Kindle E-Books on the Cheap: A Weekly Selection (30 Jan 2009)

Once you've purchased an Amazon Kindle e-book reader, the wonderful world of public domain, Creative Commons and free e-book promotions opens up to you. In this weekly Kindle Reader feature, I point you to a few of the most interesting new free (or very cheap) e-books available for download from the web.

Free e-book selections for this week include an illustrated edition of Treasure Island, crime noir sci fi, a novel of romance and adventure, a book of quotations, a first-hand account of travel to Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras in the early 20th century, and a contemporary young adult fantasy.

Police Your Planet, by Lester del Rey, 1915-1993. SCIENCE FICTION. Download site: Manybooks. Format: Kindle. Price: Free.
"Written under the pseudonym Eric Van Lhin, this hard-boiled story of cheap grifters, Martian slums, and rampant crime features ex-cop Bruce Gordon, shipped to Mars with a knife, 100 credits, and a yellow card that means no return..." - Manybooks.

The House of a Thousand Candles, by Meredith Nicholson. 1866-1947. ROMANCE/ADVENTURE. Download site: Manybooks. Format: Kindle. Price: Free
"A novel of romance and adventure, of love and valor, of mystery and hidden treasure. The hero is required to spend a whole year in the isolated house, which according to his grandfather's will shall then become his. If the terms of the will be violated the house goes to a young woman whom the will, furthermore, forbids him to marry. Nobody can guess the secret, and the whole plot moves along with an exciting zip." - Manybooks.

Bartlett's Familiar Quotations: A Collection of Passages, Phrases, and Proverbs Traced to Their Sources in Ancient and Modern Literature, by John Bartlett, 1820-1905. 9th edition, 1875. REFERENCE. Download site: Manybooks. Format: Kindle. Price: Free.
This is the 1875 edition of the reference classic, currently in its seventeenth edition (2003). If you must have the latest version, you'll have to shell out $31.50 for the hardcover edition.

Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson, 1850-1894. NOVEL. Download site: MobileRead. Format: PRC. Price: Free.
An illustrated version of this classic tale of pirates, villains, maps, treasure and shipwreck.

Tramping Through Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras Being the Random Notes of an Incurable Vagabondby Harry Alverson Franck, 1881-1962. NONFICTION: TRAVEL. Download site: Amazon Kindle Bookstore. Format: AZW. Price: Free.
Harry A. Franck, called the Prince of Vagabonds, was a travel author who wrote more than thirty books on his travels, starting with A Vagabond Journey Around the World (1910) and and ending with his last published work, Rediscovering South America in 1943. He served in both World War I and in World War II, was one of the first travel writers to travel by air and, in between travel adventures, married and raised five children.

Mortal Ghost by L. Lee Lowe. FANTASY. Download site: Feedbooks. Format: Mobipocket/Kindle. Price: Free.
"It's a fiery hot summer, and sixteen-year-old Jesse Wright is on the run. An oddly gifted boy, he arrives in a new city where the direction of his life is about to change. He's hungry and lonely and desperate - and beset by visions of a stranger who is being brutally tortured. And then there are Jesse's own memories of a fire ..." Recommended by the author for readers age 16+.

A Week of Entertainment: Books Reviewed in Entertainment Weekly 23 Jan 09

Each week Entertainment Weekly reviews a small selection of popular new books. Titles available for the Kindle reviewed in the January 23rd issue include:

Beat the Reaperby Josh Bazell. Little, Brown and Company. MYSTERY. EW's slant: "...medical thriller in the blunt, brutal prose style of a hard-boiled pulp mystery. Think House meets The Sopranos..." Amazon customer rating: 4 1/2 stars (3 reviews). Kindle edition $9.99.
"Meet Peter Brown, a young Manhattan emergency room doctor with an unusual past that is just about to catch up with him. His morning begins with the quick disarming of a would-be mugger, followed by a steamy elevator encounter with a sexy young pharmaceutical rep, topped off by a visit with a new patient--and from there Peter's day is going to get a whole lot worse and a whole lot weirder." - Amazon.

Eat, Drink, and Be From Mississippiby Nanci Kincaid. Little, Brown and Company. NOVEL. EW's slant: "...there's something raffish and whimsical about Kincaid's prose that hooks you good..." Amazon customer rating: none yet. Kindle edition $9.99.
"Truely Noonan is the quintessential Southern boy made good. Like his older sister, Courtney, Truely left behind the slow, sweet life of Mississippi for jet-set San Francisco, where he earned a fortune as an Internet entrepreneur. Courtney and Truely each find happy marriages--until, as if cursed by success, those marriages start to crumble. Then their lives are interrupted by an unexpected stranger--a troubled teenager named Arnold, garrulous, charming, thuggishly dressed, and determined to move in to their world. Arnold turns their lives upside down--and in the process this unlikely trio becomes the family that each had been searching for. In the best Southern fiction tradition, Kincaid has brought us an inspiring story about finding the way home." - Amazon.

Nemesis by Jo Nesbo. HarperCollins. THRILLER. EW's slant: "Nesbo has a knack for Euro noir, but this 474-page behemoth could be much tauter." Amazon customer rating: none yet. Kindle edition $14.29.
"Gripping and surprising, Nemesis is a nail-biting thriller from one of the biggest stars in crime fiction. Grainy closed-circuit television footage shows a man walking into an Oslo bank and putting a gun to a cashier's head. He tells the young woman to count to twenty-five. When the robber doesn't get his money in time, the cashier is executed, and two million Norwegian kroner disappear without a trace. Police Detective Harry Hole is assigned to the case...Former girlfriend and struggling artist Anna Bethsen invites Hole to dinner, and he can't resist a visit. But the evening ends in an all too familiar way as Hole awakens with a thundering headache, a missing cell phone, and no memory of the past twelve hours. That same morning, Anna is found shot dead in her bed. Hole begins to receive threatening e-mails. Is someone trying to frame him for this unexplained death?...Racing from the cool, autumnal streets of Oslo to the steaming villages of Brazil, Hole is determined to absolve himself of suspicion by uncovering all the information needed to crack both cases..."

