An Awesome Announcement for Audiophiles

Do you love classics?
Do you love audiobooks?
Do you love getting free stuff???

Then Amazon's latest offer is perfect for you!

Basically, Amazon is trying to get the news out about their newest line of tablets (Kindle Fire HD) having whispersync technology, which syncs the e-book you're reading with the audiobook you're listening to. So if you want to continue listening to a book, but forgot your headphones at home, you can go ahead and keep reading and then the audiobook picks up your progress the next time you read. Pretty neat, no?

To spread the word, Amazon is offering 22 e-books for free download, PLUS the 22 corresponding audiobooks through combined Audible accounts. So if you have a Kindle reader, tablet, or free app and an Audible account (and free app), you can take advantage of this offer!

Simply click any of the links below, purchase (for FREE) the e-book and you will be directed to a confirmation screen. On that confirmation screen will be a link to Audible to purchase (once again, for FREE) the audiobook. If you're interested in multiple audiobooks, I'd suggest holding off on the actual checkout since you'll get a confirmation e-mail each time you check out.

A Word Of Caution:
Be sure that you are logged in to your Amazon-linked Audible account prior to clicking any links to purchase the Audible audiobooks. I made an account with a different e-mail than my Amazon account, and thus now have two separate accounts. I was logged into my other account when I clicked my first Audible link and now can't get the free download promotion applied to that one book. Luckily I don't think I'll be reading A Tale of Two Cities in the near future, so it's not a complete loss...

So without further adieu, here are the books available:

Complete List of 22 Titles

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
       Read by Anne Hathaway ; 3 hrs and 52 mins
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
       Read by Anne Flosnik ; 12 hrs and 19 mins
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
       Read by David Suchet ; 6 hrs and 8 mins
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
       Read by James Langton ; 18 hrs and 49 mins
The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
       Read by Davina Porter ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
       Read by Simon Vance ; 33 hrs and 53 mins
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
       Read by Jon Smith ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
       Read by Patrick Tull ; 4 hrs and 6 mins
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
       Read by John Lee ; 23 hrs and 38 mins
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
       Read by Shelly Frasier ; 6 hrs and 34 mins
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
       Read by John Lee ; 8 hrs and 35 mins
White Fang by Jack London
       Read by Bob Thomley ; 8 hrs and 8 mins
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
       Read by Frank Muller ; 21 hrs and 20 mins
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
       Read by Nathaniel Parker ; 5 hrs and 21 mins
Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
       Read by Simon Vance ; 8 hrs and 21 mins
Dracula by Bram Stoker
       Read by a Full Cast including Alan Cumming & Tim Curry ; 15 hrs and 28 mins
Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
       Read by David Hyde Pierce ; 9 hrs and 52 mins
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
       Read by John Castle ; 31 hrs and 6 mins
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
       Read by Elijah Wood ; 10 hrs and 12 mins
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
       Read by Scott Brick ; 3 hrs and 47 mins
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
       Read by Wanda McCaddon ; 12 hrs and 11 mins
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
       Read by Simon Prebble ; 8 hrs and 6 mins

Yeah, that's right. You can enjoy the voices of Anne Hathaway, Elijah Wood, and Tim Curry in your ear FOR FREE!!!

So if you're like me and love listening to your books (whether you're reading along or not) I hope you take advantage of this promotion for some free lit and audiobooks.

Disclaimer - I first read about this announcement a couple days ago from one of my favorite blogs, The eBook Reader, but figured I should also do my part in spreading the news. Go check him out for great eReader & tablet reviews, tips, tricks, and news. Or just go read his article covering this announcement. You'll be glad you did.

Disclaimer Part Deux - I have no clue when this promotion will end. It stands to reason that Amazon will want all the hype they can get, but do be sure to check the Bold Red Kindle Price before you purchase.

Top Ten Tuesday: Non-Bookish Sites

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.

So I tend to focus on mainly bookish things here. Even my last post, which was art related, stemmed from Harry Potter. But what kinds of sites do I read that aren't book related? Here's my top ten:

10. Pottermore

Sorta cheating here, but I do enjoy the games/activities on Pottermore. Sure, it's a site based around a book, but it's not just about reading, right?

9. Etsy

Partly business, and partly just browsing. Perusing the site for the latest and greatest handmade goodies is just so much fun! Seeing the prices on said goodies...well, not so much. When I win the lottery...

8. The Daily Show

This one I mostly go in spurts. I see a little on TV and then go watch 5 episodes (or extended interviews) straight. Jon Stewart is awesome.

7. Hellfire Commentaries

That's right - I have a video game addiction. But I'm lousy at playing games, so I settle for watching other people play them instead. It keeps me up-to-date on pop culture, while entertaining me with the commentators' witty rapport. And gotta love NTom's British accent.

6. That Guy With the Glasses

A fairly recent find, but I absolutely love watching CR, The Nostalgia Critic or Nostalgia Chick rip into my childhood favorites. Whether it be Disney, TV shows of olde or not so olde, these guys are masters of hilarity. I find myself cracking up even while they're bashing movies I absolutely loved.

5. XKCD

A comic that may not look pretty, but consistently delivers great punchlines, touching moments, or witty insights.

4. ...With Sprinkles

A web-comic/blog created by one of my college friends. I always look forward to Mondays knowing I'll get a good laugh - even if it does usually come from her misfortune. ...Does that make me a bad person?

3. TV Line

I wouldn't say I'm an American Idol addict...but I love reading/watching Michael Slezak's recaps, insights, interviews and predictions each season. And when he's not reporting, I sometimes look for the latest spoilers for my fave shows. TV spoilers = okay. Book spoilers = I kill you.

