appear under a link to jump to filter options and the number of items found. Your search results are listed below these details. At the bottom of your results you'll find an option to navigate through your results page by page.

If you use a screen reader, use headings to navigate to your first result quickly, and then to move from item to item.

Step 4: Get a book or magazine

CELA offers materials in a variety of formats for you to enjoy on your DAISY player, desktop or mobile device. If you are not sure what format to get, see the Accessible formats page to learn about each format and find out which one might work for you.

This section contains general directions on how to get a book or magazine in any format. If you would like more specific information on downloading a particular format, such as DAISY .zip, MP3 or electronic braille, you may prefer to read one of our tutorials. 

To get a book or magazine:

  1. Find the book or magazine you would like to read. 
    Under the book or magazine summary, the Get it! menu appears.
  2. Select a format from the Get it! menu and then select the Get it! button.
    A pop-up with instructions displays.
  3. Read the pop-up dialogue box and follow instructions, if any. What you can expect, depending on the item you requested:
    • A CD, embossed braille book or printbraille book is added to your Holds list. It will be delivered by Canada Post within the standard delivery time for your location. DAISY audio books and printbraille books need to be returned to CELA. To return CDs, simply turn the CD over so the shiny side with the raised ridge in the middle faces the plastic window. To return printbraille books, place them in the cloth bag and flip over the paper mailing card in the pocket.
      • Please note: As of July 31st, 2025, CELA will no longer offer DAISY audio CDs as a delivery option. Please visit our CD Transition Resources page to learn about the options available to you for getting our audio books and magazines.
    • A Direct to Player book or magazine is ready to read on a DAISY player you have configured for Direct to Player service, or the Dolphin EasyReader app. Learn more about configuring the service on the Direct to Player page.
    • A ZIP or BRF file will be available to download in a few moments from the Available ZIP files for download page.

Related resources

 

My account

Within My account, you can view available ZIP books for download, manage your holds and magazine subscriptions, see your borrowing history, edit your search preferences, and upload Proof of Disability for access to Bookshare, among other actions.

Your options are:

  1. Available ZIPs for download: This link will display any DAISY .zip or BRF titles you have available to download. To download the item, select the link.
  2. Holds: When you select this link, you will see a list of items you have requested for delivery, such as embossed braille or printbraille books. By default, the holds are sent to you in the order in which they are added to the holds queue, but you can prioritize an item so it will be the next in line to be sent to you. To learn more about what you can do on your Holds page, check out our holds tutorial.
  3. Direct to Player: This link will display books and magazines in Direct to Player format on your bookshelf. You can also delete books from your bookshelf. Please note that deleting books or magazines from the Direct to Player Bookshelf will not delete them from your device. You will need to do that directly from your device.
  4. Magazine subscriptions: On this page, you can subscribe to magazines in DAISY text and DAISY audio formats.
  5. History: When you select this link, a list of the items you’ve borrowed will appear. By default, the items on the list are sorted by date issued. You can also sort by book or magazine title.
  6. Communication preferences: On this page, you can update your email address and change your password. You can also turn on notifications to receive emails when ZIP or Direct to Player books you’ve requested become available.
  7. Search preferences: On this page, you can select criteria to apply every time you search for books and magazines on celalibrary.ca. 
  8. Proof of disability for access to Bookshare collection: This link allows patrons to upload a Proof of Disability form to get access to the Bookshare collection. Educators can also submit a Terms of Use document here for access to Bookshare. For more information about Bookshare, see the Collections page.

Optional Step 5: Read a newspaper

  1. Select the Newspapers link in the navigation bar.
    The Newspapers page appears.
  2. To browse newspapers by region:
    • Go to the Newspapers by region section.
    To browse newspapers alphabetically:
    • In the A to Z list of newspapers section, select the "All newspapers in alphabetical order" link. 
      A new page will open. A list of newspapers appears by language and title.
  3. Select a newspaper to read.
    An external page will open for the newspaper.
  4. Select a newspaper section to browse, if applicable. Some newspapers, like the Winnipeg Free Press, have sections that generally correspond to the print edition. Some publications don’t have sections and only have a list of articles.
  5. Select an article to read. The articles are simply text. You can read them with assistive technology.
  6. To return to the newspaper list, the newspaper index or the section: select the corresponding link at the bottom of the page.