Blogoversary Giveaway Extravaganza: Prize Preview #3

And here we are at the final prize preview for the Blogoversary Giveaway Extravaganza.  Here I am presenting the final 10 prizes that will be given away starting October 5th.  More info can be found on the introduction page, and details will be coming soon.  Don't forget registration on October 2nd!

If you missed the previous prize previews, you don't know what kind of awesome prizes you're missing.  Check out the first and second posts to see what else you'll have to choose from. 


Lot #300: Graphic Novel Mystery Box
By now, you should recognize the wrapped ribbon boxes. It means it's another mystery box! After four years on the graphic novels nominations committee, I've had a lot of graphic novels come and go in my house. Plus, I've found plenty of graphic novels on my own too. So if you like graphic novels, or wanting to give them a try, this is the prize for you. I've got traditional comics, unique art styles, manga, color, black and white, and a mix of all genres/ages/bindings. The winner of this lot will get at least six books (probably more) many in new/like new condition.

Lot #301: Dark Divine Nail Polish
You may have recognized this prize from contests past. Well, in cleaning out my shelves the other day I found I still have a bit left. This lovely fuchsia purple/pink shade has been perfectly matched to the color of the The Dark Devine by Bree Despain. So now you can paint your nails just like the model on the cover! This lot includes two bottles, one for you and one for you to share (or keep for yourself, whatever you want :).

Lot #302: History Prize Pack
Now don't run anywhere when you hear the word history. This pack actually includes a couple good books. For those of you who do Twitter, what do you think history would look like in 140 characters or less? Well, you can find out in Historical Tweets by by Alan Beard and Alec McNayr. And then if you like to take a more *ahem* accurate version of history, this pack also includes Don't Know Much About History: Everything You Need to Know About American History but Never Learned by Kenneth C. Davis. So you should be pretty well covered in the history department.

Lot #303: Lady Grace Mysteries: Betrayal by Patricia Finney
Speaking of history, this prize combines some of my favorite things: historical fiction and diary books. Add in a little mystery and the fact that this series takes place in Queen Elizabeth I's court, and you have a win-win combination. If you haven't heard of these books yet, this is your chance to try them. This prize is a like new hardcover.

Lot #304: The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine
Speaking of favorite authors as I did in the last prize preview, I would be remiss if I didn't include Gail Carson Levine on my list. She does excellent fairy tale books, although this isn't one of them. It may contain princess, dragons, magic, and adventure, but this is a tale that's all her own. If you haven't tried this one yet, you really should pick it up. Pretty much all of Levine's books are wonderful.

Lot #305: Raiders' Ransom by Emily Diamand
Here's one for those of you who love dystopian fiction. Although in this future melting ice caps have flooded nearly all of England, and technology is feared above all else. Rarely do books surprise me anymore, but this one succeeded in doing that. I imagined I would mildly enjoy it (hence the reason I picked it up in the first place), but by the middle of the book I was so concerned about what would happen to the characters I had to finish it. Plus it has a kitty in it. Always a plus. :)

Lot #306: Real Princesses: An Inside Look at the Royal Life by Valerie Wilding
It looks like this list is the one for princesses. But this book is a little different for a couple reasons. One, it's actually non-fiction, and two, it's in picture book format. Still, I really enjoy this book. It talks about a lot of modern princesses I didn't know existed, and it has a special section about tiaras! Sorry, I just like sparkling things. Still, it was interesting to get a look inside a modern princess' life, as well as some historical facts about famous princesses too. Great for older and younger readers alike.

Lot #307: Pride and Prejudice Prize Pack
Wow, did that title have enough "P"s in it? I love everything Jane Austen themed. Her original novels, movie adaptations, sequels, retellings, books about her life. So yeah, just about everything. This prize pack is great for all you closet Janeites out there. The winner will receive three gently used paperback Austen themed books: Mr. Darcy's Dream and The True Darcy Spirit by Elizabeth Aston (both sequels to Pride and Prejudice) and a copy of Darcy's Story by Janet Aylmer (Pride and Prejudice from Mr. Darcy's point of view).

