Read the article at Courant.com
Call it Groupon for do-gooders. A new website, ActBolder.com, teams up with businesses and suggests positive actions you can take to make the world a better place. Complete a task and you’ll receive a reward. Past challenges have included saying no to plastic bags at checkout and using your bike instead of your car. This week, donate five books to your local library and get a free month of book rentals at BookSwim.com
Read the full article at WashingtonExaminer.com
Print is dead.
So said the media folks at a recent writers’ conference I attended in New York City. Today it’s all about digital magazines, electronic reading devices and 140-character Twitter updates. I concede I’ve lost count of the number of print publications that have folded since starting my writing career in 2005.
But I love print. And my wallet, which is full of book receipts from Barnes & Noble, tells me print is not dead … yet. There’s nothing like snuggling up at night and losing myself among black and white letters crafted into prose, listening to the authentic flip of crisp pages and running my hands along the smooth cover of a tactile book. Author Ariel Gore says, “Folks have been saying print is dead for decades with the advent of radio, movies, TV and the Internet, but you don’t sit on the toilet with an e-zine.”
My sentiments exactly.
Yet as a consumer striving to be green, it’s disheartening to know most of the books in my collection are printed on 100 percent virgin paper. According to Raz Godelnik of Eco-Libris, a company striving to make the book industry greener, there are 4.15 billion books produced in the United States each year, yet only 5 percent to 10 percent of the paper in those books comes from recycled materials. Even books that cover green topics, such as eco-friendly gift wrapping or green home-improvement projects, aren’t necessarily being printed in sustainable ways.
“Books need paper, paper needs trees, and cutting down trees to make paper is tough to sell as conservation, even if it’s for a book about conservation,” says Clint Greenleaf of Greenleaf Book Group, an independent book publisher.
But take heart, bookworm. There are some positive changes happening in the industry:
Book publishers are pledging to go green
Chronicle Books has raised the bar with its corporate sustainable practices. It’s free indoor bike parking encourages green commuting. You won’t find any plastic or foam cups in its kitchen — only real plates and cups, containers for recycling and even composting bins. In addition to the many book printed on recycled paper, Chronicle recycles its press sheets into file folders.
Penguin is experimenting with different paper choices, claiming that more than 64.7 percent of its papers are derived from fiber certified under various organizations, such as the Forest Stewardship Council or Sustainable Forest Initiative. Random House and Simon & Schuster have announced goals of increasing the proportion of recycled paper it uses to manufacture books.
The Green Book Festival
The Green Book Festival is an annual event in California that honors books that “contribute to greater understanding, respect and positive action on the changing worldwide environment.” Visit greenbookfestival.com to view the winners of its 2010 competitions, which covered 22 categories of books, ranging from how-to guides to poetry to graphic novels.
Eco-Libris is on a mission
In addition to retaining bloggers who review green books and dedicating its time convincing publishers to adopt greener practices, Eco-Libris has partnered with three nonprofit organizations working in developing countries, Central America and Africa, where deforestation is a crucial problem. To offset your book purchases, you can donate money and its partners will plant a tree. Visit ecolibris.net.
Rent a book through BookSwim.com
A Netflixlike service for book lovers, BookSwim believes that renting books, rather than buying them, will help reduce the number of trees cut down for virgin paper. Unlike typical book shipments (think boxes with air packets and foam peanuts), BookSwim uses recycled and recyclable polymailers for shipping. Plus, it plants a tree for every new membership.
Read the full article at FayObserver.com
It’s officially hot enough to fry eggs on a concrete sidewalk, which means it’s time to cool off at the nearest source of water, preferably the beach.
Before you hightail it to the nearest coastal town, be sure to pack some of these seaside essentials……..
