E-Books that Don't Need Readers

There's lots in the news about e-book readers these days -- Barnes & Noble is having trouble delivering their Nook on time, Amazon has had some problems with Kindle content, and so on. But if you're caught today without a stocking stuffer for someone, how about some e-books that don't need readers? Several e-book suppliers offer PDF formatted e-books, which can be read on any computer with the free Acrobat reader -- which means they can be read on almost any computer. Here are two sources for e-books that you can load onto a flash drive for one last stocking stuffers:

• Fictionwise has a handy advanced search screen that lets you limit by format, including PDF. Plus you can use the pull-down menus to limit by genre/category and publisher, and you can even fill in a price range. There are even issues of fiction magazines such as Asimov's, Analog, and Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Prices vary, but many are cheaper than buying a paperback.
  
  
• I've mentioned Girlebooks once before -- this is a wonderful website that both sells e-books, and offers many for free, including lots of classics by women writers (think Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott, and so on). And it's a little thing, but I love that they give each e-book it's own unique "cover". I have gotten tons of free e-books from this site and I've even bought one or two. They're available in many format, including PDF.

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas!



What: E-Books that Don't Need Readers
Where: various websites
How much (as of today's post): some free, other prices vary