Lot #308: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Here's another book that if you haven't read it yet you really should. There's a movie version too, but I think the book is better. It's another one of those fairy tale books that really isn't based off a real fairy tale, but has that feel to it. Despereaux is so cute, you just have to love everything about him, including his big ears. This prize is a like new paperback.

Lot #309: ARC Prize Pack #2
Yes, it's another mystery box full of ARCs! This one was generously donated by one of the blogoversary guest posters, Kristen of The Book Monsters (Thank you Kristen!). And because it's the second box, and since this is the last prize to reveal, I'll give you a hint about some of the books that are in here. In addition to some mystery titles, this box will contain ARCs of Still Sucks to Be Me by Kimberly Pauley (signed), Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, Death Cloud by Andrew Lane and some others. So trust me, this is going to be a great prize!

So that concludes the prize preview. Don't forget to come back on October 2nd to register, so you can win some of these awesome prizes.

Blogoversary Giveaway Extravaganza: Prize Preview #2

If you missed it yesterday, don't forget to check out the first Prize Preview post.  There's some more details about how this contest will work so if you haven't seen it, make sure you don't miss it.  And here's another reminder that these open blogoversary challenges close soon, so this is your last chance to earn extra points to win the fantastic prizes below:

Lot #200: Mystery ARC box
In the same vein as yesterday, this is a mystery prize box. I've got a lot of ARCs laying around the house recently, and it's time to send them off to new homes where they are enjoyed. The winner of this lot will get at least 6 ARCs, some more recent, some older, and all genres/ages. Will you get more? What will be in the box? It's a mystery, you'll have to win it to find out.

Lot #201: Handmade Pumpkin Bookmark
I love bookmarks, and I love making them just a much. The winner of this lot will get this lovely pumpkin bookmark. Okay, so it looks a little different. The colors aren't variegated like this, but otherwise it is the same pattern (this is the only picture of this pattern I had). The bookmark is hand stitched by me, and it's perfect for those fall afternoons spent reading.

Lot #202: Tamora Pierce Prize Pack
A blogoversary celebration with my favorite things wouldn't be complete without Tamora Pierce books. The winner of this lot will win a box of assorted Tamora Pierce titles. They aren't in order, and there's some from several different series (although all of them are Tortall books). This would be a great prize if you're considering going for the Tamora Pierce Reading Challenge. These books are gently used paperbacks.

Lot #203: The Man You'll Marry by Debbie Macomber
Here's a prize for those of you who sometimes get sick of YA and want to venture into adult books. In addition to share some of my favorite books, my mom wanted to donate a book by one of her favorite authors to the prize pile. It's a cute short little chick-lit type romance. So if you don't like this kind of book, maybe you know someone who does. Christmas is coming up soon, you know. :) This prize is a like new paperback.

Lot #204: Letters from Rapunzel by Sara Lewis Holmes
You know how I am about fairy tale retellings. Here is one that's a little less well-known. It's the tale of Rapunzel (sort of) set in modern times. If you like fairy tales retold as much as I do, then this like new hardback would look perfect on your bookshelf.

Lot #205: Nicola and the Viscount by Meg Cabot
I love Meg Cabot's books. They're always full of lots of fun, cute romances, and some great humor. This gently used paperback is a recent reprint one of her earlier books (before the Princess Diaries struck it big). This is what I read on the plane home from Florida last summer, and it kept me nice and entertained during the 5 hour flight home. Plus, it's set in the Regency period, so that's always a bonus for me.

Lot #206: 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
I've never travelled the world. Well, I've done the World Showcase at Epcot, does that count? But I have to say that world travel is definitely on my "want for the future" list. Perhaps that's why the plot of this book appeals to me so much. A scavenger hunt across the world, how fun is that? This prize is a like new paperback.

Lot #207: Ghosts of Kerfol by Deborah Noyes
Here's another ghostly book to satisfy your appetite for a Halloween read. I actually had never heard of this one before until it was nominated for the Cybils awards in the year that I didn't do graphic novels (2007? I can't remember). Anyway, this is definitely an overlooked book. This collection of short stories is actually a bit of a retelling too, since they are all inspired by the same short story, "Kerfol" by Edith Wharton. This prize is a like new hardcover.