A Good Beach Read
Nothing says relaxing like catching up on some seaside reading. If you’re the type to speed through a book in one afternoon, sign up for BookSwim, a program that allows you to rent books and return them when you’ve finished reading them. This “Netflix for books” concept beats purchasing all of your books or being placed on a waiting list for a bestseller at your local library. Bookswim.com. Prices start at $9.99 per month, plus shipping………
Read the full article at SunTimes.com
Can’t turn away the latest best-selling novel even on a budget? Check out five Web sites to help you save and continue your reading habits:
• PaperBackSwap.com — Post books you’re willing to swap and earn credits when other readers take yours. You cash in the credits to grab someone else’s book offer.
• BookSwim.com — This service, similar to Netflix, lets you rent books at different levels of membership. The devout reader might check out the 11-at-a-time $60 plan.
• LibriVox.org — Download free audiobooks.
• ChiPubLib.org — Download e-books and digital books. Must be a member of the Chicago Public Library. Enter your library card number and ZIP code for downloads.
Read the full article at Explorer.UAH.edu
……..Bookswim.com is another renting site…… users have to pay monthly. The site runs much like Netflix, but for books. Users choose the plan that fits their finances and their membership is billed automatically every month. The cheapest plan is $9.95 a month for one book, and $3.99 shipping and handling. Some plans offer free shipping……..
Read the full article at Xavier.edu
Over the past three decades ,the cost of college textbooks has increased at twice the rate of inflation. Considering the current economic climate, the Xavier Senate hopes to provide direction for students who would like to find the best prices available…….
There are also websites that rent out textbooks. BookSwim.com….. Netflix-style service that deliver books right to your door.
The Xavier Book eXchange Board in the Gallagher Student Center is also a viable solution to expensive textbooks.
Senate further suggests that students make sure that they find out what books they will need by e-mailing their professors long before classes start so they have time to shop around to find the best prices.
Older editions of books are typically much more inexpensive, so asking professors if the current edition of a certain textbook is needed can go a long way.
Getting a book’s ISBN number, typically found on the back right corner of a book, can also be quite useful in making quick price comparisons.
Read the full article at Campus Times Online – LaVerne.edu
It is that time of year again, when we scrounge up the rest of our grant money or for most of us, the rest of our checking account, and buy textbooks.
Now, it would not be a terrible task if it were as simple as it sounds, buy a few textbooks. But at La Verne and at most educational establishments, purchasing textbooks is like pulling teeth and can be almost more difficult than your final in statistics.
If you have noticed over the years, or if this is your first, the bookstore has outrageous prices for the smallest books. It would almost be easier to donate an organ than buy that biochemistry lab book or the ‘easy’ reading for English.
We sit all summer long and wait for that dreaded first week of school, where we get the course requirements and rush to beat the other 100 plus students to get the text needed for the class. Upon arrival you are out of breath from running so far, you are worried about your financial aid and are wondering if you have enough money for these books, the last thing on your mind is if the bookstore has it in stock. You look around and they don’t.
Why is this process so difficult? Why are we more stressed about acquiring our textbooks than we are about passing the class?
Now it is not completely the bookstores fault on this one, the whole University is to blame.
If professors know that the publishers are slow to get the required text to the school, then why not hold off on the rush of reading the first few weeks or better yet, put the order in early.
Students do not particularly go to college because they are rich, that is why they are getting an education, to obtain a career and make money. We cannot afford to buy books we will not even use in class.
Once we cut out the ‘un-touched’ reading and let the bookstore know ahead of time what is going to be taught so that there are enough books, lets inform the students.
Amazon.com is a fast and easy way to obtain new/used textbooks without the stress of the bookstore, and they deliver anywhere. Why deal with the hassle of the bookstore if you can just order online?
And if buying the book is still not sounding good to you, then why not rent them?
Bookswim.com is the Netflix for readers and students throughout the world. Just by setting up a quick account, bookswim will take your order of books (textbooks) and get them to you in a matter of days allowing you to keep them for as long as needed.
Students need options, we cannot be expected to take the bookstores expensive way or the highway.
If the bookstore wishes to stay in business and not get turned into a lot for parking then a lot must change.
The bookstore is not terrible, just their methods of business.
So dear bookstore please listen and help out the students who keep your fine establishment working.
