Explore reading and literacy options for people with vision loss, including braille, large print, Talking Books, eBooks, and accessible eBook libraries.

Reading and Literacy with Vision Loss: Your Guide to Accessible Formats

We read books to stay connected to the world of ideas, storytelling, information, and community.

A 2016 Yale University study followed 3,635 adults aged 50+ for 12 years and found that participants who read books (as opposed to newspapers and magazines) for at least 30 minutes each day lived an average of 23 months longer than non-readers.* Reading books can reduce stress and keep our minds nimble. Literacy—the ability to read and comprehend written material—is a key component to success throughout life.

Why Reading Accessibility Matters for People with Vision Loss

Having access to the written word is especially important for people who lose their vision later in life and struggle with feelings of isolation and alienation from the sighted world. Studies, including the Big Data Project Reports, confirm that adults 65+ living with vision loss report nearly double the rate of anxiety and depression as their peers with normal vision.

Choosing the Right Format for Your Level of Vision Loss

Today, people living with blindness and low vision have more ways than ever to keep reading, including Braille, large-print formats, screen readers, Talking Books, eBooks, and accessible digital reading. Working with a vision rehabilitation specialist to find what best suits your needs, lifestyle, and degree of vision loss is a good first step.

Braille: A Foundation of Literacy

This tactile reading and writing system for people who are blind or have low vision has been around for nearly a century. Braille uses six raised dots in various combinations, called cells, printed on paper, and read by tracing the pads of fingers across the surface. Braille materials come in many languages and subjects, including music and mathematics, and have more recently been made available digitally via an electronic device called a braille reader.

Where to Find Braille Books and Materials

Braille books and materials for all ages and interests are available for purchase, borrowing, or free from many sources, including Amazon, your public library, these options, and more:

• The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS)
• American Printing House for theBlind
• Braille Institute of America
• Christian Record Services
• JBI Library
• National Braille Press
• Xavier Society for the Blind

Large Print: A Practical Option for Low Vision Readers

Creating books for readers with low vision involves more than simply enlarging the standard 12-point font to 18-point for general text and 20- 22-point for sub-headlines and headlines. Typeface, colors, design, layout, spacing, and paper type are also carefully selected to ensure optimal accessibility for people with low vision. Learn more about these guidelines and best practices at American Council for the Blind and American Printing House for the Blind. Book publishers specializing in large-print formats include Thorndike Press and Center Point Large Print. Mainstream publishers Houghton Mifflin and Random House also offer select titles in large print format.

Talking Books: Listening as a Form of Reading

What are Talking Books and how do they differ from audiobooks? While both are meant to be listened to rather than read, the main differences between the two are accessibility, ease of use, and funding. Talking Books are supported by public funds and provided free of charge to people living with blindness, low vision, or other disabilities that make reading difficult. Talking Books can be listened to on a compact, affordable stand-alone player or through software players on computers. Because Talking Books are designed for people with visual impairments, they are cataloged in Braille, which audiobooks, created for the general public, are not.

Talking Books on Devices: Players, Apps, and BARD

The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS), at the Library of Congress, is the largest free audiobook and Braille library service for people living with blindness or low vision. Their Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) program is the official app for Talking Books, which allows you to download books and magazines to your smartphone, computer, or tablet. 

eBooks and Accessible Digital Reading

Digital versions of books, or eBooks, are accessible to people who are blind or have low vision through e-readers such as the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite, the Apple iPad with VoiceOver, the HumanWare Victor Reader, and others.

eBook Formats That Work Best with Assistive Technology

EPUB3 is the global web standard for accessible eBooks. To be useful for blind and low-vision readers, an eBook must be designed to work well with assistive technologies such as screen readers and text-to-speech, allowing users to adjust navigation, settings, font size, background, alternative text, and other elements to enhance the reading experience.

Comparing Your Reading Options: Which Format Is Right for You?

Whether your vision loss is subtle or profound, recent, or lifelong, you can still experience the tremendous joys and benefits of reading. Speak with a vision rehabilitation specialist about which format or combination of formats, tools, and technologies works best for you.

* Bavishi A, Slade MD, Levy BR. A chapter a day – association of book reading with longevity. Social Science & Medicine. 2016;164:44.

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