Bookshop.org’s New eBook Feature Lets Readers Support Indepedent Bookstores & Authors

While most book lovers agree there’s nothing quite like the smell of a good book, there’s no denying the convenience of ebooks. Once upon a time, a mood reader had to pack a separate bag full of paperbacks for a long trip. Now, she can simply load them all onto her ereader and have a whole library at her fingertips.

When it comes to ebooks, Amazon has largely cornered the market thanks to the popularity of the Kindle and the size of its ebook library. However, a new alternative to Amazon has just arrived in the ebook space thanks to the addition of ebooks on Bookshop.org.

If you aren’t familiar, Bookshop.org is an online bookstore on a mission to support independent bookstores. When you create an account, you can link to your favorite local indie (shoutout to mine, White Whale Bookstore in Pittsburgh, PA). Then, each time you buy a book online, you’ll support your beloved local indie. However, up until today, Bookshop.org only offered physical books, leaving ereaders unable to support their local indies with online purchases in the same way.

Ebooks Arrive on Bookshop.org via Web Browser or Mobile App

One of the main barriers to entry with ebook competitors to Amazon lies in the ecosystem. Many readers are already entrenched in their Kindle space, and Kindle devices tend not to play nice with other ereading apps. The same will, unfortunately, be true for Bookshop.org’s new offering. That said, if you’re not using a dedicated ereader, reading Bookshop ebooks should be pretty straightforward!

Bookshop.org’s new ebooks can be read in a web browser or downloaded to the new Bookshop.org Ebooks app. The app is available for Apple or Android devices via their respective app stores, so you can read on your phone or tablet. It supports much of what you might expect from an ereading app. You can highlight, bookmark, adjust font, search the text, and sync reading between devices. There’s also an option to share highlighted passages on social media – but no spoilers, please!

If your preferred ereading device allows app downloads through either of those app stores, you should be able to enjoy your ebooks on that device. Alas to my fellow Kindle Paperwhite girlies, it’s unlikely Amazon is going to play nice with Bookshop.org ebooks any time soon.

How Bookshop.org Ebook Prices Compare

Device and app requirements aside, many readers’ next big question about ebooks comes to pricing. Ebooks have always hovered surprisingly close to the cost of paperbacks, and one of the ways Amazon knocks out its bookish competition is with low prices. So, how do Bookshop.org ebooks compare? Let’s take a look.

The Onyx Storm ebook is currently $14.99 on Amazon. Over at Bookshop.org, you can snag an ebook copy of Onyx Storm for… $14.99. Similarly, one of my personal favorite video gaming-inspired reads, Tomorrow, And Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is priced at $13.99 on both sites as well. At first glance, Bookshop.org is poised to compete with Amazon on ebook prices.

But that’s not all Bookshop.org has going for it. While the app ecosystem may be a bit clunky, the feel-good prospect is less so. Bookshop.org shares proceeds with local indie bookstores, whereas Amazon… does not. And if you’re wondering about your favorite indie author’s next release, there’s more good news. Bookshop.org will partner with Draft2Digital and IngramSpark to host self-published titles. That means indie authors will have another option when it comes to sharing their ebooks with readers – and fans will have another way to buy.

I don’t know about you, but I value having options when it comes to buying books. Seeing Bookshop.org finally find its way into the ebook space is an exciting expansion of an already great place to buy books online.

Trying to decide which ebook to buy first? Check out my recommendations for D&D-inspired contemporary romances.

About the Author

Amanda Kay Oaks

Editor

Amanda Kay Oaks is a writer, book witch, and video game enthusiast based in Latrobe, PA. She writes about books, games, and more from an office packed with crystals and Pokemon plushies. When not engrossed in work or fictional worlds, Amanda can be found in the kitchen, on her yoga mat, or walking her dog, Azula.

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