Reading can be a very rewarding pastime, taking us to magical schools and placing us in the shoes of master detectives. It can also be a very expensive hobby, with some brand new books commanding a fee between £8 to as much as £25. A new book a month can be as financially crippling as it is mentally rewarding.
As an unemployed uni graduate, £10 on one brand new book a year feels like surrendering my life's savings. A new book a month feels like dealing with student loans all over again and trust me, it's not a pleasant experience.
Here's how I'm able to read multiple books a year, and spend little, if anything, in the process. If you're tired of spending big bucks to read big stacks of books, then look no further, below are my top ten tips on how to read books on a budget ranked in no particular order. Let's begin:
#10 Book Share:
If you're lucky enough to have friends who are active readers, I envy you if you do, then you can always swap with each other. You both want to read the same book but are put off by the large price tag? You can always go halves on the book, that way you both get to experience the book without paying the full price.
#9 Sites like Music Magpie, Amazon, and eBay:
A cheaper alternative to buying the book brand new is to see if someone is trying to sell it online. You’re not always guaranteed to get It dramatically cheaper, but even £2 is better than paying full price, right?
#8 Charity Shops:
Charity shops are a gold mine! The most I’ve ever paid for a book in a charity shop is £1. Most of the time the books I get are 20p to 50p. If you find yourself passing by a charity shop, poke your head through the door. You save money, and the charities make some. Everyone wins!
#7 Boot Sales:
Car boot sales are good, but they lack consistency. It’s really pot luck if anyone is selling books that aren’t just mystery novels and kids’ books, but once in a blue moon you’ll find a good read, just don’t go in with high expectations or else you’ll be very disappointed.
#6 Used/Discount Bookshops:
The Works in England is my candy land when it comes to cheap books. I recently bought a book on Pep Guardiola, currently the manager of Manchester City, which is worth £20. I spent £2.50. The total value of my shop was £79. I spent £23. That my friends is paradise on Earth.
#5 Library Card:
You don’t have to be Hermione Granger to use the library. Just go get a library card and read to your heart’s content. This is probably the best way to read the books you want, you know, without just going and buying them.
#4 Pound Shop/Dollar Store:
Everything is a pound. The four pack of sweets? A pound. The DVD of the greatest goals of 2001? A pound. The £20 Book? Yep, you guessed it. A pound. It's hard to believe that these things don't fall off the back of a truck, they're that cheap. They can be a reader's dream. If you're not fussy about what you read, there can be some real gems hidden between the party supplies and makeup sections.
#3 Unpublished Works:
Once the scorn of the reading and writing circle, sites like "Whatpad" have launched careers and provided readers with endless hours of free content to sift through. The books are by no means perfect (I'm looking at you, "One Direction" fan fictions), but there can be some great stories out there. The best thing about sites like this is that you can help the writer shape their stories with your feedback. A really worthwhile venture for any book lover.
#2 Free Kindle Books:
This is always a crapshoot. In the nicest possible way, there is a reason some of this work is self-published, and free. There are some terrific sell published books, but there are also some that lack the fine tuning of traditionally published stories. If you’re prepared to overlook this, however, then you will find a wide plethora of free books to pick from.
#1 Audible Trial:
A risky one. I managed to get both Hilary Clinton’s ‘What happened’ and the latest Donald Trump slam piece, ‘Fire and Fury’ using a free audible trial, but boy did I have to jump through some hoops to cancel before the next month. Go with caution on this one.
And that’s our list. Got any other tips I’ve not mentioned? Then leave a comment below, I’d love to add another money saving method to my arsenal.
