# E-books for free download **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 2, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416 "2010-01-02T17:54:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bucketybuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@bucketybuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bucketybuck)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/1 "2010-01-02T17:54:10Z")
I was just given a Sony e-book reader for a christmas present, a much appreciated present. For the time being though, I already have in paper form all of the particular books I want to read through. When I have finished them, I might decide to switch to this new form of reading, maybe. But a friend just suggested that many older books might be available for download free of charge, due to expired copyright or something similar. Has anybody any suggestions about this, or even better, suggestions for good, free, GOOD books available for download? ---
**Author:** ![Improvisor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/50afbb/32.png) [@Improvisor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improvisor)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/2 "2010-01-02T18:10:32Z")
Project Gutenburg has alot of old stuff in standard HTML or plain text. Not sure if you’d be able to sync that onto your eBook. [http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main\_Page](http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page) ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/3 "2010-01-02T18:14:13Z")
Baen Books makes a lot of their library (mostly science fiction) available for free: [http://www.baen.com/library/](http://www.baen.com/library/) ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/4 "2010-01-02T18:17:35Z")
MobileRead has a nice collection of links in their Wiki - [here.](http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Free_eBooks) Be sure to check out the MobileRead Forums as well, starting with their [Newbie thread](http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43794) and moving on to the forum’s own collection of ebooks found [here.](http://www.mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=132) If you don’t have time to go through those, at least check out [feedbooks](http://www.feedbooks.com/) and [ManyBooks](http://manybooks.net//). Also, should you need to convert any ebooks to the correct format for your reader (and for doing lots of other things as well), install [Calibre.](http://calibre-ebook.com/) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/5 "2010-01-02T18:58:25Z")
[Ebooksread.com](http://www.ebooksread.com/) is another depository of free e-books. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/6 "2010-01-02T20:13:40Z")
[www.bookdepository.com](http://www.bookdepository.com) is offering free e-books at the moment. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2010, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/7 "2010-01-02T23:59:04Z")
Feedbooks. Manybooks. Munseys. Gutenberg. ---
**Author:** ![Surok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@Surok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surok)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2010, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/8 "2010-01-03T00:23:59Z")
> [@susan](#): > > [www.bookdepository.com](http://www.bookdepository.com) is offering free e-books at the moment. The ebooks they’re offering look like the e-version of reprints of out-of-copyright titles which they publish under the Dodo Press imprint. The two physical books which I’ve had from Dodo Press have been poorly laid out, and full of misprints. There may be the same problem with their ebooks. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-books-for-free-download/523416/9 "2010-01-03T01:20:15Z")
Yes, but I’ll bet one can still figure out the Scarecrow’s dialogue in the large number of Oz books they’re offering.