Celia Library services
Who is it for?
Is reading a print book difficult for you or someone close to you? Celia audiobooks are meant for individuals who have a reading disability, such as:
- visual impairment or weakened eyesight
- dyslexia and/or learning disabilities
- intellectual disability
- mobility impairments (e.g. muscle diseases, rheumatism, weakened muscle tone)
- impairments related to cognitive skills (e.g. concentration and learning disabilities, ADHD, memory disorders, aphasia)
- temporary reading disability (e.g. convalescence from an illness)
What is Celia?
Celia is a national center for accessible literature and publishing in Finland, working toward equality in reading and learning. Celia produces and distributes literature in accessible formats, such as audiobooks. The Celia Library's audiobook collection has more than 45,000 audiobooks at the moment, and the collection continues to expand. Browsing the Celia collection in the Celianet Web Library(avautuu uudessa välilehdessä) does not require registration or logging in for visitors.
How do I join?
You can sign up to Celia at most Ratamo libraries. You will get a username and password from your library, which you will need for listening to and downloading audiobooks on the internet. You need to have a valid email address to get a Celia username. In some libraries, you can get a username only by making an appointment with the library staff.
If you cannot use web services, many Ratamo libraries also have Celia's physical audiobook recordings. You can listen to them with, for example, a computer, an mp3 player or a DVD player or by using a special Daisy player.
For more information about the service, please ask your local library or the Celia.fi (avautuu uudessa välilehdessä) website.
Easy language in libraries
Easy language is easier to read and understand than standard language. Easy language is useful to people with linguistic impairments. According to Selkokeskus (Finnish Centre for Easy Language), approximately 650,000–750,000 people need to utilize easy language in Finland.
Library collections have easy language books available for borrowing. For more information, please contact the library staff.
Selkosivut.fi has information about, for example, current affairs, easy language books and brochures.
Home service
Libraries offer home service, in other words, bringing library material to a customer's home. Home service is meant for customer who cannot access a library due to their high age, an illness or weakened functional ability. The service is free of charge.
For more information, please contact your library: https://ratamo.finna.fi/OrganisationInfo/Home
Flerspråkiga biblioteket / Multilingual Library
You can place requests on material from the Multilingual Library as an interlibrary loan. You can make an interlibrary loan request at your local library. The library may charge an interlibrary loan fee for the request.
Russian Library
Русскоязычная библиотека
You can sign up as a customer of the Russian Library at your local library. You will be required to fill out a registration form and prove your identity.
Your library will send the form to the Russian Library that provides you a username and passcode. The login credentials will be sent to your email. Login to the Helmet online library using your username and passcode, and place reservations on the books you desire with the Russian Library as the pickup location.
For more information, contact your library.
Sign Language e-Library of Finland
The e-library is open access and using it does not require any login. The e-library contains videos presented in Finnish sign language and subtitled in Finnish and Swedish. The site is also a portal for sign language publications.
Sign Language e-Library of Finland
Information about the Sign Language e-Library in Finnish sign language
Other useful links
Papunet (only the Papunet Games currently in English) has a lot of information about easily understandable and accessible communication. The website has also lots of information and materials that support, for example, communicating through Blissymbolics and baby sign language. Papunet's Games section has, for example, easily accessible e-books for individuals who communicate differently.