Skip to main content

Reading At Home


    It’s pretty easy to slack off on independent reading, especially now when a library isn’t as accessible as it used to be. However, there are other ways to read a wide variety of books.


    One easy way to read at home is to use a Kindle. The Kindle Paperwhite is a tablet like device that is used for reading books. It can carry multiple books at once and you can connect it to wifi to buy books directly on it from Amazon. There are also a couple free books you can buy and you can download free books from the internet. I don’t know how my mom downloaded the whole Harry Potter Series but she did. Is it legal? I don’t know, and I don’t need to know. 


    But you may think, I don’t want to spend so much money just to buy books for my Kindle and to be honest, the free books are quite mediocre. I’d much rather go to a local library with free loans for a wide selection of books. That’s what I thought too until the pandemic hit. Now, I don’t go to the library at all. However, I found a great website over the summer that is free, not illegal, and has a wide selection of books. It’s called the Digital Library of Illinois. If you have a library card from a participating library (Urbana Champaign both work) you can log in and start checking out books! There are ebooks and audiobooks so if you like listening there’s an option for that too. The website is easy to navigate and they even have a designated teen section and sort books by genre to make it easier to find a book you want to read. You can put unavailable books on hold and check out 10 items at a time.



    The process for checking out a book and getting it on your Kindle is easy. Simply click borrow and click “Read now with Kindle.” This will take you to Amazon and have you log in with the Amazon account you used for your kindle. Click “get library book” and “deliver to your kindle” and that’s it. 


    Now the Kindle is cheaper than a phone per say but it is still a little pricey at $129.99 on Amazon. But even if you don’t have a Kindle, there are other options for reading books on the Digital Library of Illinois such as downloading the EPUB Ebook or simply reading it on a web browser. So overall, it’s a good and FREE resource you can use.


Library - 

https://dlil.overdrive.com/

Kindle Paperwhite -

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CXG6C9W?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=453973924249&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17907480031443223813&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9022198&hvtargid=kwd-294877325406&ref=pd_sl_4jkedu9ldu_e





By Maggie



Comments

  1. Awesome post! I go to the library once every two or three months and check out a load a books, but it's really easy to forget to read some of them. This post is really helpful, and I like how you gave your honest opinion about different sources. I'll definetely be trying out the digital library website.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Last year, I did not read much in or out of school. I only read books that were assigned by teachers for in-class discussions. Now with the pandemic and online school stuff going on, reading has been harder than ever. I've been slacking off because sometimes it's boring. However, I'll definitely give the website a try. Nice review

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love the post!! I've been rereading all of my books, and desperately need something new to read. I have a kindle already, so I might try checking a book out onto my kindle. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love this post; it's really unique and helpful!! I haven't been able to go to the library in so long because of the pandemic, and I didn't know about the Digital Library of Illinois. I will definitely check this out because I'm running out of books to read. Thanks!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nice post! I've been thinking about reading a book but it's not available online as a pdf and I'm too lazy to go to the library. Great timing and I'm checking it out right now :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sequels vs. Series Ft. Parasite Pig

            Sequels especially movie sequels often get a bad rep for being boring money makers and they never seem to live up to the original content. Some examples of these sequels are the ones that Disney makes for many of their franchises. But there are also sequels that aren't so bad, such as a book I recently read, Parasite Pig. So I wondered, what makes a sequel good, and what makes them bad?     I think first we need to take into consideration the difference between sequels and series. Sequels usually come after a story that was already wrapped up. The main plot was resolved and usually, nothing needs to be added. In the original content, there's not just story telling, but world building and character development. These things are usually lost in sequels because they are simply not needed, but without them, the story turns out to be rather lackluster. Also, in most cases, sequels just do not need to exist. The original story is f...

Interstellar Pig

Interstellar Pig is a sci-fi book written by William Sleator. A teenager named Barney is on vacation on a beach with his parents and 3 peculiar neighbors moved into the cottage next to their rented house. The neighbors are oddly obsessed with a board game called interstellar pig and the history of Barney’s rented house. Barney was intrigued by the neighbors and the board game, but his curiosity caused him to be dragged into a complicated mess holding multiple alien species at large risk. I’d say it’s an average read, not spectacular, but not terrible. You can read it pretty fast and it’s not hard at all. It’s like one of those books that you forget about after reading them and there isn’t much that sticks with you after you finish. There is just a mystery, a climax, and a resolution.  Despite its slight blandness, the premise of the story is pretty interesting and there is a lot of foreshadowing and clues written into the story in a way readers can pick up on them and think about w...

Damsel by Elana K. Book Review (trigger warning)

By: Grace I started reading this book without knowing what it was about; the book cover was really cool, with flowers and vines and a nice orange glow to the title. I assumed it was going to be another cool fantasy novel. However, I was very very wrong. As a warning, the book includes / mentions sexually explicit scenes, rape, self-harm, mental and physical abuse, suicide, and animal harm. Despite the triggers, I think the book was really captivating and well written, and sends a clear point throughout the book.  The novel starts out in Prince Emory's point of view, where he is going to rescue the "damsel" in order to wed her and become the king. The rest of the novel is in Ama, the damsel's, point of view, who wakes up and doesn't remember anything about herself. She knows nothing except for the things Emory tells her; he gives her a name and tells her she will be his future bride. As the novel progresses, Emory, who seems to be represented as the hero who saved ...