Never Tell a Lieby Hallie Ephron. HarperCollins. THRILLER. EW's slant: "Though Ephron's basic idea is a good one, she's delivered a clunky, plodding mystery..." Amazon customer rating: 5 stars (1 review). Kindle edition $9.99.
"An innocent yard sale jump-starts this stunning stand-alone thriller from Ephron...Ivy and David Rose, happily married high school sweethearts, are trying to clear out the junk the previous owner left in their glorious Victorian in Brush Hills, Mass., before the birth of their first child. Among the bargain hunters is Melinda White, a high school classmate who's also pregnant...When Melinda disappears and no one can remember seeing her leave the sale, the evidence suggests the couple murdered her. Ephron doesn't miss a searing beat as she plunges the Roses into an abyss of suspicion...a deliciously creepy tale of obsession." - Publishers Weekly.

Runnerby Thomas Perry. Houghton Mifflin. THRILLER. EW's slant: "Take your standard pursuit drama; add a dash of GoodFellas and a dollop of The Dark Wind." Amazon customer rating: none yet. Kindle edition: $14.30.
"After a nine-year absence, the fiercely resourceful Native American guide Jane Whitefield is back, in the latest superb thriller by award-winning author Thomas Perry. For more than a decade, Jane pursued her unusual profession: 'I’m a guide . . . I show people how to go from places where somebody is trying to kill them to other places where nobody is.' Then she promised her husband she would never work again, and settled in to live a happy, quiet life as Jane McKinnon, the wife of a surgeon in Amherst, New York. But when a bomb goes off in the middle of a hospital fundraiser, Jane finds herself face to face with the cause of the explosion: a young pregnant girl who has been tracked across the country by a team of hired hunters." - Amazon.

Kindle Two Rumors

Today rumors of a new Kindle model abound. Will there be a new Kindle in February? What do you think? Your guess is as good as mine. I'm eager to see what Amazon has come up with if there is a new Kindle, but am glad I purchased the original ground-breaking model. Just like in early 1984 when I bought one of the first Macintosh computers and never looked back. Come to think of it, those folks ordering Kindles today should be first in line for the new models!

Here are some rumor links:

All Things Digital

CrunchGear

Engadget

Silicon Alley Insider

Kindle en Español: Find Books in Spanish for your Kindle

Además de la selección de libros en español en la librería Amazon Kindle, se pueden encontrar muchos libros más en ediciones Kindle listos para descarga gratuita en los sitios mencionados a continuación.

Para encontrar libros Kindle en español en Amazon, vaya a la página de búsqueda avanzada en la librería de Amazon. Búsca de formato: "kindle books" e idioma: Spanish o haga clic aquí para realizar la búsqueda. Esto le da una lista de, supuestamente, todas las ediciones Kindle en español. Para reducir la lista podría añadir otro parámetro a la búsqueda como palabra clave (keywords), editorial (publisher) o materia (subject).

Otros recursos útiles para encontrar libros Kindle en español son:

Domínio Público. Aunque es principalmente una fuente de libros en el dominio público en lengua portuguesa, se encontrará una amplia selección de libros en español también. Buscar por Tipo de Midia: Texto y Idioma: Espanhol. Los libros están en formato PDF.

FeedBooks. Una lista en orden alfabético de libros en español para descargar gratuita en Mobipocket/formato Kindle. Feedbooks está dividida en dos secciones principales: Libros de Domínio Público y Libros Originales. Tenga en cuenta que FeedBooks le da muchas opciones para el control de los títulos que ofrecen en español. Se puede ordenar los resultados por las recientes incorporaciones a la colección, las descargas más populares, por orden alfabético de título y por año de publicación. FeedBooks también le da sugerencias para otras descargas similares que le puede interesar.

JustFreeBooks. Un motor de búsqueda Google personalizado con interfaz español. Realiza búsquedas dentro de más de 700 sitios de libros gratis, incluyendo wikibooks.org y cervantesvirtual.com. Entre los resultados puedes encontrar textos de dominio público, libros de contenido libre, audio libros gratuitos, libros con publicidad y más.

LIBROdot. Una biblioteca de libros gratuitos en español de más de 11,000 títulos por 1000 autores de 60 diferentes nacionalidades. Los libros pueden ser descargados en formato PDF para conversión a Kindle. Se puede buscar libros por autor, por título o por género y también hay listas de los libros más populares en el sitio web.

Muchos de los libros son clásicos españoles y otros son traducciones al español de libros de autores europeos y americanos como C. S. Lewis y Agatha Christie. Hay que registrarse en el sitio antes de descargar libros. El registro es gratuito.

Librodot mantiene un blog y también anuncia nuevos ingresos a la Biblioteca Librodot por Twitter.

Manybooks. Una lista en orden alfabética de libros en español para descarga gratuita en formato Kindle. Hay extractos y comentarios de muchos de los libros.

Online Novels: Spanish. Una pequeña selección de novelas en español.

Proyecto Gutenberg. Una colección enorme de libros en el dominio público. Muchos de estos libros están disponibles en formato Mobipocket para el Kindle.

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In addition to the small selection of Spanish books in the Amazon Kindle bookstore, you can find many Kindle-ready books in free download sites listed below.

To search for books in Spanish on Amazon. Go to the Advanced Search page in the Amazon online book store (not the Kindle Book Store). Then do a search for Format: Kindle Books and Language: Spanish or click here to perform the search. This gives you a list of, presumably, all the Kindle editions in Spanish. To narrow down the list you could try adding another parameter to the search like keyword, publisher or subject.

Other sources for Spanish books for the Kindle include:

Manybooks. An alphabetical by title list of Spanish books downloadable for free in Kindle format. There are also excerpts and reviews for many of the books.

Feedbooks. An alphabetical by title list of Spanish books downloadable for free in Mobipocket/Kindle format. Notice that Feedbooks gives you lots of options for checking out the titles they offer in Spanish. You can sort your results by most recent additions to the collection, by most popular downloads, alphabetical by title from A to Z or from Z to A and by year of publication. Feedbooks also gives you suggestions for other similar downloads you might enjoy.

