Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo

An extraordinary book about life in a Mumbai slum. Review to follow. Request this one.

Difficult read, not because the writing is lacking--this nonfiction book reads like great fiction--but because the subject matter--the grinding poverty, the hopelessness, the corruption and jealousy--is overwhelming. If you've ever wondered what it might be like to be dirt poor in a 3rd world country, this book will give you insight. Tragic, really.

Resources for Free Sci-Fi & Fantasy e-Books

Finding free science fiction and/or fantasy ebooks can be a challenge, so we've put together a list of resources. Some books must be read online, others are in pdf form. Some websites require registration. Let us know which websites are the most useful for you. 

E-books Directory (Science Fiction and Fantasy section): http://www.e-booksdirectory.com/listing.php?category=58

Project Gutenberg: Science Fiction: http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Science_Fiction_%28Bookshelf%29

        Fantasy: http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Fantasy_%28Bookshelf%29

Places to look for free Sci-fi ebooks: 

       Gizmo’s 135 Places for Free Science fiction & Fantasy eBooks Online:   http://www.techsupportalert.com/free-books-science-fiction-fantasy
 

       Another place to look for free Sci-fi ebooks: http://digiphile.wordpress.com/2009/08/24/top-20-websites-for-drm-free-science-fiction-ebooks/

       And one more place to look for free Sci-fi ebooks: http://www.e-booksdirectory.com/listing.php?category=59

Obooko.com: http://www.obooko.com/obooko_scifi/free_ebooks_science_fiction_001.html

Baen free library: http://www.baenebooks.com/c-1-free-library.aspx

Selections from Dreamsongs 2 by George R. R. Martin

What an excellent recording of stories--fantasy, science fiction, horror, and sci-fi/horror crossovers. My least favorite story was "The Pear Shaped Man" about a really creepy stalker. My all time favorites were the two stories about Haviland Tuf, an ecological engineer who travels throughout the universe solving ecological problems.  Speaking of Tuf, Martin has just published a volume of Tuf stories, Tuf Voyager (request through the catalog). If you only know Martin's masterful fantasy series, The Song of Fire and Ice (known as A Game of Thrones in the HBO version), borrow this one and enjoy the wide range of his imagination.


Anne Shirako, Reference Librarian, Ukiah Branch, 463-4493

20 Best Websites to Download Free EBooks

I just ran across this list of the "20 Best Websites to Download Free EBooks" and I want to share it with you all. http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/20-best-websites-to-download-free-e-books/

I love reading (some) science fiction, so I'm excited to see what the Baen (http://www.baen.com/library/) free library has to offer me, and whether it's easy to download Baen books to my Google Nexus. I see titles by David Weber, David Drake, and Andre Norton available for free--sure looks good to me.




Some of the suggested sites offer classics, others specialize in technical or computer books. Http://www.free-ebooks.net/  offers fiction and nonfiction, and books in Spanish. Http://www.onlinefreeebooks.net/ offers PDF copies in health & medicine, hobbies, sports & martial arts categories, among others.  Some of the sites require registration (free), others will require some research to see if their file formats will work with your reading device.

Scroll to the bottom of the webpage to see 16 more free ebook websites, and a link to Part II, which contains an additional 30 websites with downloadable ebooks (http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/20-best-websites-to-download-free-e-books-part-ii/).

Don't neglect to look over the comments too--you'll find additional free ebook resources and, if you need it, information about how to download free ebooks from Scribd.

You'll learn that  http://ebookjunkie.com/ has a free ebook download of the day. For example,  Until We Reach Home by Lynn Austin was the freebee for Dec 4th.

Which downloading websites work for you? Let us know about your downloading experience.

Anne Shirako, Ukiah Reference Librarian, 463-4493