Lot #208: NERDS pack
Now before you say something, it's not what you think. NERDS actually stands for the National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society. And okay, they actually are nerds, but these nerds are spies! This is one of the funniest series I've read in a long time. Just about every page had a quote I wanted to save. This pack includes a gently used paperback copy of the first book, NERDS, and a like new paperback ARC of the second, M is for Mama's Boy, both by Michael Buckley. I promise you, you will never look at nerds the same way again.

Lot #209: Ingo by Helen Dunmore
One thing to say about this one: mermaids. They seem to be the new thing in YA lit. Personally I've loved mermaids since I grew up on Disney's version of The Little Mermaid, so I love this swing to all things with fins. Vampires are so passe you know. ;) This series is a little less well-known in the United States since it was original published in the UK. With this gently used paperback, you have a chance to read the first book in the trilogy and get caught up in a new mermaid series while you wait for all those new ones to be released.

And that concludes our second prize preview. Are you excited yet? Keep your eye out in the next day or two for the remaining prize preview which will include the final 10 prizes. Remember registration for the auctions opens in the early hours of October 2nd. Everyone who registers is guaranteed 10 points to "spend" on the auctions. But if you want to earn extra points, you can complete the blogoversary challenges (linked above), or complete something from the list below:

• Follow the blog (email, Google Friend Connect, RSS, etc.) +5 for old followers, +3 for new followers
• Comment on posts September 1-25 +1 per comment
• Grab the Blogoversary button +5 (in the right sidebar or bottom of this post)
• Link/Tweet/Post about the Blogoversary and/or just the contests +2 per link/tweet/etc.
• Contribute a guest post during the blogversary +7
• Judged for the 2011 YA Bloggers Book Battle +3

Blogoversary Giveaway Extravaganza: Prize Preview #1

I was thinking about the upcoming Giveaway Extravaganza that will wrap up the blogoversary activities, and I realized something.  Although I told you how the giveaway will work, I haven't given you any idea of the prizes!  So over the next three days, I will be posting "prize previews" so that you can see all 30 prizes (aka auction lots) for the giveaway.

If you're new to the blog or the blogoversary, you can read all about the Giveaway Extravaganza here.  Basically, it will proceed like a silent auction and you earn points to "bid" with by completing challenges/tasks.  The breakdown of how you can earn points is on the details post, and also check out this post for links to all the additional active challenges.

As a reminder, everyone will need to register for the giveaway to win these prizes.  Registration opens early on October 2nd morning and auctions will start October 5th.  But enough of details, you want to see the prizes, right?


Lot #100: YA Mystery Box
Everyone loves a good mystery right? Well, here's one for you... what's in this box? This box includes a mix of YA books of all bindings, genres, release dates (recent and not so recent) and conditions (new and old). How many books will you get? Well, at least six, but beyond that, it's a mystery!

Lot #101: Recycled Book Purse
Okay, so it's not this exact book purse (I got this picture from Google images), but you get the idea. I just learned how to make these cool little bags out of recycled hardcover books. Aren't they cute? The inside is lined with fabric and creates the perfect little tote that will get lots of envious looks and compliments. As soon as I finish the one I'm working on, it will be offered to the winner of this lot.

Lot #102: Paranormal/Fantasy pack
Kind of a weird combination, and yet somehow they work together. The winner of this lot will get two gently used paperback books: a copy of Dragon's Bait by Vivian Vande Velde and a copy of Sunshine by Robin McKinley. Both stories were groundbreaking in that they re-imagined the creatures they are about long before such stories became popular (ie pre-Twilight vampires).

Lot #103: Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
Patricia C. Wrede has to be one of my all-time favorite authors. I really enjoy this series of hers. It's a little more grown-up than her Enchanted Forest books and is set in an alternate history version of Regency England where magic is common. This is the first book in the series, so you can fall in love it and continue on from there. This prize is a like new paperback copy.