Project Gutenberg. Here you can browse Spanish books by author. One thing I like about Project Gutenberg is that most of their books can be read online by clicking on the "Read Online" link near the top of the screen for each title. That way you can preview a e-book before downloading it to your computer for transfer via USB to your Kindle. For information on converting Project Gutenberg titles for the Kindle check out this posting on the Amazon Kindle Forum.

LIBROdot. A Spanish-language library of more than 10,000 titles by 1000 authors from 60 different countries. Books may be downloaded to your computer in either MS Word or PDF format for conversion to Kindle. Books can be displayed by author, title or broad subject categories. Website features include book lists by genre as well as lists of books added each week and the most popular LIBROdot books of the month. Many of the books are Spanish classics and others are Spanish translations of books by European and American authors from C. S. Lewis to Agatha Christie.

You will need to register at the site before downloading books, but registration is free. LIBROdot is supported by donations from its users and by sales of a CD sold on site. Librodot also maintains a blog and also announces new additions to the Biblioteca Librodot on Twitter.

Domínio Público. Although this is primarily a source for Portuguese language books in the public domain, you will find a large selection of books in Spanish also. Search by Tipo de Midia: Texto and Idioma: Espanhol. Books are in PDF format.

JustFreeBooks. A customized Google search engine with both English and Spanish interfaces.

Online Novels: Spanish. Links to a small selection of novels in Spanish.

The Kindle Reads Books That Inspired Oscar-Nominated Films

Among the films nominated for academy awards in major categories this year are four based on novels now available in Kindle editions:

Revolutionary Roadby Richard Yates. Vintage. Amazon customer rating: 4 1/2 stars (131 reviews). Kindle edition $7.99. Nominated for best supporting actor (Michael Shannon), best art direction and best costume design.

From the moment of its publication in 1961, Revolutionary Road was hailed as a masterpiece of realistic fiction and as the most evocative portrayal of the opulent desolation of the American suburbs. It's the story of Frank and April Wheeler, a bright, beautiful, and talented couple who have lived on the assumption that greatness is only just around the corner. With heartbreaking compassion and remorseless clarity, Richard Yates shows how Frank and April mortgage their spiritual birthright, betraying not only each other, but their best selves.

Q & Aby Vikas Swarup. Scribner. Amazon customer rating: 4 stars (29 reviews). Kindle edition $8.99. Slumdog Millionaire, based on Vikas Swarup's novel, garnered 10 nominations including for best picture, best director (Danny Boyle), best original score and best adapted screenplay.

"Vikas Swarup's spectacular debut novel opens in a jail cell in Mumbai, India, where Ram Mohammad Thomas is being held after correctly answering all twelve questions on India's biggest quiz show, Who Will Win a Billion? It is hard to believe that a poor orphan who has never read a newspaper or gone to school could win such a contest. But through a series of exhilarating tales Ram explains to his lawyer how episodes in his life gave him the answer to each question. Ram takes us on an amazing review of his own history -- from the day he was found as a baby in the clothes donation box of a Delhi church to his employment by a faded Bollywood star to his adventure with a security-crazed Australian army colonel to his career as an overly creative tour guide at the Taj Mahal...a beguiling blend of high comedy, drama, and romance that reveals how we know what we know -- not just about trivia, but about life itself." - Amazon.

The Readerby Bernhard Schlink. Vintage. Translated from the German. Amazon customer rating: 3 1/2 stars (796 reviews). Kindle edition $7.99. 5 nominations including best picture, best director (Stephen Daldry), and best actress (Kate Winslet).

"...a brief tale about sex, love, reading, and shame in postwar Germany. Michael Berg is 15 when he begins a long, obsessive affair with Hanna, an enigmatic older woman. He never learns very much about her, and when she disappears one day, he expects never to see her again. But, to his horror, he does. Hanna is a defendant in a trial related to Germany's Nazi past, and it soon becomes clear that she is guilty of an unspeakable crime. As Michael follows the trial, he struggles with an overwhelming question: What should his generation do with its knowledge of the Holocaust? "We should not believe we can comprehend the incomprehensible, we may not compare the incomparable.... Should we only fall silent in revulsion, shame, and guilt? To what purpose?" - Amazon.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttonby F. Scott Fitzgerald. Amazon Digital Services. Kindle edition $0.80. Also available for free download from Feedbooks. 13 nominations, including best picture, best director (David Fincher), best actor (Brad Pitt), best supporting actress (Taraji P. Henson) and best adapted screenplay.

"Benjamin Button is born with the body of a seventy-year-old man, and when his father first visits him mere hours after his birth he is already able to speak. He is born aging backwards (he was an old man as a baby and vice versa), causing several complications. This story was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain’s to the effect that it was a pity that the best part of life came at the beginning and the worst part at the end." - Amazon.

Kindle Genre Watch (Jan 15-Jan 21, 2009)

Genre fiction - as opposed to nonfiction, graphic novels and picture books - lends itself to enjoyable Kindle reading because when you pick up a book of fiction you don't necessarily expect it to be illustrated. Authors of mysteries, science fiction, fantasy, romance novels and westerns paint word pictures and their readers use their own imagination to picture the scene of the crime or the stare of a vampire or the track of an alien space craft hurtling towards earth.

Now you can spend less time searching for new genre fiction and more time reading it as I watch for newly-released genre fiction in the Kindle Storeso you don't have to. New releases this week include:

FANTASY

Kitty and the Dead Man's Handby Carrie Vaugh. Grand Central Publishing. Kindle edition $5.59. Now available for pre-order.
"This time, Kitty's taking on Las Vegas! Her mind is filled with visions of a romantic weekend with her boyfriend Ben, lounging for hours by the pool with a frufru drink in hand, and maybe even getting hitched. She also plans a live, televised version of her popular radio show. The plans go awry, however, and she find herself sharing the stage with Balthasar, a mysterious lycanthrope who fronts an animal act of sexy were-felines; a shadowy convention of bounty hunters specializing in supernatural targets; a stage magician whose magic may be the real thing; and Dom, the playboy Master vampire of Las Vegas. When Ben vanishes, Kitty faces a myriad of suspects with ill intent..." - Amazon.

