reading Resources
My Top Reading Tips that won’t break the bank!
Reading is an Expensive Hobby, here are some resources to expand your library AND protect your pockets.
Digital Public Library
The Libby app is a free app that allows users to access digital content from their local library. It works exactly like a regular library so you borrow a book for a certain time period and if the book is in use, you can place holds. The downside of this is of a book is high in demand the wait is often weeks to months.
However, the beauty of this is (in the UK) you can now get online library cards for libraries outside your area. This allows you to build a larger collection and more than one library often have the same book so there are shorter wait times.
Digital Library Subscription
Everand is a digital reading subscription service that provides access to e-books, audiobooks and more. Following a 30 day free trial, Everand offers two monthly subscription plans: The Standard plan costs £10.99 per month, while the Plus plan costs £15.99 per month. There is a premium catalogue and Standard users can only listen to one book per month while Plus users can listen to three.
It has a very large collection with smaller authors you wouldn’t expect to find. Plus the fact that both audiobooks and e-books are in the same place definitely help.
Digital Library Subscription
BookBeat is a digital subscription service for audiobooks and e-books. You get a 30 day free trial and you can choose between three different packages. The Basic account at £6,99/month allows you to listen up to 20 hours a month. With the standard account at £10.99/month you can listen up to 40 hours per month, and with the premium account, you get 100 hours of listening and reading for £17.99/month.
The library is a bit limited for me and what I like to read but it offers a very good collection.
Amazon Services
Amazon has made reading more effortless for me and opened me up to a wide range of authors.
Kindle Unlimited
Kindle Unlimited is a monthly subscription service that gives access to millions of e-books, audiobooks, and magazines. It’s available on Kindle devices, as well as on phones, computers, and tablets through the Kindle app. They are always doing new subscriber deals so you can get your first few months cheap. It’s £9.99 per month and the catalogue is VAST.
I ride so hard for KU. It is where I discovered a lot of the small black authors I now know and love.
Audible
Audible is an online audiobook and podcast service that allows users to purchase and stream audiobooks and other forms of spoken word content. This can be purchased individually or under a subscription model where the user receives “credits” that can be redeemed for content monthly and receive access to a curated on-demand library of content. The monthly subscription is £7.99 but if you’re a new subscriber you can often get deals. I only just started listening to audiobooks, but I have been told Audible is definitely worth the money.
Other Ways to Read
If you already have Spotify Premium, the platform offers 15 hours of free listening for selected audiobooks.
There are so many ways to get free or cheap LEGAL e-books online. Amazon often has days dedicated to this—just keep a lookout.
Have Any Questions?
