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For Kindle Owners, Free Classics Can Sometimes Mean the Best of Times

DON’T MISS:

By Steve Windwalker

Have you heard that most books in the Kindle Store are priced at $9.99?
If so, it might seem like a lot to pay for a digital book, when neither the publisher nor the author incur any expense for printing, paper, shipping, or warehousing. Ebooks at $10 a pop can add plenty to your monthly credit card bill in a hurry.
Well, here’s some good news.
Over 39% of the books in the Kindle Store are priced at $4.99 or less, and among those there are — as of December 2010 — over 16,700 free books.
Another 46% are priced between $5 and $10, and of those that are priced above $10, the vast majority are technical books whose paper editions are far more expensive. That’s right: 85% of the books in the Kindle Store are under 10 bucks.
Each morning at Kindle Nation we publish a Free Book Alert focusing on the latest contemporary or promotional titles to be added to our Free Book listings, and currently that list has grown to over 185 titles. It’s one of the most popular things we do on the Kindle Nation blog, and it’s a good feeling to know that we are helping to keep all of our Kindles, including our own, filled to the gills with good reading. (Watch for a future post that will help you locate your Kindle’s gills). 
But the other 16,500 free Kindle books are nothing to sneeze at either. While it is true that they are public domain titles, many of these are classics that make great leisure or enrichment reading. And if you happen to be an English, philosophy, or humanities major or graduate student, those classics could save you a bundle when it’s time to buy textbooks. Not to put too fine a point on this, but these are not junk titles — just type the name of one of your favorite classic authors into your search and you will likely be pleased with the return, especially when see the prices.
Would you like an example? 
Well, here’s a pretty good one, as of the first week of December. 
Yesterday over 10 million America’s watched Oprah Winfrey hold up a copy of her latest Oprah’s Book Club pick, a two-novel volume containing Charles Dickens’ classics Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities. It was a bit of an interesting pick, since Oprah admitted on the air that she had never read anything by Dickens. But she held up a nice thick paperback that she said Penguin had published for her in just a week, with a suggested retail price of $20, discounted to $11 by Amazon. (Yes, she also held up a Kindle, in recognition of the fact that Amazon had provided her with a free Kindle for every member of her studio audience.)
But the really good news for you and me and all of the hundreds of new Kindle owners in Oprah’s audience is that — with our Kindles — those Dickens novels are absolutely free! We can click here for Great Expectations and click here for A Tale of Two Cities, and without spending a ha’penny we can start reading either or both books within seconds on any Kindle or Kindle app!
Now ain’t that just the dickens? And maybe that’s why the studio audience, after applauding politely for the Michael Jackson segment and the Jonathan Franzen rapprochement and the Dickens picks, saved its most intense applause of Oprah’s hour for the announcement that they had all received brand new free Kindles!

Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alert, Tuesday, December 7: Fill up your Kindle at the self-serve tank with 12 brand new freebies, plus … The Year We Finally Solved Everything by Rudolf Kerkhoven (Today’s Sponsor)

Is your Kindle full yet? If not, feed it well today with an even dozen new additions to our comprehensive, automatically updated Free Book Alert listings. We’ve got everything from Terri Blackstock’s inspirational fiction to the late Ted Kennedy’s leadership lessons to a fascinating two-part serial thriller, based on a Jeffrey Deaver concept, that has hooked me, for one, with the promo noting that it will appeal especially to Jack Bauer fans….

But first, a word from … Today’s Sponsor

From the author of the hilarious adult choose-your-own-adventure novel The Adventures of Whatley Tupper comes something completely different….

Shan Won seems to only exist deep within the dark rumor-crazed underbelly of the internet.  But the common thread throughout all this writing is glaringly obvious: people stumble upon Shan Won, espouse its perfection, and never, ever—ever—return.

Rudolf Kerkhoven
4.5 out of 5 stars – 4 Reviews
Text-to-Speech: Enabled 
Don’t have a Kindle? Get yours here.

Here’s the set-up…
Ever heard of Shan Won?  It is a small, humble island state off the coast of China that has solved absolutely everything.  The rest of the world doesn’t know of it because it doesn’t want to know—how can the global economy function if there is a place where people don’t have to work, don’t have to worry about anything at all?