Undoneby Rachel Caine. (Outcast Season, Book 1). Roc. Kindle edition $6.39. Now available for pre-order.
"A brand new series from the author of the "Weather Warden" novels...Once she was Cassiel, a Djinn of limitless power. Now, she has been reshaped in human flesh as punishment for defying her master—and living among the Weather Wardens, whose power she must tap into regularly or she will die. And as she copes with the emotions and frailties of her human condition, a malevolent entity threatens her new existence..." - Amazon.

MYSTERIES/THRILLERS

Plum Spookyby Janet Evanovich. Evanovich's numbered Stepanie Plum mysteries now total 14. Plum Spooky is a "between the numbers novel". St. Martin's Press. Kindle edition $9.99.
"Turn on all the lights and check under your bed. Things are about to get spooky in Trenton, New Jersey. According to legend, the Jersey Devil prowls the Pine Barrens and soars above the treetops in the dark of night. As eerie as this might seem, there are things in the Barrens that are even more frightening and dangerous. And there are monkeys. Lots of monkeys. Wulf Grimoire is a world wanderer and an opportunist who can kill without remorse and disappear like smoke. He’s chosen Martin Munch, boy genius, as his new business partner, and he’s chosen the Barrens as his new playground...Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has Munch on her most-wanted list for failure to appear in court. Plum is the all-American girl stuck in an uncomfortable job, succeeding on luck and tenacity. Usually she gets her man. This time she gets a monkey. She also gets a big guy named Diesel..." - Amazon.

Run for Your Lifeby James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge. Little, Brown and Company. Kindle edition $9.99. Now available for pre-order.
"A calculating killer who calls himself The Teacher is taking on New York City, killing the powerful and the arrogant. His message is clear: remember your manners or suffer the consequences! For some, it seems that the rich are finally getting what they deserve. For New York's elite, it is a call to terror. Only one man can tackle such a high-profile case: Detective Mike Bennett. The pressure is enough for anyone, but Mike also has to care for his 10 children - all of whom have come down with virulent flu at once! Discovering a secret pattern in The Teacher's lessons, Detective Bennett realizes he has just hours to save New York from the greatest disaster in its history." - Amazon.

ROMANCE

Whisper No Lies by Cindy Gerard. Pocket Books. Kindle edition $6.99.
"In New York Times bestselling author Cindy Gerard's fiery new romantic suspense series, when danger threatens, the seductive heroes of Black Ops, Inc. turn up the heat...When a high roller at the Vegas casino where Crystal Debrowski manages security makes a scandalous proposition, she flat-out refuses, especially given rumors of his shady overseas connections. But then counterfeit bills mysteriously flood the gaming tables, and her reputation - and her life - are on the line....Despite his big, flirty grin, Texas heartbreaker Johnny Duane Reed can't get sassy Crystal off his mind. When she is abducted by an international crime lord with a threatening obsession, Reed enlists his Black Ops, Inc. team to pursue a dangerous mission to rescue her...Between Crystal and Johnny burns a scorching flame, but as they battle her relentless abductor, they uncover a malicious arms trafficking and white slavery ring. Together, they must destroy the tyrant's wicked enterprises or face his reign of terror themselves." - Amazon.

SCIENCE FICTION

Maelstromby Taylor Anderson. Roc. Kindle edition $9.99. Now available for pre-order. This is the final volume in the Destroyermen Trilogy, following Into the Storm and Crusade.
"Lieutenant Commander Matthew Reddy, along with the men and women of the U.S.S. Walker, are once again at war. Having sided with the peaceful Lemurians against the savage, reptilian Grik, they now find themselves scrambling to prepare for the attack that is sure to come, searching for resources to support their forces—even as they look for allies to join their struggle. Meanwhile, the Japanese juggernaut Amagi, also trapped in this strange world, is under Grik control—with her fanatical commander approaching madness. And soon they will have amassed a force that no amount of firepower and technology will be able to stop. As the raging conflict approaches, Reddy, his crew, his allies, and his loved ones face annihilation. But if there is one thing they have learned about their new world, it is that hope—and help—may be just over the horizon." - Penguin.com.

The Jennifer Morgueby Charles Stross. Ace. Kindle edition $9.99.
"In this alternately chilling and hilarious sequel to The Atrocity Archives(2004) from Hugo-winner Stross, Bob Howard is a computer übergeek employed by the Laundry, a secret British agency assigned to clean up incursions from other realities caused by the inadvertent manipulation of complex mathematical equations: in other words, magic. In 1975, the CIA used Howard Hughes's Glomar Explorer in a bungled attempt to raise a sunken Soviet submarine in order to access the Jennifer Morgue, an occult device that allows communication with the dead. Now a ruthless billionaire intends to try again, even if by doing so he awakens the Great Old Ones, who thwarted the earlier expedition. It's up to Bob and a collection of British eccentrics even Monty Python would consider odd to stop the bad guy and save the world, while getting receipts for all expenditures or else face the most dreaded menace of all: the Laundry's own auditors..." - Publishers Weekly.

Also this week, the Virginia M. Woolf Foundation released three science fiction classics in extra large print for the Kindle: The Ship Who Sang & Other Storiesby Anne McCaffrey, Childhood's Endby Arthur Clarke, and Ender's Shadowby Orson Scott Card. The print in Woolf Foundation versions is equivalent to 20 point type; the reader can reduce the size if desired. Ordinary large print is equivalent to 18 point type.

WESTERNS

Bounty Hunterby Rye James. Maverick Spur Publishing. Kindle edition $3.03.
"Brice Symon is a man who brings back outlaws one way...dead! If there's a price on your head you can bet that Brice Symon is not far behind. The Bounty Hunter is a fast paced story that has Symon tangling with outlaws, lawmen, and gunfighters." - Amazon.