2. YouTube

I'm tempted to put this as number one, but since this is purely entertainment/distraction, I guess it gets lowered a peg. Whether it's watching a line of related videos for 3 hours more than anticipated, or checking out my favorite channels (SSoHPKC, ApprenticeA, CardGamesFTW, ItsJustSomeRandomGuy, HISHEdotcom, and TheCreatureHub to name a few), YouTube never ceases to entertain.

1. deviantART

Another site all too easy to spend unaccounted hours at, deviantART is probably where I spend the most non-bookish time. Between reposting my reviews, browsing random art, managing the SmilingMoonCreations account, browsing more art, checking in on my groups, uploading photos, and browsing the latest art my favorite artists have posted, it's a busy busy site.

Honorable Mentions:
Pandora
Library's Site
Ctrl+Alt+Del
Various Manga sites
Facebook


Yeah, a lot of my sites revolve around movies, video games, and art.
Can you tell I like distractions?
Which sites are on your list? Let me hear you howl!

Smashwords' E-Book Bonanza!

From Smashwords:

Our annual Read an Ebook Week sale is now underway. The sale ends Saturday. Access over 20,000 free and deep-discounted ebooks. Simply click to http://www.smashwords.com then click to the Read an Ebook promotion catalog. Here’s the direct link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/category/1/newest/1

There are four coupon codes you can use for participating books:

25% off: REW25 – 2,300+ ebooks
50% off: REW50 – 5,700+ ebooks
75% off: REW75 – 900+ ebooks
100% off: RE100 – 2,800+ ebooks

In addition to the limited-time deals above, Smashwords offers over 100,000 original ebooks at everyday low prices. Over 13,000 Smashwords ebooks are regularly priced at FREE. The average price of a Smashwords ebook is under $5.00.

Why are our prices so low? It’s because you’re purchasing direct from the author. When you purchase a Smashwords book, the author earns 85% of the net proceeds from the sale. Thank you for supporting our authors!

Smashwords ebooks are multi-format and DRM-free, so you can read them on virtually an e-reading device, including the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iPad/iPhone/Touch, Sony Reader, Kobo Reader, personal computers and most smart phones and tablets.

You can also purchase most Smashwords ebooks at your favorite ebook retailers, including the Apple iBookstore, Barnes and Noble, Sony, Kobo and the Diesel eBook Store. The codes above are only available for books purchased at the Smashwords store. In the future, we hope to expand this annual promotion to our retail partners.

Well, I've already helped myself to a bunch of new books (pictured & linked below), and I'm planning on making another pass through the lists later in the week. So what are you waiting for? Spread the word and get shopping!!!

E-Reader Suggestions?

Got a question for y'all...

As you may or may not have noticed, here at The Wolf's Den, I don't usually read many e-books. It's not that I have anything against them, I just don't own an e-reader. Now, I have accepted some e-books for review now and again, but I read them at my computer.

I use free programs such as Kindle for PC and Adobe Digital Editions. I tend to prefer the Kindle program, but it doesn't accept all formats (PDF), so I'm stuck with either a converted mess or using Adobe for some books. Unfortunately, sitting and reading at the computer has two major disadvantages:

First, I find that oftentimes sitting at the computer gives me too many distractions to allow me to focus on the material I should be reading. YouTube, GoodReads, DeviantArt... I swear I don't have ADD, but——Ooh shiny! Ahem, second, the eye-strain and required seating arrangements (needing to be able to see the screen) don't allow me much in the way of comfort or variety. Frankly, I love reading in bed or sprawled out on the couch—just so many ways to toss and turn and cozy-up while I read!

An e-reader seems like it would answer both of those problems. Plus the fact that I could take my e-books out of the house! The library might be a nice change of scenery now and again. Or maybe when I'm chilling at Powell's?

And that's where you guys come in! I've stayed out of the e-reader scene mostly due to expenses. Now, I'm still not rolling in dough at the moment, so I'm really trying to balance out spiffy gadgets with my budget. Here are a few brands I've heard of, ranging from $79 to $199:
Kindle (Basic $79, Touch $99, Keyboard $139, Fire $199),
NOOK (Touch $99, Color $169, Tablet $199),
Sony (Reader $130),
Kobo (Basic $100, Touch $130, Vox $200),
and BeBook (One $99, S Club $129, Neo $159).

Honestly, I'm kinda leaning towards a Kindle at the moment. I've used the PC software for about a year now, and other than the PDF issues (which I don't know if there's a better option right now) I don't have any huge problems. Plus I already have a lot of free books downloaded, and I'm sure I'll run across other freebees regularly. Plus my library already offers a large selection of e-books in the Kindle format!

So here's my checklist:
Price - Not able to spend tons right now.
Weight/Size - Not a huge issue for me, actually.
Ease-of-Use - I'm pretty tech-savvy, so unless it's a nightmare to use, I should be fine.
Loyalty/Format - I'm not really loyal to one company over another. Powell's and Jan's are indie, and Borders kinda died. But when it comes to formats, how much of a pain is it going to be getting the right book format?
Memory - I'm not planning on replacing my library, this will be primarily for review requests that aren't available in print.
Touch or Not? - Is touch worth it for ease? Or is it a stress headache waiting to happen if it gets scratched?
Durability - Along the same lines as above, I'm pretty careful with my things and I'm not typically clutzy, but will I need a force-field around this thing?
Gadgets - I don't need tons of bells and whistles, but I won't turn them down either. Not really looking at 3G, video, or net-browsing, though music might be a plus...
Extras - Do I need to budget in for extras to get full use out of this? I don't foresee a need for an adapter, but will I need/want a case, light, etc.?

A tall order? Probably. So, what's your vote?



If you could cast your vote above then leave a comment below, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch, guys. I can't wait to hear from you!