I love to read. I love love love to read. I am weeks away from achieving a goal to read 60 books in one year. I am an avid reader, but evil things out there do nothing but divert me from this goal. At first, it was the iPhone. It was those stupid Angry Birds thwarting me from the very start. Next was Candy Crush, followed by Words with Friends, and then back to Candy Crush. Who can pick up a book when there are texts, emails, and Youtube videos of Princess Diana’s secret affairs or how to apply makeup correctly. In the olden days, TV kept me away for only a few hours of must-see TV on a Thursday night. Now with Netflix and 1000 different Real Housewives, it’s a struggle to lure me away from the TV.
Before kids, a real job and laziness set in, I was a big library fan. I always felt that visiting the library was much more of a noble pursuit than grabbing a Starbucks and sitting on the floor of the bestseller aisle in Barnes and Noble. Of course, when you borrow a book from the library, the outside benefits are reducing your carbon footprint and saving money. Blah Blah Blah. Unfortunately, in came the Kindle, and all my lofty ideals went out the window. It was too easy to borrow a book when I couldn’t sleep in the middle of the night. However, I have found a list of ways you can use your Kindle and feel thrifty at the same time. I have also included fun reading hacks and resources.
Happy Reading!
Book Bub
This site has fantastic ebook deals. BookBub is a free service that helps you discover books you’ll love through unbeatable deals, handpicked recommendations, and updates from your favorite authors. They are available on retailers like Amazon’s Kindle store, Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, Apple Books, etc. Sign up for their daily email, and you can customize your reading preferences. You will get a daily list of 4-5 books that you would enjoy based on your preferences. They are sometimes free but never usually more than $2.99.
Goodreads
To start your love of reading, you will need to access a reading recommendation and documentation site like Goodreads. I love Goodreads because I can keep lists of all the books I have read in a given year. Since I read mainly borrowed or Kindle books, I can’t reference my wood-paneled library. I have never been one to display books on a shelf. My books ended up shoved into drawers or piled in boxes to donate that never make it out of my basement. Once I read a book, I forget it in about three days. My memory is shot. Goodreads prevent me from getting halfway through a book and realizing I read it already.
Audible.com
Listen to your book! Audible.com is not for me at all as I am a 100% visual comprehender. I may be a little hard of hearing. But for lots of people listening to books in the car or on a walk is a great way to suck in your literature. Often the author is the reader. Especially with books such as Memoirs, it truly adds to the experience.
Free Books
Your local library is the best way to read books for free. However, If you are a lazy Kindle-loving person like myself, there are many other ways to get free electronic books. The most familiar and easiest is through your library. Most regional libraries enable members to access ebooks through apps such as Libby/Overdrive.
Other sites to get free ebooks books:
They are sometimes a little user-unfriendly but worth a try.
If you are an Amazon Prime member, you can take advantage of Amazon’s First Reads program, which lets you choose one free book a month.
Daily Lit
DailyLit is really for the type A (not me at all) that needs to fill in every minute of their time. If reading a book is too overwhelming in this scan and scroll world, or if you only have ten spare minutes a day, you can open your Daily LIt email and read a 10-minute portion of a book. Before you know it, you will have read a whole book. Baby steps, I guess.
I am walking away from the TV.
8 Comments
Hi Cindy! You brought back so many fun memories with this post. Angry Birds was the first electronic game I encountered. And, I think I stopped going to the library after I subscribed to Amazon Kindle. I had a thought one day that I should take my 9 yr old granddaughter to the library when I pick her up from school sometimes, while we’re waiting for her mom to finish work. Even at that age technology offers so many options other than reading. I believe reading is still fundamental! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Cheri! It is fun going down memory lane.
I am a huge book lover! I would suggest checking out Book Outlet if you want some lower cost books. They have tons of selection and the prices cannot be beat. They basically just sell overstock from other retailers so all the books are in great shape! They even have some newer releases 🙂
Will Do!! Thanks
Great post–you’re an enjoyable read. I’m a big library lover but my husband is trying to get me into the Kindle. I’ll give it a go.
Good luck! I still love real books too. Kindle is super convenient!!!!
Oh, this strikes a chord with me! After a lifetime of avid reading, I’ve lost my reading buzz over the past year or so and I miss the feeling of being caught up in a good book. The phone/TV thing is so true, it’s just too easy to divert to pointless but enticing things. I’ve found getting back to the good ol’ lending library has helped. Knowing I only have a book for a limited time spurs me on to sit down and try and get acquainted with it. Here’s to the love of a good book!
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