5 WAYS TO READ ALL THE BOOKS WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK

Note: While the views expressed are entirely my own, this post contains affiliate links and I will earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Please read my disclosure policy.

These days I am trying to revive my love of reading that was nearly killed by a couple little things called nursing school and motherhood. Ha! I remember spending summer days and countless late nights unable to put down a good book in my pre-college and baby days. Obviously I don’t have all day to read currently, but there are plenty of moments throughout the day that could be spent with my nose in a book rather than scrolling social media. I also want to encourage a love of reading in my kids. How are they supposed to know that it is such a good thing if they never see their Mama doing it?! Back in those days, I didn’t have to worry as much about spending money on books because I was only accountable for gas money and my clothing addiction. Our current budget obviously needs to stretch a bit further, so I needed to figure out how to feed this renewed hobby on a budget. BECAUSE books are expensive! Here is what I have come up with for how I can read ALL the books, without breaking the bank.

1 | Borrow from a friend. Anybody else like to scope out their friend’s bookshelves when they visit? Just me?! (OK, insert eye roll!) If you want to read more and are on a budget maybe you should try it! Most people (myself included) don’t mind sharing their books with friends, especially their favorites! It’s fun to connect over a common interest in an author or a book!

2 | Rent from the local library. The local library is probably my favorite resource. Our local library is actually a large network of libraries.  If the branch right by my house doesn’t have a book I am wanting to read I can request it from one of the other libraries and it will be at my library within a few days time. I LOVE how easy and convenient this is! My library also auto-renews books I have checked out a certain number of times. You know I need that in my life!

3 | Purchase from Amazon. I almost never buy books at local or big name bookstores. In some ways this is sad to me because I do love that they exist and their ambience and everything. But at this point in my life I can not afford to support them just on principle alone. 9 times out of 10, a book I find on the shelf is significantly cheaper on Amazon. And with Prime I just have to wait two days to get it to my house. If you don’t have prime feel free to grab a 30 day free trial with the button on the side bar. I also have purchased used books from amazon for as little as 35 cents plus shipping! I am more of a tangible book girl, but if you are into digital books, they are often steeply discounted in comparison to the hardcopy.

4 | Look for used books stores or book swaps. If you are local, the Dollar Bookswap is an amazing resource. You can purchase books for $1 each or $10 per bag of children’s books! AND for every purchase they donate a book to a child in need in the community! How great is that?!

5 | Check out local Facebook by/sell pages. I have seen many parents selling off their children’s book collections as their kids age out of them. You can even make a listing ISO (in search of) a specific book or series on these types of sites. Bartering is an acceptable practice with these sales unless noted by the seller. It is a great opportunity to find what you are looking for for even less than Amazon!

So, what do you think?! Do you employ any of these methods to feed a reading habit? Think of something that I missed?! Please share below!!

SaveSave