A Million or so Kindle books available now: where to get them and how

Some have expressed a lack of content for the Kindle, here is what I have tried, and works (make sure you check the footnotes at the bottom):

www.amazon.com 95,000 or so titles, instant download, easy.

www.gutenberg.org 20,000 or so titles - mostly classics or things that no longer have copywrite. Multiple languages. Three are links to other sites that boast a total of 100k titles. ***, ****

www.freekindlebooks.org This is a site that has mostly gutenberg books in a kindle ready format.

www.worldlibrary.net 400,000 titles - classics, modern, government, multiple languages, all the ones I tried were free. Requires $8.95 yearly subscription fee, consider it the cost of a library card.*, ***, ****

www.fictionwise.com offers both unencrypted and encrypted .mobi files. Full range of reading and many free books as well. *, **, ****

www.mobipocket.com lots of titles, most you can find on amazon.com in the Kindle section for less.

www.webscriptions.net This is Baen books and mostly SiFi. None are encrypted, many are free, and can be transferred directly to your Kindle. Choose Kindle compatible for the download. ****

www.wowio.com uses .pdf format. **, You will need to register and can download up to three books a day, free. Only available to people in the US, due to copyright and licensing restrictions.

www.fictionpress.com 900,000 Mostly original works, as in unknown, normally unpublished authors. Some good, some not, take your chances, you may discover the next JK Rowling. Displays in text. Cut, paste and email to yourself, or save in .txt file and upload.

www.manybooks.net 20,000 titles or so. Has a Kindle format. ***, ****

www.mnybks.net - an extension of Manybooks above, but if you access it through the basic WebBrowser in Kindle, you can download directly to your Kindle, the way you would an Amazon book. Choose the Mobipocket format.

www.feedbooks.com Share books, self published books and a make it yourself newspaper. With a little manipulation of the tools below, you can get your own newspaper, you could probably even directly email it to your Kindle in the morning if you allow that site to send you stuff. You will need to register, but there is no cost. There is now a "Kindle Download Guide" from www.feedbooks.com includes links to many classics, including many in foreign languages.

www.ccel.org Christian centered works. Available in pdf, word, and text, all readily transferable to your Kindle.

http://www.munseys.com about 25,000 books, classic and contemporary. Download in a variety of formats.

* They save as .pdf files that you can email to your Kindle. It sees the .pdf as a file of words, not pictures of words, so it can be resized and adjusted just as any other ebook. Download the book to your PC, and email that file to your Kendle, or username@free.kendle.com and load through the USB cable if you want to save the 10 cent conversion charge. (but they have not started charging yet anyway)

** For the encrypted ones in .mobi, a tool can be used to allow the kindle to see it. This tool does not make a copy of the book, merely adds a flag so that the Kendle can display it (it would be hard to call this a violation of copywrite or use conditions since both formats are amazon's). The tool and directions on how to use it are at: http://igorsk.blogspot.com/2007/12/mobipocket-books-on-kindle.html

*** Site runs on donations

**** Can be downloaded directly to your Kindle when it is plugged in as an external storeage device, simply specify the Kindle folder when selecting where to put your book.

Thanks for the great post. I've read so many negative reviews from people who mistakenly think that because of Kindle's connectivity to Amazon, Kindle is purely a tool for Amazon sales. This should enlighten some people. I am excited about Kindle. It's the next generation of e-reader.

Thanks for the direction. I hve my Kindle fo one day now and love it - of the 30 books downloaded, less than half are from Amazon. Most are from Gutenberg (and for a fifteen minute investment, they can be nicely formatted) and also as an author, I have finished and works in progress to read as prt of the writing process. Of course, I have my own Kindle edition novel to show off to friends and colleagues.

Edward C. Patterson

Thanks for a GREAT post. I have saved this page for future reference. I am in line waiting for my kindle, but have already started downloading books from various sites. The kindle WILL open up a world to me due to two things - the convince, and the cost. Free ebook Web sites like ccel.org or guttenberg.org provide me a library that I could never afford on my own.

You are very welcome, glad I can help! Making a reply to this post will keep it in the front screen for others to see. If you find it useful, and think others would as well, feel free to reply.

Quick tip: Manybooks.net has a mobile address which makes it very Kindle-friendly to search and download straight to the Kindle....

http://mnybks.net

I've used it with much success.

Can you give more information on this? I'd like to include it in the original post.....

Is there something to install? Does that install on the Kindle or your pc? How do you access that option on the page, I could only get it to download onto a computer. Can you go through the steps to do this?

1. Open up the BasicWeb browser.
2. Enter the url http://mnybks.net
3. At this point you can search, browser, or enter a Book ID. Find a book you want.
4. KEY STEP: Click on the Mobipocket version of the book for download. ONLY THE MOBIPOCKET VERSION WILL WORK.
5. A pop-up screen will open on your Kindle. You supply the confirmation for the book to be downloaded, and in a few seconds it should appear in your home screen.

That's it. Post if you run into trouble.

Ahhhh, let's add step 0.5, Plug Kindle into computer.

This makes more sense now.

I've never plugged my Kindle into the computer to download books. The steps I outlined should work using the BasicWeb browser in the Experimental section of the Kindle via Whispernet connection.

Got it.....your going to mnybks via the Kindle......that makes sense. Thanks, I'll add it to the main post.

Thanks for this post. It has helped me to make a decision I have really been struggling with: whether to get a Kindle or the Sony book reader & book availability & selection are priorities for me. This post has pretty much sold me on the Kindle. Thanks for the help!

Very Nice......another 2k Kindles sold.....

Thanks for the info!

Thanks so much for the info! I'm bookmarking for future reference.

If you find other sites, post the information, I can update this page.

Thanks. Great info. If you download books from gutenberg.org there will be hard returns which will make for odd line breaks on the Kindle. You can remove these by hand--which is easy enough on a short book but can take a long time on large ones. There are lots of cheap or even free programs that will strip out hard returns using your computer, however. I use WordWrapper on my Mac to do this and in just a few seconds you have a text file minus the hard returns which looks great on the Kindle.

Your post tipped the scale for me - I ordered one today. Thanks for sharing!!!

This is really great! However, the link for Project Gutenburg is not right. Although the current link does take you to a site that has audio as well as text books this is not the one. The correct address is www.gutenberg.org

Thank you so much T Beck!

Really do appreciate your taking the time to make this extensive list! Still waiting for mine, but will refer back often once I get it.

THANKS AGAIN

Russell - Thanks! ---- Fixed!

From the Reverse Everything blog, the most important shortcut is how to change from the NY Daily News school of Full justification, i.e., horribly large spaces between words, to left justification: While reading something, press the text size button and then press J (just the button for the letter). This displays two new menu items: Full Justification and Left Justification. These options stay displayed until J is pressed again. The justification applies to all books. I find it much better for reading.

Nice tip, G.J. Just tried it, and wow, that is SO much better.

Thanks for all of those tips. Could someone please tell me exactly how to get the books from Gutenberg onto my Kindle?
Thank You!