Online Libraries

Think it’s impossible to find free books online? Think again. There are tons of online libraries that provide fiction, nonfiction and reference books at no charge. Here is a list of the best 25 places to read free books online.

Posted by Chris

The Library Café

The Library Café is a weekly program of table talk with scholars, artists, publishers and librarians about books, ideas, and the formation and circulation of knowledge. It is hosted by Thomas Hill, and can be heard on WVKR FM 91.3 Tuesday afternoons between 12:00 Noon and 1:00 p.m. ET (16.00-17.00 GMT) during the academic year.

Posted by Chris

Library Thing

I recently learned about this neat website called Library Thing that enables readers to catalog their own books in a social catalog. Users of the site can tag books, write reviews, and create/join different groups (e.g. Atwoodians). Like Amazon, Library Thing also lets you see recommendations from readers with similar tastes.

Film archivist and all-around media wunderkind Rick Prelinger just posted on his blog, blackoystercatcher,  that Google has launched its own social catalog, My Library, which according to Prelinger, “looks a lot like a skeletal version of LibraryThing plus an anonymous corporate skin and minus community spirit.”

Bummer.

Posted by: Ian M.

UBUWEB

UbuWeb is a sprawling website devoted to experimental poetry, art, music, and any other creative genre you can think of. Thousands of works, interviews, etc. are inlcuded, from the seminal to the obscure. Hear interviews with Marcel Duchamp and John Cage, watch digitized films by Jonas Mekas, Joseph Beuys, and Maya Deren, and watch videos of Samuel Beckett plays.

From the UbuWeb faq page:

“When did UbuWeb Start?
UbuWeb was founded in November of 1996, initially as a repository for visual, concrete and, later, sound poetry. Over the years, UbuWeb has embraced all forms of the avant-garde and beyond. Its parameters continue to expand in all directions.” and

“Can I use something posted on UbuWeb on my site, in a paper, in a project, etc.?
Sure. We post many things without permission; we also post many with things with permission. We therefore give you permission to take what you like even though in many cases, we have no received permission to post it. We went ahead and did it anyway. You should too.”

They also have a manifesto.

Posted by: Ian M.