While there is nothing like the feel of a good book in your hands, eBooks are a great alternative – especially for struggling readers. The ability to change font size, page contrast, and more makes them a terrific resource for the classroom. Instead of spending a lot of money out of pocket for eBooks for your classroom (or your personal use!), try some sites that offer free and low-cost eBooks.
Free and Low-Cost eBook Sites
Classics
The classics, like Tom Sawyer and Jane Eyre, are free and available from many sources . They can be downloaded from your eBook reader’s supporting site. For example, Amazon has a separate section of their Kindle store reserved just for classical literature. There are also apps available that contain nothing but classic books. Even if you do not have an eBook reader, you can still download some of your favorite classics onto your computer from different websites. They are usually available in PDF format for easy viewing.
Author’s Sites
Another good, but often not thought about source for free or inexpensive books is the author’s website. Many author’s, especially independent ones, will offer free, downloadable versions of their books. Look up your favorite author and see what he or she might have to offer.
Sort Option
When searching for books, make use of the search and sort features of the different websites. On Barnes & Noble’s NOOKbook site, you can actually search for Free eBooks. Amazon also offers Limited Time Offer specials that you can search from the online Kindle site. Some of the options are easier to search from the main site, so open up the eBook shops on your laptop every once in awhile to explore all of the books that are available. You can have them sent to your eBook reader or download them to sync later. Some of the books that are advertised as free are, in fact, only samples of the complete book. Be sure to check before you are disappointed!
Tell us about your favorite books and places where you download free or inexpensive reading material. What types of books or magazines do you enjoy reading the most on your eBook reader? Share with us!