Goodness knows buying books
for college takes a big bite out of any student or parent’s wallet. Luckily,
there are more options than ever these days to get books for free. Yes, that’s right FREE (and it’s totally legit)! Of course, this is great for college
students, but it’s also great for high school students, academics and any lover
of literature.
FICTION, NON-FICTION, POETRY & REFERENCE
You can access thousands of books for free because they are considered “public domain”. These books include everything from fiction to non-fiction, poetry to reference. Shakespeare? No problem. Albert Einstein? You got it. Teddy Roosevelt? Ready and waiting. And the list goes on and on and on. With the internet and e-readers, it’s easier than ever to take advantage of this vast, free library. Here are some of our favorites:
- E-Readers: Whether it’s a stand-alone e-reader (eg. Kindle, iPad, Nook, etc.) or a free downloaded app for your phone (for Droids: Aldiko; for iPhones: Lexcycle Stanza), these are our preferred ways to access this free library because it’s so similar to having a physical book in hand.
- Bartleby.com: If you don’t have an e-reader or a phone capable of viewing books, Bartleby is a great option. Their website is straight-forward and they make it easy to find what you’re looking for.
- Gutenberg.org: Very similar to Bartleby. It’s not quite as easy to search, but–once you find it–you often have the option to read it online or to download it to your computer, which is a nice plus. You can access Gutenberg’s library from various mobile apps, too.
TEXTBOOKS
- Textbook Media: Offers free and substantially discounted text books online that you can search by ISBN number or by course. The free selection isn’t huge, but it’s worth a look since it may save you the cost of an expensive textbook. All the books are officially licensed and use advertisements to offset the cost of buying the books (so you may have some ads in your e-book).
Still looking for more ways to save on your books? Read our guide on how to get big discounts on college books, including renting them, buying them at discounted prices and other simple tips to cut down costs.
Happy reading!
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