The estimated reading time for this post is 2 minutes
Great news! Amazon has announced that library lending is now available for Kindle ebooks! That’s right, you can borrow Kindle ebooks from your library now. This was promised by Amazon in the Spring and many people had forgotten about this upcoming development. Now the promise has been fulfilled so you can get library Kindle books on your device for free.
In the article Poll: Would You Buy A Kindle Ebook Subscription?, over half of the voters were interested in a subscription to buy Kindle ebooks at a discount. What’s even better than a discount? Free! So if most people are interested in discounted Kindle books, even more people will be interested in borrowing Kindle books for free.
[tip]You don’t need a Kindle to read a Kindle book. You can read Kindle books on your smartphone, iPad or computer using a Kindle app[/tip]
What You Need to Know
- Library lending is currently available only in the United States
- Library lending is available through 11,000 libraries that participate with the OverDrive library lending program
- You will need a library card from your local library to participate
- Lending terms are determined by your library (length of book loan, repeat borrowing, etc.)
- Library books can only be downloaded to a Kindle device over Wi-Fi, not 3G
- Any notes or bookmarks you make for a Kindle book will be saved even after the lending period is over
- You can retrieve your notes and bookmarks from Amazon’s website at any time
- If you borrow a book again or purchase a book that you borrowed, your notes and bookmarks will be added back into that Kindle book
To see whether your local library participates in Kindle lending with OverDrive, go to your library’s website. My local library participates and has 2548 Kindle books available on its site. The lending period at my library is seven days. For example, one of my favorite books, $20 Per Gallon: How the Inevitable Rise in the Price of Gasoline Will Change Our Lives for the Better, was available for lending from my library as a Kindle book.
Most books had only one copy available as a Kindle book at my library, but very few of the Kindle books had been checked out yet. Explore this feature now before others discover that they can borrow free Kindle books from their local libraries!
For more information, check out Amazon’s page explaining Kindle library lending: Amazon Public Library Books for Kindle.
Are you excited about library lending for Kindle books? Does your local library have this feature? Let us know in the Comments section below!
* Image by Gwyneth Anne Bronwynne Jones
** Image by Valerie Hinojosa
Hi Carolyn,
Wow! This is surely a fabulous offer from Amazon! I believe most readers love to use this since library driven. Unbelievable. Its Free!.
Interesting stuff I like, we can use at any smart phone, IPad which certainly provides platform independence and reduces dependency of kindle. Real cool one. Many thanks to Amazon since they are trying to creating new wave at ereaders community.
Thanks for sharing the very informative post
Hi Manickam, you’re right, this is an amazing service from Amazon, available to anyone with a computer and a participating library. This can be a real time saver if a child forgets her book at school. A parent can just hop on the library’s website and borrow the book for overnight, saving a trip back to the school. Handy dandy!
Thanks for your visit and awesome comment, Manickam!
That is so cool Carolyn. I’m going to have to check to see if my library participates. I have a feeling that it does.
I do have the Kindle app downloaded on my computer but I can see where this would come in handy for my iPod as well. I know it would be small but kind of convenient too. Especially if I’m borrowing one from the library. I’m going to have to check that out.
As always, more great updates you are sharing with us. Have I told you lately how much I appreciate you? You’re the best. Always sharing such cool information with us. Man I’m glad I found you.
Thanks Carolyn and have a great day!
~Adrienne
Hi Adrienne, I hope your library does participate because this is a truly great program. If your library is a member of Open Drive, then all you need is a computer to get free Kindle books. Yes, you can use this with your iPod Touch as well.
Adrienne, I’m glad you found me too! I am delighted you are embracing all of this new technology and using it to enhance your life. A lot of cool new tech developments are coming soon so stay tuned to The Wonder of Tech to see what’s ahead!
Hey Carolyn,
Guess what I uploaded this weekend to my iPod Touch? 2 games!!! I know!!! Okay, I’m a solitaire fanatic and will play it while I watch TV. I love those hand held games. So the one I have is old and all of a sudden it dawned on me that I bet I can get that game for the IPod. So I searched, found one, uploaded it and girl I was in heaven.