Branded Outlawby L. Ron Hubbard. Galaxy Press. Kindle edition $7.96.
"In the grand tradition of Louis L'Amour." - Audio World. When Lee Weston's father writes him that an old enemy, Harvey Dodge, is back in town, Lee rides out in a hurry from Wyoming to Pecos, New Mexico only to find his father murdered and the family ranch burned to the ground. Certain that Dodge is to blame, Lee sets off to settle the score but gets into a fiery Colt showdown in the town of Pecos. Severely wounded, he flees into the mountains just before passing out. As fate would have it, Dodge's beautiful, yet headstrong, daughter, Ellen, finds Lee's unconscious body and secretly nurses him back to health. But when Lee insists on continuing his plan for revenge, he gets himself into a heap more trouble false accusations, a near lynching at the hands of an angry mob and the scorn of the only girl he ever looked at more than once!"

The Authentic Life of Billy The Kidby Pat Garrett. MacMay22. Kindle edition $0.99.
"According to legend, Billy the Kid killed 21 men, one for each year of his life. However he was a relative unknown outlaw during his own lifetime, he was catapulted into legend the year after his death when his killer, Sheriff Patrick Garrett, published a sensationalistic biography titled The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid. Beginning with Garrett's account, Billy the Kid grew into a symbolic figure of the American Old West." - Amazon.

Kindle E-Books on the Cheap: A Weekly Selection (19 Jan 2009)

Once you've purchased an Amazon Kindle e-book reader, the wonderful world of public domain, Creative Commons and free e-book promotions opens up to you. In this weekly Kindle Reader feature, I point you to a few of the most interesting new free (or very cheap) e-books available for download from the web.

Free e-book selections for this week include a page-turner romance beautifully-formatted for the Kindle, a finalist for the 2008 National Best Books Award in the Young Adult Fiction category, the complete histories of William Shakespeare, a thriller about a thief who finds it difficult to meet the right girl, and for comic relief, a tongue-in-cheek collection of memorable first sentences from books that don't exist, courtesy of Dr. Drib and members of MobileRead Forums.

Life, Love and a Polar Bear Tattoo, by Heather Wardell. NOVEL. Download site: Author's website. Name. Format: PRC for Kindle. Price: Free.
When Candice's in-laws were killed eight months ago buying a huge faux polar bear rug for her Christmas present, she lost more than just two of her favorite people: she lost her husband Ian as well. After only two years of marriage, their guilt and pain have left them living together but apart, unable to really talk for fear of what they'll say to each other. Ian leaves for a month-long contract overseas, and Candice plans to use the time apart to decide whether her marriage can be saved. When her ex walks back into her life as the new client at work, ten years more attractive yet saddened by his own recent loss, she's left wondering what she really wants from life and love.

Rowan of the Wood, by Christine and Ethan Rose. FANTASY. Download site: Feedbooks. Format: Mobipocket/Kindle. Price: Free. Please note that this book is also available on Amazonin a Kindle edition.
"Rowan of the Wood, a Finalist for the 2008 National Best Books Award in the Young Adult Fiction category, tells the story of a young boy Cullen who meanders through the redwood forest every day on his way to school, losing himself in books and fantasy worlds full of elves, fairies, and wizards. He loves to escape to these magical lands because reality for him is not fun at all. Cullen and his two misfit friends, Maddy and April, are terribly unpopular amongst the other kids, and they regularly endure ridicule and bullying. Cullen's life changes incredibly one day when he uncovers an ancient magic wand that is inhabited by a powerful wizard, Rowan. Inadvertently, Cullen releases Rowan from the wand and finds himself possessed by the wizard, with a great power and an obsessive need to find a lost love. When danger is near, Rowan emerges from the frightened child to set things right. He and Cullen try to understand what has happened to them, only to discover a deeper problem. Nearly fourteen centuries ago, Rowan and his bride Fiana were separated on their wedding day. Rowan manages to survive, trapped in time, until Cullen releases him from the wand. Fiana uses dark magic to stay alive as she continues searching for Rowan. Over the centuries, Fiana descends deeper into the darkness becoming something evil and eventually giving up her search...until a young boy brings Rowan back to her." - Feedbooks.

Histories of William Shakespeare. PLAYS. Download site: MobileRead. Format: PRC for Kindle. Price: Free.
Another omnibus edition from HarryT over at MobileRead Forums. This one includes :
Edward III
Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 2
Henry V
Henry VI, Part 1
Henry VI, Part 2
Henry VI, Part 3
Henry VIII
King John
Richard II
Richard III
Sir Thomas More

Underlife, by Robert Finn. THRILLER. Download site: ManyBooks. Format: Kindle. Price: Free.
"Being a thief makes it difficult to meet the right girl. And when you do, something always gets in the way. Like finding yourself trapped underground, caught in a shoot-out, chased by the police, and only a supernatural killer to protect you. And if you somehow survive all that, you've still got to persuade her to part with her phone number. Underlife is a fast, short, sweet, tense runaway train of a thriller." - Snowbooks.

Memorable First Sentences to Books That Don't Exist, edited by Dr. Drib. HUMOR. Download site: MobileRead. Format: PRC for Kindle. Price: Free.
Read these and you will understand why the books were never published (VBG). Some examples:   "I’ve heard every pick-​up line on the books, women seem to think of me as the lost puppy they want to take home and cuddle so I was prepared when she slid in next to me at the bar, leaned in close to have me light her cigarette, and asked, 'What ebook format do you use?' — RWood. " All his life Harvey has dreamed about owning an orange jumpsuit, now thanks to a botched bank robbery and the folks at the Minnesota State Penitentiary his dream has come true." — Madam Broshkina.

