How can I find and read non-copyrighted (freely available) books?
Did you know that Bookshare includes nearly 10,000 books that are not copyrighted and available to anyone, even non-members of Bookshare?
For example, here are three lists containing hundreds of freely available titles that anyone can access:
- Free Books for All - 208 fiction and non-fiction titles of varying grade levels
- Free Children's Books for All - 43 books for second graders and younger
- Free Upskilling Books for All - 147 how-to books for those who wish to learn a new skill, prepare to go back to school, or switch careers
To search the full collection of freely available titles:
- Go to the Advanced Search page in Bookshare (you'll find the Advanced Search link under the standard search box in the Bookshare header)
- Choose "Freely Available Books" from the list of which "Books to Search"
- You may want to further limit your search, selecting categories or books with images, etc.
- Select the "Advanced Search" button
Bookshare will display the list of freely-available books in the search results screen.
You can further refine your search using these filters and drop-down options in the left-hand menu:
- Sort the list by Copyright Date so that the most recent books appear first
- Select specific language(s) or authors from the drop-down lists
- Identify the category or categories of books you would like to include
Once you find a book or books that meet your criteria, you can read them or share them with others:
- Select "Read Now" (if available) to open the book in Bookshare Web Reader, a basic browser-based tool for quick and easy reading
- Download the book in your preferred format, depending on the reading tool you will use
- If you are a Bookshare member, you can add any of these books to a Reading List
- If you are a Sponsor on an organization account, you can assign the book to a member listed on your account
What are freely-available books? They are books that are no longer under copyright, were never copyrighted, or perhaps were created as an "Open Educational Resource" or Creative Commons work.