Lot #104: Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy by Ally Carter
Ally Carter is another one of my favorite authors. And although I enjoy Heist Society just a little bit more, I really do enjoy the Gallagher Girls series. Who wouldn't want to go to a private school for teenage girl spies? Sadly, this is the second book in the series, so you are responsible for getting your own hands on a copy of the first one. On the other hand, you'll be glad you have the next one right on hand after you finish it. This prize is a like new hardcover.

Lot #105: Goose Chase by Patrice Kindl
You know how I love retold fairy tales. This one, as you might have guessed from the title, is mostly a retelling of "The Goose Girl", but with a few other elements mixed in there and a lot of the author's own original stuff as well. This was one of my Young Adult Literature professor's favorite books, and it's a short and sweet read. This is a like new paperback copy.

Lot #106: Ghost set
This lot contains a set of two gently used paperback ghostly-themed books. This set includes The House Next Door by Richie Tankersley Cusick and Time Windows by Kathryn Reiss. If you've been wanting to stock on some books that are great reading for the upcoming Halloween holiday, these two will set the mood.

Lot #107: The Edge on the Sword by Rebecca Tingle
I really love historical fiction, and I think a lot of times it can be overlooked in YA lit. So I'm really exited to over this new paperback copy to you. This book goes wayyyy back in history, to the late 800s in Dark Ages England. Plus, it has a kick-but female heroine, which I always enjoy reading about, even if I have absolutely no idea how to pronounce her name (Æthelflæd).

Lot #108: Babymouse, Our Hero by Matt and Jennifer Holm
Can I say how much I love this graphic novel series? I was introduced to the Babymouse books after my first year serving on the graphic novel committee for the Cybils awards in 2006. Although written for tween readers, Babymouse's adventures are relate-able for all ages, and I love how she has frequent asides with the narrator. The later books also have lots of great pop culture references too, which makes them lots of fun to read. And did I mention they are completely printed in pink? Love it!

Lot #109: What the Dormouse Said: Lessons for Grown-ups from Children's Books by Amy Gash

I saw this little hardcover book at the store the other day, and I just had to pick it up. I love little quote books like this, and it was about kids books, so how could you lose? It's got lots of great quotes from the classics (Alice in Wonderland, Roald Dahl, etc.) and some from some more recent books too, like Harry Potter. It's the perfect little book for those who like to be reminded that sometimes kids books are good to read. :)



And that concludes the prize preview for today. Look for the other 20 prizes to be released in the coming days, and don't forget to complete those challenges! There's only a few days left to do so...

Book Trading: A Favorite Thing

A series of posts about my favorite book-related things would be incomplete without a mention of one of my favorite things to do with books online: trading. The idea is simple. You post books you are done with or no longer want online. Those books can be requested by other members of the site, and when you send books out you have the opportunity to request new books that you do want in return.

I’ve participated in many book trading websites over the past 5 years, and I have to say that when all is said and done, Paperbackswap.com is probably my favorite. There are pros and cons to just about every trading site out there, and Paperbackswap (PBS) is certainly not perfect, but I have to say I think it has the best combination of good and bad. So here is a list of my favorite things about this website.

Free credits – Every member who signs up and posts 10 books on their account gets 2 startup credits. So you can request 2 books right away without having to wait to send anything out. And, if you decide the site isn’t for you later on after sending a few books, you can always close your account and walk away.

Wish List – Out of all the wish list features on sites I’ve done, this one is probably the fairest. Everything is done First In, First Out. So the first person to put a book on their list is the first one given the opportunity to get that book when it’s posted. Granted, sometimes it’s hard to be patient, especially when it’s a book I’m excited about. But people can post books directly to a personal wish list too, so sometimes someone takes pity on me and offers a book on my list.

The Forums – Specifically the Wish List Multiples thread. All the forums are great, but this particular thread is awesome, both for book senders, and book wishers. If you have a lot of wish list books and want to save on postage by sending them all to one person, you can post them there and have people request multiple books from you. On the flip side, this is one of the ways you have get a book posted directly to your wish list, which is always a fun thing.

Credits – I’ve done trade sites that are based on points as well as direct trade systems. I like PBS’s system. 1 credit per book, 2 credits for audiobooks. Yeah, sometimes it sucks to pay the postage to send out a heavy hardcover book and spend that credit on a light paperback in return. But I figure I order plenty of hardbacks from other members too, so it all evens out in the end.