But when news breaks of Shan Won’s perfection, people begin to disappear. Everything they say about Shan Won is true.  Human traffickers become overwhelmed with smuggling hordes of middle-class North Americans across the Pacific for a better life in Asia.   But what life remains for those who are left behind?
 

The Year We Finally Solved Everything is a dark, ironic and fast-paced novel that asks the question: “What is life when there is nothing left to strive for?”

From Motherlode Book Reviews (11/13/2010)
“I was hooked from the very first page. There was just something about the story and the direction it took that made me eager to continue. I wouldn’t be satisfied until I had read every page. Although not at all what I anticipated, the ending was satisfying in its own way. My questions were answered, but not in the manner I was expecting. Instead, my questions were answered in a way that forced me to think about my own life choices…
“The Lowdown: I would recommend this book. It’s one of those books that stays with you even after you’ve clicked past your last page. I finished the book Thursday night, and I’m still thinking about it on Saturday. What would my Shan Won look like? Would it be worth leaving everything in my current life? Which character’s actions most closely resemble the actions I would likely take? Most importantly, what choices do I need to make to put myself on the path to my own personal Shan Won?”

Click here to download The Year We Finally Solved Everything (or a free sample) to your Kindle, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Android-compatible, PC or Mac and start reading within 60 seconds!
Each day’s list is sponsored by one paid title. We encourage you to support our sponsors and thank you for considering them.
Authors, Publishers, iPad Accessory Manufacturers:
Interested in learning more about sponsorship? Just click on this link for more information.

Free Contemporary Titles in the Kindle Store 
HOW TO USE OUR NEW FREE BOOK TOOL: 

Just use the slider at right of your screen below to scroll through a complete, updated list of free contemporary Kindle titles, and click on an icon like this one (at right) to read a free sample right here in your browser! Titles are sorted in reverse chronological order so you can easily see new freebies.

Read a free sample of our Kindle Nation eBook of the Day, Gordon Ryan’s UNCIVIL LIBERTIES, without leaving your browser!

Here’s the set-up for our Kindle Nation eBook of the Day, Uncivil Liberties – A Pug Connor Novel – Book Two by popular Kindle Nation sponsor author Gordon Ryan:
A new president . . .
A hijacked civilian airliner . . .
Follow the plane . . . or shoot it down?
Domestic terrorism brings America to a state of . . . Uncivil Liberties

“Shoot down a civilian airliner?
That’s not an option, Admiral.”
“I’m sorry, Mr. President, but I believe it’s your only option.”

Within three hours of assuming office as the President of the United States, Clay Cumberland is confronted with a civilian airliner hijacking. Two hours later, he is dead and Vice President William Snow assumes the office.

Within months, domestic terrorism increases and congress panics, suspending constitutional freedoms and granting unprecedented power to law enforcement and private military corporations who seek to expand their authority and control over the nation.

The second of the Pug Connor novels continues the war against domestic terrorism only to find that a nuclear holocaust is just over the horizon.

America is at war . . . with itself!

Start reading this free sample now: 


SPECIAL U.K. EDITION: Over 5,000 Free Books in the UK Kindle Store, plus … the perfect Kindle stuffer for the holidays, with CLAUSTROPHOBIC by Reese Reed (Today’s Sponsor)

There’s absolutely nothing not to love about our latest additions to over 5,000 free book listings in the UK Kindle Store….

But first, a word from … Today’s Sponsor
Here’s the perfect Kindle-stuffer for the holidays:

A modern twist on a classic tale, “Claustrophobic” gives Mrs. Claus’s perspective on the beginning of the Santa Claus story…


“This was a quick fun read. True love wins in the end, which is how it should be for the Claus'” –B. Tackitt, Author and Reviewer

Claustrophobic

by Reese Reed
5 out of 5 stars
Text-to-Speech: Enabled 
Don’t have a Kindle? Get yours here.

Here’s the set-up…

Jessica’s day couldn’t have been more perfect. She was about to marry the man of her dreams, and she couldn’t wait to spend eternity with him. But when she catches a glimpse of the pointed ears on the “Elder” her beloved is obligated to, she wonders if maybe she should have spent a bit more time studying the contract she and Kris had agreed to sign.

Something had to be done about the world around them. It was plain to see there was little joy to be had in the lives of the children at the time. But Jessica had no idea how her vows would change the world.

