Tip #6 (29/04/2025) – Online libraries
Where do you go when you want to find books, official documents, and articles about different topics and from different countries around the world?
This month, we curated some free online libraries where you can access millions of books, articles, and documents.
Online library #1: Public Domain Library
The Public Domain Library is a digital collection of “timeless literary treasures”, curated to celebrate and share the world’s cultural heritage. The mission is to make public-domain works accessible to all, fostering a love for literature, history, and art across generations. (Public Domain Library Website)
Book suggestion: “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen
A good example of a book you can find on this website is “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen, a timeless novel that explores themes of love, class, and social expectations in 19th-century England. The book is available for download here.
You can access the books on this site by visiting it, selecting a title that interests you, and downloading it — an EPUB version is available for all books.
Online library #2: Open Library
Open Library is powered by the Internet Archive, a non-profit organization that claims to have developed a “digital library made of websites and other cultural artifacts in digital format.” (Open Library Website)
Open Library is a collaborative platform where users can share and borrow books from multiple countries and languages. Their catalog features more than 20 million archives, and all the content is open to anyone on the internet.
Book suggestion: “The New Tribe” by Buchi Emecheta
Since Open Library gives you access to books from any country in the world, why not give a chance to the decolonial literature from emerging countries?
“The New Tribe” is a novel published by Buchi Emecheta in 2000 that explores the complexities behind the adoption of a Nigerian black boy by an English white family. Following the main character’s childhood, readers can learn about strong topics such as the everlasting impact of colonization on emergent nations such as Nigeria. To find this book on the platform, click here.
To have access to this and many other books, sign up for Open Library with your email and create a Screen Name (your Open Library username) and a password. Search for the title of the book you want to borrow and click on the ‘Borrow’ button.
See how to browse Open Library in the video below:
Online library #3: Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is an online library of free eBooks, where you can find “the classic books from the start of the 20th century and previous centuries, from authors like Shakespeare, Poe, Dante, as well as well-loved favorites like the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Tarzan and Mars books of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Alice’s adventures in Wonderland as told by Lewis Carroll, and thousands of others.” (Project Gutenberg Website)
You can find books on similar topics by browsing the categories such as: Fiction, Classics, Children & Young Adult Reading, all available on the website. “Project Gutenberg’s bookshelves are hand-curated collections of eBooks that have similar topics.”
The project works collaboratively, bringing together volunteers from 150 countries. The majority of books are in English, but there are several hundred in Portuguese, on various themes, periods, and authors.
Book suggestion: “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde
A good example of a book you can find on this platform is “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, written by Oscar Wilde and first published in 1890. This is one of the most iconic novels in English literature and the only novel written by Wilde.
You can download books by visiting the website in EPUB format or even read them online, depending on what you prefer. Listen to the podcast below to learn more about the website’s history:
REFERENCES:
About | Public Domain Library – Available at: Public Domain Library
About Us | Open Library – Available at: Open Library
About | Project Gutenberg – Available at: Project Gutenberg
