Montana veterans who are handicapped, have a reading disability, low vision, or are blind have a new way to read thousands of books.

The Montana Talking Book Library unveiled new digital talking books to veterans at the Great Falls Library on Wednesday.

The device replaces books on cassette tape and come with better sound quality and fewer buttons. Plus, users don't have to know anything about the computers.

Veteran Bob Lynch, who is legally blind, is a big fan of the books; he said, "They are just really lifesavers for me.  I'm decently educated, so I was interested in what was going on in the world, but these things keep me from deteriorating mentally and physically and the whole thing that could happen."

Some patrons have listened to almost 4,000 books since the early 90's.

The National Library Service has been working on the digital talking books for five years in hopes of putting books in an easy and tactile format.

More than 2,500 people across the state utilize the books, and 200 are on the waiting list.

To learn more, visit the Talking Book Library section at the Montana State Library website.

- Shannon Newth reporting for KRTV