Catapulted from her life in a tropical paradise to the barren North Pole, Jessica’s new reality comes crashing in on her. Even the ever-cheerful Elders begin to weigh on her nerves as she begins to question her choice.

When offered a return to the life she’d abandoned, Jessica must choose between the life she left behind and the love she’d always wanted.


US Customers: Click here to download Claustrophobic (or a free sample) to your Kindle, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Android-compatible, PC or Mac and start reading within 60 seconds!
Each day’s list is sponsored by one paid title. We encourage you to support our sponsors and thank you for considering them.
Authors, Publishers, iPad Accessory Manufacturers:
Interested in learning more about sponsorship? Just click on this link for more information.

Free Contemporary Titles in the UK Kindle Store 

Blood, Sweat and Tea: Real Life Adventures in an Inner-city Ambulance by Tom Reynolds (Kindle Edition – 28 May 2009) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
4.2 out of 5 stars
(93)

2.
Soul Identity by Dennis Batchelder (Kindle Edition – 17 Nov 2007) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
3.4 out of 5 stars
(49)

3.
Fairytale of New York by Miranda Dickinson (Kindle Edition – 12 Nov 2009) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
3 out of 5 stars
(29)

4.
FREE 25 Language Phrasebook from Mobile Reference by MobileReference (Kindle Edition – 20 Nov 2006) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
1.8 out of 5 stars
(4)

5.
Shatter (The Children of Man) by Elizabeth C. Mock (Kindle Edition – 24 Jun 2010) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
4.5 out of 5 stars
(2)

6.
In Praise of Savagery by Warwick Cairns (Kindle Edition – 28 Oct 2010)
Free for UK customers now.
4 out of 5 stars
(7)

7.
Sudoku by MobileReference (Kindle Edition – 28 Oct 2009) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
1.7 out of 5 stars
(3)

8.
Cybill Disobedience by Aimee Lee Ball and Cybill Shepherd (Kindle Edition – 2 Aug 2009) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
3.8 out of 5 stars
(13)

9.
Advanced 25 Language Phrasebook from Mobile Reference by MobileReference (Kindle Edition – 24 Nov 2006) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
4.7 out of 5 stars
(3)

10.
The New World by Patrick Ness (Kindle Edition – 24 Aug 2009)
Free for UK customers now.
3.4 out of 5 stars
(8)

11.
Arousing Love by M. H. Strom (Kindle Edition – 8 Nov 2009) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
2.8 out of 5 stars
(12)

12.
Free for UK customers now.
1 out of 5 stars
(2)

13.
Publish on Amazon Kindle with the Digital Text Platform by Amazon.com (Kindle Edition – 14 Mar 2010) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.

14.
Bit Literacy: Productivity in the Age of Information and E-mail Overload by Mark Hurst (Kindle Edition – 15 Jun 2007) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
4.3 out of 5 stars
(4)

15.
Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2011 by Office of Management and Budget (Kindle Edition – 6 Feb 2010) – Kindle eBook
Free for UK customers now.
5 out of 5 stars
(1)


16.
The Middle Passage by Julia Golding (Kindle Edition – 1 Oct 2010)
Free for UK customers now.
4 out of 5 stars
(1)

Long Story Short on Oprah: Kindle, Dickens, Franzen

Oprah packed plenty of Oprah into her program today, but here’s the skinny from the perspective of Kindle Nation:

Today’s Oprah Pick #65 Now Available for Immediate Download and Kindle Edition Gifting in the Kindle Store: A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations: Two Novels (Oprah’s Book Club) by Charles Dickens

The cat is now fully out of the bag on the official announcement that Oprah Winfrey will make later today that her Oprah’s Book Club selection #65 is a Charles Dickens two-fer: A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations: Two Novels.


The Penguin paperback is also available for $11 (discounted from $20) in the Amazon print bookstore, and — this won’t last long — its sales ranking as of noon today stood at #276,463. There are also numerous free or inexpensive copies of these novels available via the Charles Dickens page in the Kindle Store.
As we reported earlier, Oprah’s show today will focus on her latest Oprah’s Book Club pick, her rapprochement with Jonathan Franzen, and a giveaway of free Kindles to the members of her studio audience.