Do you enjoy reading, especially all kinds of books?
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Do you enjoy reading, especially all kinds of books? I enter to win free or very low cost books anywhere I can. Two sources have been the most successful, in my experience:
Thriftbooks: Good quality used books, and after a certain number purchased, they throw in a book of your choice, valued at under $7 for the cost of $1.61 separate shipping. I've lost count, but I've gotten around 20 books this way. They also have excellent customer service if a book arrives damaged. (Better World Books will fight you on this.)
Goodreads: There's no limit on the number of giveaways you can enter. The bargain is that you promise to read, rate, and review the book in a timely manner if you win. I have won 33 books this way. Tip: print books are usually a better bet in terms of writing quality, than most e-books.
Other sources:
Amazon Kindle: search for free Kindle books. There are a surprising number available. They don't care if you ever review them.
Publisher mailing lists: these vary, but both Hellbound and Black Rose have given away loads of digital content. Hellbound expects reviews.
Book Riot: has a lot of giveaways, but also a lot of entrants, so I've never won, but others have. Plus, really good content about upcoming books.
NetGalley and Edelweiss: require user approval. I used to do reviews for Netgalley, based purely on social media reach at the time. It got to be like a job, though. Edelweiss is a little more geared to people in the book industry, and not just readers. Both provide pre-publication e-books, which need to be read and thoughtfully reviewed before pub date. Top reviewers can get pre-approved by a publisher to read any selection they choose. Everyone else has to request to read specific work, and copies may be limited. Approval time varies. Preference is given to authors, booksellers, book bloggers, and librarians.
There are also "Read Now" offerings which are available without requesting. Digital copies of graphic novels may have time-limits on availability and do expire. The others are generally yours to keep. Some of the DRM watermarks and other inserts can be maddening. Your experience can vary.
For other low-cost books, look through library donation sales. Usually there is a sliding scale with a modest cost for paperbacks and a little more for hardback books or first editions. Especially look right after Christmas, when folks have gotten rid of books they received as gifts they didn't want. Sometimes there are whole series available after estate sales, but be careful to note their condition based on how they've been stored.
I'm sure there are others I'm forgetting. There are no used bookstores within 40 miles of me. When I have made a special trip, I either looked to buy in bulk for the discounts, or looked for collectibles. You need a lot of time to sift through a lot of them.
-
Do you enjoy reading, especially all kinds of books? I enter to win free or very low cost books anywhere I can. Two sources have been the most successful, in my experience:
Thriftbooks: Good quality used books, and after a certain number purchased, they throw in a book of your choice, valued at under $7 for the cost of $1.61 separate shipping. I've lost count, but I've gotten around 20 books this way. They also have excellent customer service if a book arrives damaged. (Better World Books will fight you on this.)
Goodreads: There's no limit on the number of giveaways you can enter. The bargain is that you promise to read, rate, and review the book in a timely manner if you win. I have won 33 books this way. Tip: print books are usually a better bet in terms of writing quality, than most e-books.
Other sources:
Amazon Kindle: search for free Kindle books. There are a surprising number available. They don't care if you ever review them.
Publisher mailing lists: these vary, but both Hellbound and Black Rose have given away loads of digital content. Hellbound expects reviews.
Book Riot: has a lot of giveaways, but also a lot of entrants, so I've never won, but others have. Plus, really good content about upcoming books.
NetGalley and Edelweiss: require user approval. I used to do reviews for Netgalley, based purely on social media reach at the time. It got to be like a job, though. Edelweiss is a little more geared to people in the book industry, and not just readers. Both provide pre-publication e-books, which need to be read and thoughtfully reviewed before pub date. Top reviewers can get pre-approved by a publisher to read any selection they choose. Everyone else has to request to read specific work, and copies may be limited. Approval time varies. Preference is given to authors, booksellers, book bloggers, and librarians.
There are also "Read Now" offerings which are available without requesting. Digital copies of graphic novels may have time-limits on availability and do expire. The others are generally yours to keep. Some of the DRM watermarks and other inserts can be maddening. Your experience can vary.
For other low-cost books, look through library donation sales. Usually there is a sliding scale with a modest cost for paperbacks and a little more for hardback books or first editions. Especially look right after Christmas, when folks have gotten rid of books they received as gifts they didn't want. Sometimes there are whole series available after estate sales, but be careful to note their condition based on how they've been stored.
I'm sure there are others I'm forgetting. There are no used bookstores within 40 miles of me. When I have made a special trip, I either looked to buy in bulk for the discounts, or looked for collectibles. You need a lot of time to sift through a lot of them.
@kimlockhartga
I only read #audiobooks these days, and I don't do anything except a Goodreads profile with Jeff Bezos. My most reliable source for several years has been Everand, which has a very wide selection of books in its unlimited subscription plan. It looks like they are shifting to the more common plan of 1-2 credits/month, but I seem to be grandfathered in under the original plan. Occasionally, I can get books I want through Libby from the library. And when I really want to read a popular book, I pay for credits through Libro.fm, which supports local, indie bookshops. -
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