Libraries and books stores aren’t the only havens for people who like to read. There are a number of sites online that provide a place for book lovers to find books, literature summaries, book reviews, discussion groups, and more. Here are 20 great websites for people who love to read:
Online Books Page - The Online Books Page was founded by a University of Pennsylvania researcher. The site lists more than 35,000 books that are freely available over the web. Other features include a blog, banned book lists, and book recommendations.
Daily Lit - DailyLit is the perfect site for booklovers who don’t have a whole lot of time to read. The site sends free books in short installments via email. A new installment is sent daily (or more often if you prefer) and takes less than five minutes to read.
LibriVox - LibriVox provides free audio books from the public domain. You can listen to the books or volunteer to record chapters for the site.
PaperBackSwap - This free book club provides more than one million hardcover books, paperback books, audio books, and textbooks that can be traded for free online. Users can post books they no longer want and request books they would like to read.
BookMooch - BookMooch is an online community for readers who want to exchange used books. Every time you give a book away, you can get a book you want from someone else on BookMooch.
Amazon - Amazon is an excellent forum for people who like to read. The site offers editorial reviews, user reviews, book recommendations, online discussions, and heavy discounts on new and used books.
Bibliomania - This site offers more than 2,000 free classic books and poems in addition to literature notes, book summaries, and author biographies.
Shmoop - Shmoop is a fun, new site with easy-to-read study guides and book summaries. The site focus is on poetry and literature, but Shmoop delves into history and writing as well.
Litsum - Litsum is a wonderful place for readers to further explore the books they love. The site offers literature summaries, quotes, character analysis, discussion topics, and many other fun resources.
BookBrowse - This online book guide provides more than 20,000 literature reviews to help readers choose their next book. Other site features include author interviews and bios, book club resources, book news, and online giveaways.
Booksprouts - Booksprouts is a free online community for book clubs and reading groups. You can use it to find books, join a club, or start your own club.
Oprah’s Book Club - Millions of people around the world have joined Oprah’s Book Club. The club frequently recommends books and provides a lively discussion forum for members.
Shelfari - Shelfari is a social media site for booklovers. Users can discover new books, create a virtual shelf to show off their own books, and discuss books online.
BookMuse - Designed for readers of all ages, BookMuse provides book recommendations, book discussion topics, author bios, and other free literature-related resources.
Bookreporter.com - Part of the Book Report Network, Bookreporter.com tries to introduce readers to great books through book reviews, regular features, author interviews, and book excerpts.
BookPage - BookPage is a place for readers to discover new books. The site recommends recently published selections each month and frequently gives books away for free.
BookCrossing - Nearly one million people in more than 130 countries have joined BookCrossing to share their love of books with other people. This unique club asks members to share books by leaving them on a park bench, at the gym, or other places where they can be found. Books can then be tracked to see where they end up.
What Should I Read Next - This free app helps you choose books by analyzing titles you like and suggesting similar books from a larger reader database.
BooksWellRead - BooksWellRead is a free online book journal that can be used to record reviews and notes about books you like (and don’t like.) Journals can be kept private, shared with other people, or made public.
Bestseller Lists - This list displays the bestselling books of the last century according to Publisher’s Weekly’s lists of bestselling hardcover books.
Guest post from education writer and author Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online colleges for OnlineCollege.org.