Although I wanted the Nook as a toy, I didn't think it would massively change my reading life. I estimated I'd read about 30-40% on it and the rest in print, as always. Instead, I'm a little bit infatuated with it; I'd rather read a so-so downloaded book than a print version of a title I was more excited about. Every time I see a title I might be interested in, I immediately check for downloadables. I'm sure I'll get over it by the end of the next couple of weeks.
A Knight to Remember, by Karin Tabke. Downloaded this for free from Simon & Schuster. It's more of a short(ish) story; I haven't gotten the hang of the page number thing, so I'm not totally sure, but it's not more than 120 regular pages I'm sure, and probably less.
Even for a romance, this was pretty bad; anyone who can string two thoughts together is going to know the big surprise ending about 10 pages in. I hope they don't actually publish this: it would be a waste of paper.
Cherub: Disconnected and The Switch, by Robert Muchamore. These are some short stories I downloaded from the author's site. They were pretty short; The Switch was pretty good, action-y, and felt like part of the series. Because Disconnected was so short *and* introduced new characters, it didn't add much to the ongoing story line. A rather longer story would have been interesting; this was mostly dialogue used as a tool to relate history.
Desperate Duchess, by Eloisa James. Overdrive download. I tend to like this author, but this felt like very early work (although the pub date says 2007). There were really two female leads and the character I thought had more opportunity for growth was largely passed over. We got a few glimpses of a troubled past, the origins of her relationship problem, but her happiness was trumped by the easy story of quick "love."
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating, by Elisabeth Tova Bailey. In your face, nonfiction! (594.3) This book got such great reviews, and for once it was totally warranted. This is the most restful book I've ever read. There is no other way to describe it.
also Overdrive.
The Naked Lady Who Stood on Her Head: A Psychiatrist's Stories of His Most Bizarre Cases, by Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan. (616.89) Although this had alot of dialogue, it really worked and seemed natural. First, I really appreciated that, in the beginning of the book, the author totally acknowledged that he wouldn't be quoting word for word and that some of the speech was fictionalized. Secondly, this has the most natural-sounding dialogue of any nonfiction I've read in a long time.
The cases were all extremely interesting but overall, the book had a kind of "look at me, I'm the Dr. House of brains!" self-promotion sort of vibe.
more Overdrive.
I've downloaded several other books from Overdrive, other publishers, GoogleBooks, and more. The only place I can't download from is BN. That seems wrong to me.
4 comments:
Since you review books, check out Net Galley. Also, does your public library check out eBooks? Mine does, and when I'm desperate for something, I will download things. I still prefer print. I find that if I have a stack of books and a list on the Nook, the stack always gets read first, but I'm glad you are putting yours to good use!
i am all signed up for netgalley-- a coworker tipped me off-- and i've downloaded a few things (one of which i'm reading now). and our library has a subscription to Overdrive, which is where i got most of the books listed in this post. it has been a great resource.
i'm sure i'll go back to predominately print once the newness wears off of the nook, but for now, it is my preferred reading. it is nice, since i can prop it up or lay it down and the pages won't close, and i can easily hold it open with one hand.
Tech gadgets can be fun. Glad you are enjoying your Nook. The Naked Lady looks interesting. I might have to add it to my book list but I am falling behind and I have several ahead of it. Maybe by the end of the year.
I tried out LibraryThing for a class just recently. I managed to get an early copy of a book from the giveaway/review section (not the catalog-the-books-you've-personally-read section), and I suppose with a bit more determination, I could probably come up with many more free & nearly-so books to read from that. I typically check out Pixel of Ink though. They often have links to lists of free & cheap ebooks. I haven't tried the library's ebook check out just yet. I do love print - for a variety of reasons. But when I'm traveling light, having ebooks on my iTouch is super handy.
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