Read the full article at SeattlePI.com
Not living in a city with a cutting edge public library? There are other options. These services are like Netflix for books….. Bookswim.com offers….. a fee of $19.99 per month buying an unlimited number of book rentals.
Read the full article at WSJ.com
Problem: You spend too much on books and don’t have time to go to the library.
Solution: ……Bookswim.com…. …..lets monthly subscribers keep the books they like, at second-hand prices. The site focuses on recently released best-selling paperbacks and hardcovers. Their starter rental plan, for $19.98 a month, delivers three books at a time with no shipping or late fees. Students also can rent textbooks at pay-per-book semester rates (delivered through a third party, Chegg.com)……
Read the full article at TheNewsTribune.com
‘Tis the season to be reading. With school starting just around the corner students are getting ready to shed the summer lazies and get back to academic business. Resolve to start this year with a dedication to leisure reading. Exercise your mind, expand your vocabulary, and savor creative language with a renewed interest in literature.
According to Maryanne Wolfe author of “Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain,” “when you read you have more time to think. Reading gives you a unique pause button for comprehension and insight. By and large, with oral language – when you watch a film or listen to a tape – you don’t press pause.” Take a pause. Read a book for less with these insider book tips.
Online Book Rentals
Thank you, Netflix, for pioneering the inexpensive media rental frenzy. With your blazing trail, you squashed Blockbuster late fees and introduced a new, less hectic way to enjoy entertainment. Book lovers who can’t seem to break the Barnes & Noble spending sprees will delight to know that book rental online is just as simple with many options from which to choose………..
……….BookSwim.com
Book Swim offers plans that allow users to take out multiple books at a time. The $19.95 basic monthly fee still permits readers to check out as many books as they choose. You aren’t locked into a contract and have a read-to-own option. Through Book Swim’s college textbook service, students can save up to 60 percent on books ordered online.
Read the full article at JournalStar.com
Round-up: 1. Textbooks to rent. Company Cengage Learning will jump into the college textbook rental market this December with CengageBrain.com. Already in business is the Netflix-like outfit BookSwim.com, which rents textbooks through a partnership with BookRenter.com………
Read the full article at Fort Wayne News Sentinel
Did you know there’s a book-rental service that works similarly to how Netflix rents movies?
BookSwim, www.bookswim.com, lends paperbacks, hardcovers, bestsellers, new releases and classics with free shipping both ways. Members can take as long as they want to read their books and won’t incur late fees. They even have an option to buy and keep the books they love. Plans range from about $15 to $40 a month.
BookSwim also rents college textbooks.
Read the full article reprint at HighBeam.com
…read over 50,000 Harry Potter stories. “Twilight” is quickly catching up. Eric Ginsberg, vice president of marketing at BookSwim.com, a Web site that rents books online (it works like Netflix), said he is optimistic that the practice of reading will…
Read the full article at DailyHerald.com
Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving when shoppers descend upon early opening stores, kicks off the traditional start of the holiday shopping season next week.
Or maybe you prefer Cyber Monday, after Thanksgiving, when online bargain hunters elbow their way onto shopping Web sites.
Either way, promotions for computers, mobile phones and other devices likely will vie for your attention.
Well, how about something a little different? Here are a few practical, and not-so-practical, unique tech gift ideas…..
…..BookSwim
Why it’s cool: National online service that rents paperback and hardcover books without the need to purchase. It also offers digital gift cards.
Price: Starts at $9.95 a month
Where to get it: BookSwim
Web site: www.bookswim.com
Read the full article reprint at HighBeam.com
www.bookswim.com
If you’re a book lover, going to the library obviously is the most affordable option. But if you don’t have time to go and have the money to spend, buying or renting may be better.
BookSwim offers a new option: a book-rental service, along the lines of Netflix . The idea, in concept, sounds great, but for many casual readers, it probably isn’t worth it.
The problem? The lowest-level subscription, called “Casual Reader,” is three books at a time. It’s advertised as being $9.95, but note that’s just for the first month. Then it goes up to $19.98 a month (shipping is included both ways, just like Netflix). If you’re buying three books every month ……
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