Swapping Criteria – PBS is one of the few sites I know of that has “swapping criteria”. This means that books must meet basic rules to be swapped there. Rather than mess with condition notes, it is expected for all books posted to swap will meet the criteria. So I can order books knowing that they shouldn’t have water damage, writing/highlighting, etc. and avoid the whole “buyer beware” problem.

Tour Guides – Maybe I’m a little biased with this feature, since I am a Tour Guide. But I think the Live Help feature is great. Emailing a site admin can sometimes take days for a response, and if it’s just a little question sometimes it isn’t worth the hassle. But you can use the Live Help feature to ask a Tour Guide, and oftentimes they can solve the problem/question for you within an hour. A Tour Guide is assigned to all new members, so if you have questions about how things work at the beginning they can help a lot with that. I had a great tour guide when I signed up, and it made me want to become one myself a few years later. And I love helping other members.

Okay, so this post has gotten long, so I’ll stop gushing and wrap up. Bottom line is, if you haven’t tried trading, give it a try. Whether it’s through a site like PBS, Goodreads bookswap, or just interacting with your online friends, or whatever, it’s lots of fun. Just be aware that your To Be Read pile will probably grow by leaps and bounds!

Also, FYI, for anyone who wants to join PBS, or is already a member, check out today’s Blogoversary challenge!

How To Get Free Books: Part 6 Delayed

Hey everyone,

I know today was supposed to be Part 6 of How to Get Free Books. Unfortunately I don't have time to put it up today. We've been slammed with a large case at work and I'm scrambling to get it down before the end of the month. So Part 6 has been delayed until next week.

In the meantime, I'm trying to clean out some stuff myself and am offering a lot of books for cheap right here. You can read all about it here.

See you next week!

How to Get Free Books: Part 5

Yes, I have yet another idea on how to get free books. :) This feature is dedicated to showing readers how to get free books (or at least cheaper books) to help supplement tight book buying budgets (without badgering publishers for copies).

Did you miss a post? You can catch up here, or scroll down to read the new stuff:
Inspiration
Part 1: Blogs
Part 2: Trading
Part 3: Libraries
Part 4: Project Gutenberg
--------------------------------------------

How to Get Free Books: Part 5, Reading Websites

There are a lot of websites out there dedicated to reading. But there are two specifically I want to focus on today: Goodreads and LibraryThing. Both of these are "social networking" type websites where readers can share what they are reading with thier friends, post reviews, catalog books, etc.

So where do the free books come in? Well, I'm glad you asked. Both websites host random drawings for books provided by publishers and authors. Some are ARCs, some of finished copies, and some are eBooks, but you'll find a little bit of everything in both places. You may have to wade through a lot of listings to find the books you might be interested in, and you may not always get picked, but I like to think of it as a bit of a treasure hunt.

The first section is Goodreads First Reads page. I can tell you right off the bat that Goodreads has a much larger selection of giveaways, although they have more members requesting them too, so it evens out. But overall their selection is much more kid/YA friendly. You have the option to sort by ending soon, most requested, popular authors, and recently listed. Although the books are given away with no expectations, winners are encouraged to post reviews on Goodreads since not posting a review will limit your chances for winning future giveaways. First Reads is only open to Goodreads members, but it is free to join.

In a similar vein, LibraryThing has what they call the Early Reviewers page. Each month a new batch of books is posted. Early Reviewers has a smaller selection of books than Goodreads, but you will find that there are many more chances to win a particular book. Where Goodreads usually has a copy or two (or usually less than 10 copies) entered into the drawing, LibraryThing usually has 30, 50, 100 or sometimes even more copies to give away. So if you see something you want, you have a much greater chance of getting it. As the name implies, LibraryThing strongly encourages members to post reviews of the books they've won as it will affect your chances at winning. Early Reviewers is open only to LibraryThing members, but it is free to join for a basic account.

So it's kind of a short one today, which will give you plenty of time to check out and explore both sites. So, head out there and happy winning!

