Reading books is quite a joy, isn’t it? It is a hobby for some and a form of therapy for others. Depending on the type of book, and the person reading it, you can be on an emotional roller coaster ride or feel completely relaxed. You can also be motivated, inspired, or learn something just by reading books and this is exactly why it is encouraged by many people. However, not many people enjoy the feel of the book in their hands just as much as book lovers might, and while you may not be a bookworm, you can still experience the joy of reading through e-books.
The only problem there is that e-books can be quite expensive and you probably don’t know where you can find free e-books to read. This article will help you do just that. Of course, all the websites and techniques mentioned here are 100% legal! Since reading can be such a joy, it only makes sense that anyone and everyone should be able to do so without spending money or at least without emptying their pockets. So, without any more delays, let’s continue on to our topic!
Google Books
Google Books has the most extensive collection of books available online and this is exactly why it is the first one on our list. Although, there is a catch. Not all books available on Google Books are free and to avoid the scenario of finding a book only to discover it is a paid book, you should go to the “Tools” present under the search bar, and then change the option for “Any view” to “Full view” so you only get the ones that are free. These free books range from classics to contemporary and much more and belong to numerous genres. If a certain book has multiple editions, you can also see the option for checking those out.
- The Library of Congress
Looking for children’s classics and fairy tales online? The Library of Congress is the place to be in that case. There are over 60 classic books available on this website and it is has a very easy-to-use and easy-to-understand interface. Classic fairy tales like Alice in Wonderland and The Sleeping Beauty and more are all accessible on this platform. Aside from fairy tales and children’s books, you can find other stories as well suitable for adults, young adults, and even parents.
- Project Gutenberg
With over 60,000 e-books that you can access on this website, Project Gutenberg provides readers with a wide variety of books and texts to download and read. You can even find out-of-print books and texts that might usually be hard to find anywhere else. It has a very simple interface that can easily be understood and used. This website is especially for reading enthusiasts that like to read old books for which U.S. copyright might have expired by now.
- Open Library
Open Library has over 1 million free-to-access e-books, which include all types of genres like romance, fantasy, thriller, mystery, and much more. However, some books are not free to read and so, you will have to check that. Once again, the website design is pretty simple and easy to navigate for any and every user.
- Wattpad
This is one website that we’re sure all of you have heard of and maybe even used at some point. Wattpad has a community of about 80 million people, readers, and writers. This website is a bit different from the ones mentioned above as here, you will find original books written by new or even somewhat polished writers. You can find two types of books here: free and paid. As for the genres, there is complete freedom over that and you can find all genres of books here. You just need an account to be able to read and write books. Did you know that there are quite some authors that started from publishing books and stories on this platform? There is also an app for this website, which you can download on your phone or tablet.
- Smashwords
This website has over 500,000 books on the website, which are not all free. You can find fiction as well as non-fiction books here. Ranging from poetry, classics, autobiographies, romance, and comedy, you are practically getting a whole lot of variety without having to pay a single cent!
- Internet Archive
Here’s an interesting bit of information for you: Internet Archive is a non-profit organization and it offers readers access to free e-books and other files. Along with its search bar feature, you can also find the books available on the website categorized by genres. This can help you find a book by genre, especially if you don’t have anything specific in mind for reading. Another interesting thing is that you can find certain books in different languages as well.
- BookBub
BookBub is a website where you will never run out of options of what to read! Just like Wattpad, you need to create an account to be able to access the e-books. You can then select your favorite genre and find many recommendations in that genre. While there are many titles you can access for free, you can find bestsellers and other books for certain prices as well. If you want to purchase or download a book, this is a good website for that as you can get alerts for any offers or discounts.
- 24Symbols
You can access the free e-books on this website by creating an account and connecting your Facebook account. You can browse books by author, category, and language. You can also read and access premium books for a small fee and the website has a great interface. Moreover, you can also download the 24Symbols app on your mobile, tablet, laptop, and even an e-reader.
- BookRix
Through BookRix, you can download e-books onto your phone or tablet. You can find books from self-published authors, just like in Wattpad. You can find many independent writers here and can also become one yourself if you want. The books are categorized by genres which range from fiction to romance to thrillers and more.
- Authorama
This website works perfectly even if you have a poor internet connection. It loads faster than other websites and you can download e-books with absolute ease. The layout is very simple and you can find a variety of books and even classics or historical fiction.
How can I access such websites?
While these websites are not restricted to anyone and can easily be found online by searching on Google, it is the internet connection that you might need to worry about. If you are reading an e-book online, you need to make sure you have a stable and speedy internet connection so you can read online or download the e-book. Xfinity offers many internet speeds and plans for the customers. Xfinity internet speed is quite well-known and is also the reason for its many subscribers. It is one of the most subscribed internet providers in the U.S.
There you have it!
And there it is! We have successfully completed our article and we hope this was very useful to all you book lovers out there! Of course, this isn’t just restricted to book lovers only and so, we also hope that other people might have benefited from this too!