A Week of Entertainment: Books Reviewed in Entertainment Weekly 16 Jan 09

Each week Entertainment Weekly reviews a small selection of popular new books. Titles available for the Kindle reviewed in the January 16th issue include:

Sing Them Homeby Stephanie Kallos. Atlantic Monthly Press. NOVEL. EW's slant: "Wonderfully transportive second novel...The ending may leave you feeling so wistful for these strange, sad people that you find yourself fantasizing about a trip to Nebraska". Amazon customer rating: 4 stars (1 review). Kindle edition $9.99.
"Sing Them Home is a moving portrait of three siblings who have lived in the shadow of unresolved grief since their mother’s disappearance when they were children. Everyone in Emlyn Springs knows the story of Hope Jones, the physician’s wife whose big dreams for their tiny town were lost along with her in the tornado of 1978. For Hope’s three young children, the stability of life with their preoccupied father, and with Viney, their mother’s spitfire best friend, is no match for Hope’s absence. Larken, the eldest, is now an art history professor who seeks in food an answer to a less tangible hunger; Gaelan, the son, is a telegenic weatherman who devotes his life to predicting the unpredictable; and the youngest, Bonnie, is a self-proclaimed archivist who combs roadsides for clues to her mother’s legacy, and permission to move on. When they’re summoned home after their father’s death, each sibling is forced to revisit the childhood tragedy that has defined their lives." - Amazon.

Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animalsby Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson. Houghton Mifflin. SCIENCE. EW's slant: "Part owner's manual and part business proposal...we can treat animals better if we consider the emotions that motivate them". Amazon customer rating: None yet. Kindle edition $9.99.
"In her groundbreaking and best-selling book Animals in Translation,Temple Grandin drew on her own experience with autism as well as her distinguished career as an animal scientist to deliver extraordinary insights into how animals think, act, and feel. Now she builds on those insights to show us how to give our animals the best and happiest life—on their terms, not ours. It’s usually easy to pinpoint the cause of physical pain in animals, but to know what is causing them emotional distress is much harder. Drawing on the latest research and her own work, Grandin identifies the core emotional needs of animals.Then she explains how to fulfill them for dogs and cats, horses, farm animals, and zoo animals. Whether it’s how to make the healthiest environment for the dog you must leave alone most of the day, how to keep pigs from being bored, or how to know if the lion pacing in the zoo is miserable or just exercising, Grandin teaches us to challenge our assumptions about animal contentment and honor our bond with our fellow creatures...essential reading for anyone who’s ever owned, cared for, or simply cared about an animal." - Amazon.

Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating with More Than 75 Recipes by Mark Bittman. S&S Books. SOCIAL HISTORY/COOKING. EW's slant: Bittman "...lost 35 pounds by eating more vegetables, less meat, and almost no processed food, and the recipes he offers...make it look not only doable but easy". Amazon customer rating: none yet. Kindle edition $9.99.
"From the award-winning champion of culinary simplicity who gave us the bestselling How to Cook Everythingand How to Cook Everything Vegetariancomes Food Matters, a plan for responsible eating that's as good for the planet as it is for your weight and your health. We are finally starting to acknowledge the threat carbon emissions pose to our ozone layer, but few people have focused on the extent to which our consumption of meat contributes to global warming. Think about it this way: In terms of energy consumption, serving a typical family-of-four steak dinner is the rough equivalent of driving around in an SUV for three hours while leaving all the lights on at home." - Amazon.

Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips. Knopf. NOVEL. EW's slant: "Phillips returns to familiar preoccupations - siblings tested by adversity, war abroad that shakes life at home...but she makes her tough turf new again". Amazon customer rating: none yet. Kindle edition $9.99.
"A rich, many-layered novel from one of our major writers, her first in nine years. Set in the 1950s in West Virginia and Korea, it is a story of the power of loss and love, the echoing ramifications of war, family secrets, dreams and ghosts, and the unseen, almost magical bonds that unite and sustain us.
At its center: Lark and her brother, Termite, a child unable to walk and talk but full of radiance; their mother, Lola; their aunt, Nonie, who raises them; and Termite’s father, Corporal Robert Leavitt, who finds himself caught up in the chaotic early months of the Korean War. Told with enormous imagination and deep feeling, the novel invites us into the hearts and thoughts of each of the leading characters; even into Termite’s intricate, shuttered consciousness. We are with Leavitt, trapped by friendly fire. We see Lark’s hopes for herself and Termite, and how she makes them happen. We learn of Lola’s love for her soldier husband and children, and unravel the mystery of her relationship with Nonie. We discover the lasting connections between past and future on the night the town experiences an overwhelming flood, and we follow Lark and Termite as their lives are changed forever." - Amazon.

Politico Now Available for the Kindle

If you live in the U.S. capitol, you can pick up a paper copy of Politico for free in locations around Capitol Hill and Washington, D.C. Or you can visit Politico.com on the web. Or, starting today, you can subscribe to this rich source of political news, opinion and information for daily delivery straight to your Kindle.

Politicois a daily newspaper "...devoted to providing breaking news, insight and features that are anything but politics as usual. Politico’s team is at the forefront, going beyond the basics of covering government and delving into the Oval Office, the halls of Capitol Hill and the hub of lobbying firms on K Street. Along with providing guest features from lawmakers and lobbyists alike, Politico showcases the work of renowned journalists, including Mike Allen, Jeanne Cummings, John F. Harris, Jonathan Martin, Roger Simon, Ben Smith and Jim VandeHei." - Amazon.

The Kindle edition of Politico includes all of its featured content at $5.99 a month, delivered daily. It contains articles found in the print edition, but will not include some images and tables. You may also purchase a sample copy for 49 cents. Each subscription begins with a 14-day free trial.

Kindle Genre Watch (Jan 9 to Jan 14, 2009)

Genre fiction - as opposed to nonfiction, graphic novels and picture books - lends itself to enjoyable Kindle reading because when you pick up a book of fiction you don't necessarily expect it to be illustrated. Authors of mysteries, science fiction, fantasy, romance novels and westerns paint word pictures and their readers use their own imagination to picture the scene of the crime or the stare of a vampire or the track of an alien space craft hurtling towards earth.