How to Get Free Books: Part 4

Time for another edition of How to Get Free Books! This feature is dedicated to showing readers how to get free books (or at least cheaper books) to help supplement tight book buying budgets (without badgering publishers for copies).

Did you miss a post? You can catch up here, or scroll down to read the new stuff:
Inspiration
Part 1: Blogs
Part 2: Trading
Part 3: Libraries
--------------------------------------------

How to Get Free Books: Part 4, Project Gutenberg

Last week I talked about libraries. While that is a great source, I realize that some people don't have access to libraries. This applied to myself a few years ago. My first year of college I didn't have access to a library that had a good young adult section. Most of the books at my university library were school related, and let's face it, those don't make for good reading. So I was very excited when I discovered a site called Project Gutenberg.

Project Gutenberg is a site of free eBooks that you can read on your computer. Or, if you're lucky enough to have a smart phone, iPod Touch, Kindle, Nook, Sony Read, iPad, etc. you can read the titles available at Project Gutenberg that way. Right now they have over 30,000 titles available, all for completely 100% free.

How is that possible? Project Gutenberg offers titles the are in the public domain, meaning their copyrights have expired. Most of these titles are fairly old, the type of books that are usually called classics.

Before you roll your eyes and move on because you aren't interested in classics, I suggest you take a look at what's offered. Jane Austen? Check. Charles Dickens? Check. Charlotte Bronte? Covered. And there's even lots of reader-friendly classics as well. Ever wanted to read all 14 of the Oz books? How about Alice in Wonderland, A Little Princess, Little Women, Grimm's Fairy Tales, The Wind in the Willows, The Jungle Book, or The Legend of Sleepy Hollow? All here and completely 100% free.

And, if you like audiobooks, you can find audio versions of a lot of these titles here too. I love listing to audiobooks while I'm cooking or doing chores (like washing the dishes) and so this is a great resource for free audiobooks.

So if you're interested in having thousands of free books instantly available to you, definitely check out Project Gutenberg. You may be surprised what you find.

How to Get Free Books: Part 3

I've been a bad blogger, and I missed my Free Books post last Thursday. But, I'm back today, so we're going to jump right in. I know I've been scarce lately, but I've had some things going on at home and I have all sorts of great posts planned as soon as life settles down a bit.

Anyway, moving on....

This feature is dedicated to showing readers how to get free books (or at least cheaper books) to help supplement tight book buying budgets (without badgering publishers for copies).

Here's links to catch up if you missed anything. Otherwise, the new stuff's below!
Inspiration
Part 1: Blogs
Part 2: Trading
--------------------------------------------

How to Get Free Books: Part 3, Libraries

Yeah, I know this one sounds a little obvious. But stick with me on this one. Libraries are an excellent source for free books. Although if, like me, you have problems with turning the books in on time, overdue fees make them not so free sometimes (haha).

Libraries a great thing. With thousands of free books on the shelves, and all you need is a library card to be able to take them home for your very own for a few weeks. Libraries are a great option if your book buying budget is small. And not just because you can read books for free.

How many times have you spent hard earned money on a book and then got partway into it and realized you hated/disliked it? This has happened to me a few times and it's very disappointing. So now if there's a book/movie/cd/whatever that I'm not sure if I'm going to like, I get it from the library first. I give it a "trial run" with the library copy, and if it seems like something I'd like to own, I'll go buy a copy at that point.

Now of course this only works if your library is fairly well stocked. But a lot of libraries aren't. I know both the college campus library and the local library where I went to college in Idaho were both fairly lacking in anything published less than 2 years ago. If you have a similar situation, I'd highly recommend talking to your librarian(s) whether they have an inter-library loan program. Here in Northern California we use one called LINK+ where we can also check out materials that belong to colleges and libraries throughout the state of California. My university library had one as well, and I was able to get a lot of books for my young adult class from that one.

And here's one last reason libraries are great, other than just getting free books. The answer is library book sales. And while the books aren't necessarily free, they're usually fairly cheap. Plus anything you buy usually goes to help the library pay for more new books, so everyone wins, right?