I also uploaded a word game, yep I like those too. Gives me something to do so I’m not just sitting there while watching TV. Those are the only times I play except when I’m at my Mom’s and we’re just talking. She’s knitting with her hands and I’m playing a game with mine. Aren’t you proud of me?
Hi Adrienne, Way to go!!! I am very proud of you! I love word games too. As a matter of fact, I’m planning to review some soon. Which games apps did you get?
I like solitaire games too. I used to play Pyramid all the time on my Palm.
The iPod Touch makes a great gaming device. It’s very portable and can be a great diversion from boredom and a way to relax.
Enjoy! 🙂
The word search was a freebie and it’s just called “Word Search”. You know, one of those you circle the words when you find them. I’m not very advanced for locating stuff yet so maybe with a little more time I can find some more. I like the kind where you fill in the word, a word puzzle. I’m not good with crosswords because I don’t read up on stuff and don’t watch a lot of TV. I’m horrible at those.
I’m nuts for solitaire, pretty pathetic actually! 🙂 But I’m having fun playing. Thought you might be proud of me for just locating them.
Hi Adrienne, I am very proud of you finding the word game you like and the solitaire game as well. The iTunes site can be very difficult to navigate. I strongly suggest you check out my favorite site for searching iTunes, ZoomAppy. I recently wrote about the site here: ZoomAppy: Your App Search Ally! All Star Edition. The way the site is organized is brilliant, much better than iTunes. You will have a much easier time finding apps that work well for you using Zoomappy.
Hi Carolyn,
This is very interesting, although too bad it’s only available in the US. I’m not sure if I understand this though. It’s hard to understand why we need to return a digital book, and why they only have one copy available. It’s probably just me 🙂
Jens
Hi Jens, Great questions! I imagine, in order to convince publishers to allow library lending, Amazon had to put restrictions on the licenses for libraries. Otherwise, people could just borrow loads of books for an unlimited period of time. Who would bother to buy them when you don’t even have to go to the library to borrow them?
Our library has a seven day lending period, which is pretty short. I’m thinking Amazon convinced the publishers that people would borrow these books, start to read them, have them disappear from their Kindles, and then buy the books. That’s my theory anyway.
I imagine if library lending is successful in increasing sales, which probably will happen, that Amazon will try to expand library lending beyond US borders.
I understand your frustration. When I lived in England, there were lots of movies, apps, videos, tv shows, etc. that never seemed to cross the border from the US to the UK. If there were a unified worldwide system for copyright licenses, global distribution would be much more prevalent.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving your intriguing comment, Jens!
My son and daughter-in-law gave me a Kindle for my birthday, and I just returned from getting a Fairfax County library card, so I’m ready to enter the 21st century. Thanks again, tech lady!
Hi Fred, I’m so glad you’re able to take advantage of Kindle library lending. I imagine the Fairfax County library system is a member of Over Drive.
I hope you enjoy your Kindle library books, Gramps! Thanks for stopping by The Wonder of Tech and leaving an awesome comment. 🙂
That is some excellent news Carolyn. I am currently borrowing my friends Kindle and now he may have to buy another 😉
For the longest time I waited on getting a Kindle because I got so much pleasure from sharing books. I learned that Kindle lets you share with other Kindle devices, now that you can borrow from Library’s is even better.
That way people like me who don’t have any friends can still read excellent books for free 😉
Bryce
Hi Bryce, Good point about comparing the library lending to borrowing a Kindle book from a friend. The library lending means that you and a friend could be reading the book at the same time (assuming you had different local libraries), helpful if you join a virtual book club.
Also, a friend’s Kindle book can only be lent once, so you have to choose your friends wisely, but at least they can be lent for two weeks, instead of one like our local library.
Thanks, Bryce, for your insightful comment. I’m sure with brilliant ideas like yours, you will be making friends very soon. 😉
Great news and as always so much information, Carolyn, thanks. I gave a kindle to my mother so she might be able to continue reading as her eyesight is getting worse due to macula degeneration. I am sure there will be an international lending function in the near future, I will keep my eyes open.