Now you can spend less time searching for new genre fiction and more time reading it as I watch for newly-released genre fiction in the Kindle Storeso you don't have to. New releases this week include:

FANTASY

Mean Streetsby Jim Butcher, Kat Richardson, Simon R. Green, and Thomas E. Sniegoski. Roc. Kindle edition $9.99.
"From four of today's hottest fantasy authors - all-new novellas of dark nights, cruel cities, and paranormal P.I.s. The best paranormal private investigators have been brought together in a single volume - and cases don't come any harder than this. New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher delivers a hard-boiled tale in which Harry Dresden's latest case may be his last. Nightside dweller John Taylor is hired by a woman to find something she lost - her memory - in a thrilling noir tale from New York Times bestselling author Simon R. Green. National bestselling author Kat Richardson's Greywalker finds herself in too deep when a simple job goes bad and Harper Blaine is enmeshed in a tangle of dark secrets and revenge from beyond the grave. For centuries, the being that we know as Noah lived among us. Now he is dead, and fallen-angel-turned-detective Remy Chandler has been hired to find out who killed him in a whodunit by national bestselling author Thomas E. Sniegoski." - Amazon.

Echoes in the Dark by Robin D. Owens. Luna. Amazon customer rating: Kindle edition $9.99.
"The planet is dying, slowly being drained by an alien Dark, and only one last, desperate plan can save it. Deep in another dimension, a disillusioned young singer is summoned as Lladrana's last hope. Uncertain of her future, unaware of her extraordinary magical talent, Jikata will be the sixth and final outsider - Exotique - to step through a dangerous portal of prophesy and magic. Survival will require her to forge closer friendships than she has ever known. The price of those bonds will threaten the very fate of Lladrana: a world where music holds the key to an ancient mystery--and six women will wage the ultimate battle against the forces of Dark." - Amazon.

Feather (Feather Book Series: Book One)by Abra Ebner. Crimson Oak Publishing. Kindle edition $6.39.
"Estella’s secretly talented life as an orphan has finally come to an end. At eighteen she can finally be free to run her own life and embrace her magical talents. Ever since she can remember, she has never been happy, has never smiled, and has never felt like she’d even had a soul. As she heads off to a secluded college in the North Cascades of Washington, she is hopeful that getting away from Seattle will be escape enough for her to finally find herself. As she settles in, her life suddenly takes an unexpected turn when the solitude and seclusion she was hoping for unfolds into a past life she never knew she’d lived. In the forests of the ancient past, she finds exactly what it was that she’d always been missing, not just her soul, but also the most important piece of herself. Her magical world expands into a place that finally feels like home, and takes her inner creativity, and love, to a higher and deeper level." - Amazon.

MYSTERIES/THRILLERS

Daemonby Daniel Suarez. Dutton. Kindle edition $14.82.
"Already an underground sensation, a high-tech thriller for the wireless age that explores the unthinkable consequences of a computer program running without human control - a daemon - designed to dismantle society and bring about a new world order. Technology controls almost everything in our modern-day world, from remote entry on our cars to access to our homes, from the flight controls of our airplanes to the movements of the entire world economy. Thousands of autonomous computer programs, or daemons, make our networked world possible, running constantly in the background of our lives, trafficking e-mail, transferring money, and monitoring power grids. For the most part, daemons are benign, but the same can't always be said for the people who design them. Matthew Sobol was a legendary computer game designer - the architect behind half-a-dozen popular online games. His premature death depressed both gamers and his company's stock price. But Sobol's fans aren't the only ones to note his passing. When his obituary is posted online, a previously dormant daemon activates, initiating a chain of events intended to unravel the fabric of our hyper-efficient, interconnected world. With Sobol's secrets buried along with him, and as new layers of his daemon are unleashed at every turn, it's up to an unlikely alliance to decipher his intricate plans and wrest the world from the grasp of a nameless, faceless enemy - or learn to live in a society in which we are no longer in control...Computer technology expert Daniel Suarez blends haunting high-tech realism with gripping suspense in an authentic, complex thriller in the tradition of Michael Crichton, Neal Stephenson, and William Gibson." - Amazon.

“Suarez’s riveting debut would be a perfect gift for a favorite computer geek or anyone who appreciates thrills, chills and cyber suspense.…A final twist that runs counter to expectations will leave readers anxiously awaiting the promised sequel.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Greatest. Techno-thriller. Period. Suarez presents a fascinating account of autonomous, logic- based terrorism, incorporating current and anticipated technologies to create a credible and quite clever story. Experts have long feared the Internet doomsday scenario; the Daemon is arguably more terrifying.”
—William O’Brien, Director of Cybersecurity and Communications Policy, The White House

Beat the Reaperby Josh Bazell. Little, Brown & Co. Kindle edition $9.99.
"Meet Peter Brown, a young Manhattan emergency room doctor with an unusual past that is just about to catch up with him. His morning begins with the quick disarming of a would-be mugger, followed by a steamy elevator encounter with a sexy young pharmaceutical rep, topped off by a visit with a new patient--and from there Peter's day is going to get a whole lot worse and a whole lot weirder. Because that patient knows Peter from his other life, when he had a different name and a very different job. The only reason he's a doctor now is thanks to the Witness Protection Program--and even they can't protect him from the long reach of the New Jersey mob. Now he's got to do whatever it takes to keep his patient alive so he can buy some time...and beat the reaper."

ROMANCE

Running Hot by Jayne Ann Krentz. Putnam. Kindle edition $9.99.
"A heroine who can see dark energy flashes in a villain's aura and a hero who can squelch villainous thoughts before they're put into action go to paradise to find a murderer, but find love, sex and a nest of drug-enhanced evildoers instead in Krentz's latest Arcane Society novel. Librarian Grace Renquist and ex-cop-turned-bartender Luther Malone, both members of the centuries-old Arcane Society, join forces when the psychic investigative agency Jones & Jones hires Grace, with Luther as her bodyguard, to find a killer in Hawaii. Luther quickly realizes Grace is not your normal paranormal, but their hot romance is put (briefly) on hold as they learn that Nightshade, drug-fueled supernatural baddies, are after the same murderer..." - Publishers Weekly.