Our library has sales twice a year, and it's something I look forward to. You can pick up hardcovers for $1.00, paperbacks for $.50 and children's books for $.10. Sometimes you have to wade through a lot of junk to find treasures, but I've found some great stuff at library sales.

So that concludes today's How to Get Free Books post. I promise I'll remember to post next week so I don't leave you hanging again. :) As always, if you have tips of your own to suggest, feel free to leave me a comment or send me an email. I'd love to hear from you!

How To Get Free Books: Part 2

Today is the second part of my new mini-feature How To Get Free Books. This feature is dedicated to showing readers how to get free and cheap books to help supplement tight book buying budgets (without badgering publishers for copies).

Here's links to catch up if you missed anything. Otherwise, the new stuff's below!
Inspiration
Part 1: Blogs
--------------------------------------------

How to Get Free Books: Part 2, Trading

I know I mentioned trading with other bloggers briefly in my post last week. So today we're going to discuss that on a wider scale. Which means today's post is all about trading websites.

Trading is easily the way that I get most of my books. If I can blame anything on the hundreds of books that have come my way in the past 4 years, it would be trading. Is it completely free? Well, no, this is one of those ways that you get nearly free books. But as long as you're smart about your methods, you can get some truly excellent deals. Becoming smart takes a lot of trial and error and a lot of experience. So that's where I come in. I've been doing this for 4 years now, so I've learned some tips and tricks to get you off to a great start.

First of all, for those of you who've never heard of trading websites, this is the general idea. You go through your bookshelves and pull out all those old books that you have outgrown, won't read a second time, didn't want in the first place, etc. Then choosing a trading website, you list those books on the website for other people to request. So you mail the book to the other member. Other people can request your books and then you can turn around and request books from other members, who mail the book you requested to your house. The method in which this happens depends a little on the site you're using, but the idea is the same.

Before we get into specifics, there's something I want to emphasize. Although trading the books themselves is free, you do have to pay for postage for your book to get to the other member. And postage adds up fast. So the key here is MEDIA MAIL. This is a special discounted rate the Post Office has specifically for mailing media (books, CDs, and DVDs). It's going to save you a ton of money over parcel post and first class (or even priority) mail. Books are usually 1 pound or under (except for some hardcovers), which will cost you $2.38. If you mail a hardcover book (usually under 2 pounds) it will cost you $2.77. Anyone who's interested can find the rate chart here, but as you can see it's much cheaper.

So you can get a new-to-you book for just the price of postage when you trade. I'm going to cover my top three favorite trading sites and a few tips for each one. There are many out there, but these three are the ones I use the most.

Bookmooch.com

• Cost to join: Free
• Method of trading: Every book you post gets you .1 point. Every book you send earns you 1 point. Marking books received also gains you .1 point. Requesting books will cost you 1 point for domestic and 2 points for international.
• Wish List: One member on the wish list is randomly selected to get an hour head start. After an hour it's first come, first served.
• Requesting method: Requestors can pick which person they order from based on their feedback, the book's condition, location, etc.
• This is the only site I know of that's open to international members.
• My profile can be found here for anyone who's interested in joining.

Paperbackswap.com

• Cost to join: Free
• Method of trading: +1 credit for every book you send, +2 credits for every audiobook. Requesting books will cost the same (1 credit for books, 2 for audiobooks).
• Posting your first 10 books to trade will earn you 2 initial start up credits to use right away. Otherwise you get your credit when a book is marked received.
• This site is based on the a system called First In, First Out. The first book posted will be the first requested. The other books are then placed in "line" behind it to wait their turn for requesting. The wish list works the same way.
• Contrary to the name, you can trade both hardbacks and paperbacks as well as audiobooks and textbooks.
• If you run out of credits to request books with you can purchase them for $3.45 a credit from the site.
• This site has a very active forum, so often you can find deals and wish list books there
• If you'd like to put me as a referring member, my username is Greycat133

Swap.com (recently changed the name from Swaptree.com)

