Libby will hand you a book and then take it back. A hold becomes available on the worst day, you have a short window to borrow it, and the loan returns itself when the lending period ends.
A small Libby & OverDrive tracker in Notion is how you stay ahead of that. It answers four questions: what is on hold, what is ready to borrow right now, what is checked out, and when it is due.
If you want the rest of your reading life in the same place (to-be-read list, finished books, notes), that is what I built NotionReads for. Try the live demo before you set anything up. No signup needed.
What Libby already tracks (and what it does not)
Libby is the reading app. OverDrive is the library platform behind it, which is why your library website and Libby often show the same loans and holds.
On Shelf, Libby already shows:
- Loans you have borrowed, with a due date
- Holds that are still waiting, plus holds that are ready
- A 72-hour window once a hold is available: borrow it, suspend it, or cancel it
- Suspend, which keeps your place in line until you unsuspend it (this used to be called Deliver Later)
What Libby does not do is remember why you wanted the book, which format you meant to read it in, or how it fits the rest of your list. That is the Notion page.
Lending periods, renewals, and how many holds you can place are set by your library. Copy the dates Libby shows you. Do not assume every card gets the same 14 or 21 days.
What to track for each Libby title
At minimum:
- Title + author
- Format (ebook or audiobook)
- Status (On hold, Ready to borrow, Borrowed, Returned, Did not finish)
- Due date, once it is borrowed
- Library card, if you use more than one
The fields that prevent surprise returns:
- Hold placed (date)
- Ready by (the end of the 72-hour borrow window)
- Suspended (checkbox) so a waiting hold is not treated as “coming this week”
- Priority (Next, Soon, Later)
- Notes (“start on the trip”, “buddy read”, “sample was enough”)
The Notion database (about 20 minutes)
Create a database called Library Loans with these properties:
- Title (Title)
- Author (Text)
- Status (Select: On hold, Ready to borrow, Borrowed, Returned, Did not finish)
- App (Select: Libby, OverDrive, Hoopla, Other)
- Library (Select or Text)
- Format (Select: Ebook, Audiobook)
- Due date (Date)
- Hold placed (Date)
- Ready by (Date)
- Suspended (Checkbox)
- Priority (Select: Next, Soon, Later)
- Notes (Text)
If you already keep a master reading list, make Title a relation to that database instead of a plain title. Then a book can show that it is on hold in Libby and, later, that you finished it.
No reading list yet? NotionReads is the short path I use for my own reading list. A from-scratch list is in the Notion reading list template.
Optional: days left
Add a formula property called Days left:
if(empty(prop("Due date")), "", dateBetween(prop("Due date"), now(), "days"))
If Notion’s formula editor rewrites prop(), keep the same idea: blank when there is no due date, otherwise the number of days between today and Due date. Negative numbers mean it is already back at the library.
Views that match the Libby shelf
1) Ready now
Filter: Status is Ready to borrow.
Sort: Ready by, ascending.
This is the 72-hour list. Open it before you open Libby, and decide borrow, suspend, or cancel on purpose.
2) On hold
Filter: Status is On hold, and Suspended is unchecked.
Sort: Priority, then Hold placed.
3) Now borrowing
Filter: Status is Borrowed.
Sort: Due date, ascending.
4) Due soon
Filter: Status is Borrowed, and Days left is 3 or less.
Libby returns the title when the lending period ends. If the app offers Renew, update the due date here. If it does not, the book is going back, and this view is your warning.
5) Recently returned
Filter: Status is Returned.
Sort: Due date, descending. Useful when you want to place the hold again or move the book to your finished list.
A weekly pass that takes ten minutes
- Open Libby Shelf → Loans and confirm every borrowed title is in Now borrowing with the same due date.
- Open Holds. Anything with a “ready” notification becomes Ready to borrow, and Ready by is three days out.
- If you are mid-book and a hold lands, tap Suspend in Libby and check Suspended in Notion. Unsuspend when you actually have a slot, or the hold can sit suspended until it lapses (Libby cancels a hold that stays suspended for 365 days in a row).
- Pick one Next title to borrow when a loan returns. Leave the rest on Later.
- When you finish, set Status to Returned and add a line of notes. Kindle highlights and audiobook reactions can live with the book, not in Libby.
If several holds hit at once, borrow one and suspend the others. Format helps: audiobook for errands, ebook for bed. The audiobook tracker is the place for narrator and speed notes once you press play.
Where this sits next to your other lists
This page is the Libby clock: ready windows and due dates. A few neighbors, so you do not build the same database twice:
- Library holds tracker if you also juggle physical pickups, Hoopla, or more than one library system
- Book loan tracker for copies you lent to people (a different kind of loan)
- Book wishlist tracker so the next hold is already chosen
- Kindle highlights to Notion for lines you want after Libby takes the ebook back
Already on Goodreads? Bring that library across with Goodreads import, or follow how to import your Goodreads library to Notion.
Common questions
Can one database cover Libby and the library’s OverDrive site?
Yes. They are the same loans and holds. Use App only if you also borrow somewhere else.
What if I miss the 72 hours?
Libby suspends that hold for you once, instead of dropping you off the list. Mark it Suspended and set Status back to On hold until you unsuspend it.
What about tags I already use inside Libby?
Keep using them in the app if you like. Mirror only the tags that change a decision (Next vs Later, ebook vs audiobook). The tracker gets worse when it copies every Libby tag.
Skip the blank page
You can build Library Loans beside any Notion reading list. If you would rather start from the tracker I use, with a to-be-read list, a reading log, and notes, open NotionReads.
Try the live demo if you want to see a shelf before you build one. No signup needed. Add the book you are borrowing tonight, then keep the due date where you will actually look at it.