I admit it. I am a book hoarder. I can’t help it. I love to read.
I have a Nook, a Kindle and an iPad that I use to read as well as a metric ton of books made of paper and ink. I am fortunate enough to be married to a reader as well and we have had many quiet but enjoyable hours spent reading side by side. Between us we spend WAY too much money on books. If you are like me and the piggy bank is looking a little empty, I have a few ideas that might help you get your fix without breaking the bank!
If you are in a location and see a book that you would REALLY like to read snap a picture of it with your phone. Be SURE to get the ISBN so you get the correct book!
Paper Back Swap – paper and ink books
My awesome mother in law saw the Paper Back Swap on TV and suggested that we try it to feed our reading addiction. The program is super simple. You create a library with your unwanted books and someone “buys” them with credits. You can in turn use those credits to “buy” books from others. What happens is that you can get a big money book for only the cost of postage!
I was enchanted with the idea so I snagged a couple of paperbacks that the mom in law didn’t want anymore, opened an account and here I am 400+ credits (and a couple of thousand saved dollars) later still swapping away! It is easy and free. The site has great explanations and even a help line. To get you started here are the basics of how to swap.
Book Bub – ebooks
I came across Book Bub by accident. It is a site that finds the best deals on e-books and sends you an email with recommended titles for you. They give you everything from free books to ones that are a substantial amount off. On the site you are able to go in and choose the type of book you like so they send you only what you want. This is a free service with a million plus readers.
Book Basset – Kindle ebooks
Book Basset was another one that I came across by accident. This site looks for FREE and reduced price Kindle books. The down side is that the free books are usually only free for a limited time. I use it in addition to Book Bub for my daily dose of good deals.
Amazon dot com – ebooks and paper books
If you have the inclination and the time you can troll through the lists of free books from Amazon. Many of them are pretty darn good! Many of the free books are a hook by an author to get you to buy their other books and I have to say it works! I started a series for free and found myself buying every book because the first was so good!
*NOTE: If you have Amazon Prime you can check out books from their library. Here is a video overview from Amazon about the program.
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Garage sales, Goodwill or any other resale shop –
Need I say more? Who can beat buying a book for a quarter? Not me for sure! : )
Last, but certainly not least, go to your local library! You can check out ebooks and books on CD. It is simple and painless to get a library card and they can help you find books at other libraries if the one you want isn’t there.
Shelley Brian is a teacher, wife, pet mom and blogger. You can read more at her blog Love Where You Live.