• Cost to join: Free, although you have to put a credit card on file. This is to pay for postage printed through their site, although you don't have to use it after giving them your credit card number (I don't).
• EDITED TO ADD - Swap.com announced this week that trading will no longer be free at their site. It will now cost $.50 to $1.00 for each trade, and delievery confirmation (an additional postage charge) is required on all packages. Changes go into effect October 1st.
• Method of trading: Swapping directly. You send a member a book they want, and they send you one you want. No credit/point system.
• You can also trade your books for DVDs, CDs, or video games and vice versa (those items for new books)
• As a tip, only put books you are willing to send out for any book on your "Have List". Cancelling orders can limit your account otherwise.
• This site does allow you to swap ARCs, although you must state it is an ARC in your condition notes, and you cannot post anything before it's release date.
• This site can be one of the most frustrating because their database is a little weird, but it also can be the most rewarding. I've gotten two very hard to find books from trades I did here, both traded for books I had that I no longer wanted.
• Once again, my username is Greycat133 if you'd like to find me here. (ETA: I will be closing my account October 1st when the above metioned changes go into effect.)

I could easily make a regular feature out of tips for these three websites, but this post is already getting kind of long. So if I get a lot of interest in a trading sites tip feature, then I'll pursue it. Otherwise, I'm sure you're getting sick of scrolling down. :)

So with that I'll end this week's post. As always, I'm open to your own tips and suggestions, which may find their way into a future post.

Until then, happy reading!

How To Get Free Books: Part 1

As promised, today is the first part of my new mini-feature How To Get Free Books. This feature is dedicated to showing readers how to get free (or very cheap) books to help supplement tight book buying budgets. Make sure you check out the post that inspired this feature.
--------------------------------------------

Well, since this whole idea started out with some thoughts on blogging, I thought that'd be a good place to start.

How to Get Free Books: Part 1, Blogs
Before I go any further, I should mention that the tips in this post aren't just for bloggers. Whether you have a blog, website, or not you can follow the ideas I have here. Why? Because it's not about getting free books because you have a blog/website/etc. Having a book-related blog can lead to requests from publishers/authors/publicists for you to review a book. But this takes lots of months (even years) of hard work and practice before you reach that point. In my humble opinion, no one should start a book blog in the hopes of getting free books. Start a blog to talk about books. And then see where it goes from there.

But I digress. Back to the subject. Blogs are a great resource to find free and cheap books. The number one way? Contests. Find a blog you like and follow them. Chances are they'll direct you to a contest or host one themselves eventually. And although I usually have the worst luck in the world, I have won a couple contests myself. So it is possible to win, you just have to enter like crazy to bring your chances up. LOL.

Here at the Shady Glade, I'm currently hosting my own contest for my 4th blogversary. So if you haven't already, check that out. It's also my goal now that I'm home to start up my Monday Contest Roundup posts. I don't know how often I'll do them, but keep an eye out for that right now.

Here's one of my other favorite places to get cheap books from blogs: trading with other bloggers. Many bloggers will either post every once and a while about a trading list, or they may even have a static page or sidebar with that information. For the cost of postage you can send out a book you're done with/not interested in for one that you want. Some bloggers will also giveaway books for simply the cost of mailing them to you. You just need to keep an eye on your favorite blogs, or even email them and ask if they'd be willing to trade with you. In fact, trading is one of my favorite tips of all time for cheap books, so you'll see that come up a few more times in this series.

And here's another way I use blogs for free books: news. Yeah, that sounds kind of weird, so let me explain. Many publishers will occasionally allow readers to read their books online for free for limited periods of time. And many of those publishers rely on bloggers to get the news out for them. Keeping an eye on your favorite book blogs can let you know about when these types of promotions occur. The first book in the Pretty Little Liars series comes to mind off the top of my head, but I know there's been several of these recently.

If you'd like to help me compile a list of free ebooks and/or books available to read for free online, please leave me a comment or send me an email at shadyglade(AT)mail(DOT)com. If I'm able to get enough examples I'll post them in the sidebar or something.

So the bottom line is, blogs are a great resource for free books, but they don't always have to be from publishers. It's more about participating in the blogging community then anything else. And really? Participating is more fun anyway. ;)

So that's it for this week. Check back next Thursday for more ideas on how to get free (and almost free) books. And if you'd like to contribute your own ideas send me an email and let me know.

In the meantime, happy reading!