I have downloaded the kindle app (never thought about checking before) to my iPad / iPhone so I can help her. And she can take her kindle on our upcoming trip to Tuscany later this week.
Have a great day, Barbara
Hi Barbara, You’re right, the Kindle is fantastic for people with vision issues. They can enjoy reading again by being able to adjust the font to a comfortable size. I even know of someone with vision issues who uses the text to speech feature of the Kindle to follow along while she reads.
I hope Amazon is able to expand this program internationally so that many others can benefit from it!
I hope you and your mother have a fabulous time in Tuscany! 🙂
The idea of digital library is great. Recently libraries haven’ been used much by people but this may be the first step to restore their importance
Hi Andy, I have to agree with you. As the world moves into the digital age, libraries will benefit from increasing their digital offerings. Lending Kindle books is a valuable benefit libraries can offer.
Thanks for your visit and awesome comment, Andy!
I think this is a step forward. I shall have to find out about publishing blogs on the kindle, I know it can be done. I’m also thinking about writing a novella and I’m told they are popular on the Kindle.
I’ve added a screen shot of photo editing using Windows Live photo gallery to this weeks Neodigital Art blog. I’m trying to choose between writing and photography today, the light wasn’t too good yesterday but the sun is shining and blue skies today. I think I’ll go out! I’m writing about money and peer to peer lending for tomorrow! I hope you like today’s pictures.
Hi Mike, You’re right, novellas are very popular as Kindle books. Blogs are popular on the Kindle as well, though that probably isn’t the best format for your photography blogs.
One of the many advantages of Kindle books for authors is the freedom to write what they want. They are not restricted by any rules of length, short or long. The story matters more than the length, which gives the author many more creative possibilities!
Thanks for your visit and comment, Mike!
Fantastic! Carolyn, aloha. Now this is the kind of “techie” news that I love. Before even commenting I checked to see if Kindle books are available at my local library and they are. Carolyn, I am sooooooooooo excited about this.
The resources that are available to us through Kindle are incredible.
Off to share this info with others. Thanks so much for making my day. Enjoy a Terrific Tuesday. Until next time, aloha. Janet
Hi Janet, I’m so glad you will be able to take advantage of this great service. It couldn’t be easier to borrow a book without even having to head to the library.
Thanks so much for spreading the word about this awesome service, Janet! 🙂
I don’t have a kindle, but I do have the app on my computer AND I have a library card………….sweet…………….I think that means I’m all in, right?
I actually use the library in my hometown (Lakeland) and the town where my office used to be (Winter Haven); they both seem pretty progressive so I’m pretty sure I will be good to go…..for once…..:)
Good info, thanks for sharing this today.
Hi Bill, yes, library card + computer means you’re in like Flynn. Just check with your local library to make sure they participate with OverDrive and you should be all set. Very handy that you can borrow books from the library without having to go there.
I hope you enjoy reading your Kindle books, Bill! 🙂
Hi Carolyn,
Amazon is really the best, always up with awesome offers and amazing stuffs. And thanks to you for reminding , I was so excited about it and I completely forgot about it. So much looking forward…
Hi John, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! I am thrilled you are excited about this new program too. I think everybody had forgotten about Amazon’s promise months ago, except for Amazon! It’s great they came through with this service, so many people will benefit from it.
Thanks for stopping by. I hope you visit again soon!
I simply love to read books and i am looking forward to get my hands on Amazon and enjoy reading more , I would be soon gifting myself an iPad and start reading on it for it would be more fun and comfortable..
Hi David, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech. For a reader like you, this is a very exciting development. Before you buy that iPad, though, check out tomorrow’s Wonder of Tech for a review of the Kindle Fire, announced today by Amazon!
I was looking into all this and saw Amazon’s announcement for the new Kindle Fire, coming out in Nov. What do you think of this for a teenager who loves to read, stream movies, listen to music, and play Angry Birds? He’s reviewing it now and is begging me to pre-order it!
Hi Carol, Great question! The Kindle Fire is very compelling, especially at the price of $199. Stay tuned tomorrow for my full review here at The Wonder of Tech!