Ecstasy: The Shadowdwellersby Jacquelyn Frank. Zebra. Kindle edition $5.59.
"Among the Shadow dwellers, Trace holds power that some as willing to kill for. Without a stranger's aid, one rival would surely have succeeded, but Trace's brush with death is less surprising to him than his reaction to the beautiful, fragile human who heals him. By rights, Trace should hardly even register Ashla's existence within the realms of Shadow scape, but instead he is drawn to everything about her - her innocence, her courage, and her lush, sensual heat. After a terrifying car crash, Ashla Townsend wakes up to find that the bustling New York she knew is now eerie and desolate. Just when she's convinced she's alone, Ashla is confronted by a dark warrior who draws her deeper into a world she never knew existed. The bond between Ashla and Trace is a mystery to both, but searching for answers will mean confronting long-hidden secrets, and uncovering a threat that could destroy everything Trace holds precious." - Amazon.

SCIENCE FICTION

Strength and Honor by R. M. Meluch. Daw. Kindle edition $9.99.
"The forced alliance between the interplanetary Empire of Rome and the United States-led Earth forces is shattered as Caesar Romulus declares war, striking at the U.S. Deep Space base, and then following with a direct attack against Earth. Merrimack has no choice but to retaliate with an assault on the Roman capital world of Palatine. In the midst of this chaos, the Hive renews its invasion. And even if John Faragut and his crew can survive all of this, the rogue Roman patterner Augustus-who has long been assigned to his own mission aboard Merrimack-flees the ship when war is declared, and no one knows whether he is only biding his time, waiting to meet Farragut in a final deadly showdown." - Amazon.

This is the fourth volume in Meluch's Tour of the Merrimack series. The first three volumes are (in order): The Myriad(2005), Wolf Star(2006), and The Sagittarius Command (2007).

Kronosby Jeremy Robinson. Variance. Kindle edition $6.39.
"Two years after his wife's death, oceanographer and former navy SEAL, Atticus Young, attempts to reconcile with his rebellious daughter, Giona, by taking her on the scuba dive of a lifetime - swimming with a pod of peaceful humpback whales in the Gulf of Maine. But the beauty of the sea belies a terror from the deep - a horrific creature as immense as it is ancient. There is no blood, no scream, no fight. Giona is swallowed whole by the massive jaws. Only Atticus remains to suffer the shame of the survivor and his inconsolable grief turns to an unquenchable thirst for revenge. Drawn by the spectacle, Trevor Manfred, a ruthless billionaire, approaches Atticus with a proposition: Trevor will make available all the advanced technology of his heavily armed mega-yacht, the Titan, to aid Atticus in his death-quest. In return, Trevor is to receive the beast's corpse as the ultimate hunting trophy. But in the midst of the hunt, Atticus makes a terrifying discovery that changes the way he sees the ocean's creatures and begs the question: what is Kronos?" - Amazon.

Heroes Dieby Matthew Woodring Stover. Ballantine Books. Kindle edition $5.59.
"...Stover combines fantasy and SF in this vigorous adventure story. Our world has developed a hyper-rigid, occupation-based caste system in which the reading of freedom-based philosophy, from John Locke to Robert A. Heinlein, is punished. For entertainment, people participate vicariously in recorded Adventures from the Overworld, an other-dimensional realm of sword and sorcery with its own repressive government. On Earth, Hari Michaelson is the most popular Actor in Adventures; in Ankhana, with its rich palaces and criminal slums, he is known as Caine, the Blade of Tyshalle, famous assassin and warrior. Tired of killing, Hari agrees to return to the Overworld, driven to save his estranged wife...and ordered by the Studio to kill the tyrant Ma'elKoth...Hari begins as a stereotyped cold-blooded killer but develops credibly, gaining a sense of moral responsibility and realizing that his true enemies are not on the Overworld but within the Studio that directs his life for its profits. Stover's fans and those who like their fantasy/SF tinged red should enjoy this energetic tale." - Publishers Weekly.
Stover's two other science fiction/fantasy novels featuring Hari Michaelson have also recently hit the Kindle market. They are Blade of Tyshalle and Caine Black Knife.

Polar Questby Alex Archer. Worldwide Library. Kindle edition $5.04.
"When archaeologist Annja Creed reluctantly agrees to help an old colleague on a dig in Antarctica, she wonders what he's gotten her into. It turns out that her former associate has found a necklace made of an unknown metal depicting three snakes. He claims it's over forty thousand years old -and that it may not have earthly origins. As the pair conduct their research, Annja soon realizes she has more to worry about than being caught in snowslides. Because everyone is hiding something - from her friend, to the U.S. military personnel guarding the site. With no one to trust and someone out to kill her, Annja has nowhere to turn. And everything to lose." - Amazon.

WESTERNS

Los Madrugadores (The Daybreakers)by Louis L'Amour. Bantam. Kindle edition $3.99. This is the latest of four L'Amour westerns translated into Spanish for the Kindle reader. The English editioncame out earlier.
"Tyrel Sackett was born to trouble, but vowed to justice. After having to kill a man in Tennessee, he hit the trail west with his brother Orrin. Those were the years when decent men and women lived in fear of Indians, rustlers, and killers, but the Sackett brothers worked to make the West a place where people could raise their children in peace. Orrin brought law and order from Santa Fe to Montana, and his brother Tye backed him up every step of the way. Till the day the job was done, Tye Sackett was the fastest gun alive." - Inside flap of dust jacket, hardcover edition.

Cry Freedomby David Thompson. Leisure Books. Kindle edition $3.99.
When he defends his daughter from the son of the plantation owner, resulting the death of her attacker, Samuel Worth and his family are forced to go on the run from slave hunters and end up in the deadly wilds of the Rocky Mountains, where Nate King and his family come to their rescue.

Seven Classic Western NovelsAmazon Digital Services. Kindle edition $3.99.
This inexpensive collection of western oldies includes Brand Blotters by William MacLeod Raine, The Watchers of the Plains by Ridgwell Cullum, The Free Range by Elwell Lawrence, That Girl Montana by Marah Ellis Ryan, Shoe-bar Stratton by Joseph B. Ames, Desert Dust by Edwin L. Sabin, and Colorado Jim by George Goodchild.