Try Prime Reading and maybe win a Kindle Voyage

Try Prime Reading and maybe win a Kindle Voyage

Are you a member of

Amazon Prime (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

?

No, wait, wait! Too loud! Maybe just answer if you aren’t a member. 😉

Well, there are all sorts of benefits to Amazon’s membership program…free speedy shipping on lots of items, Prime Music, Prime Video, and (relatively new) is

Prime Reading (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

You can read books, magazines, and with a recently expanded selection, comics, at no additional cost.

I’m going to make some suggestions for this month, but before I do, Amazon is giving away a

Kindle Voyage (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

4.3 stars out of 5 stars with 12,223 customer reviews, and normally $199.99 (although currently on sale for $179.99).

That’s the Kindle EBR (E-Book Reader) on which I read the most right now.

Here are some of the key points for the sweepstakes:

• Eligibility. If you are an individual legal resident of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia and are the older of 18 years of age or the legal age of majority in your state of residence at the time of entry, you are eligible to enter the Sweepstakes. Our employees and employees of Promotion Activators, Inc. (“Promotion Activators”) and our and Promotion Activators’ employees’ immediate family members (spouses, domestic partners, parents, grandparents, siblings, children and grandchildren), and our and Promotion Activators’ affiliates, advisors or advertising/promotion agencies (and their immediate family members) are not eligible to enter the Sweepstakes.

• Sweepstakes Period. The Sweepstakes begins at 12:00:01 a.m. (PT) on May 6, 2017 and ends at 11:59:59 p.m. (PT) on May 13, 2017 (the “Sweepstakes Period”).

• How to Enter. To enter, during the Sweepstakes Period you must enter via either Entry Method #1 or Entry Method #2 below:

• Entry Method #1: Existing Amazon Prime members who are eligible for digital benefits will automatically receive one (1) entry when they download any book or magazine through Prime Reading to a compatible device. Prime Reading is a free service available to Amazon Prime members. You can access Prime Reading by visiting https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/fd/prime-pr, selecting a book or magazine, choosing the Kindle option on the product page, and selecting “Read for Free.” Kindle Unlimited members who are also Prime members can also be entered by renting a Kindle Unlimited book or magazine that is available through Prime Reading.

• Entry Method #2: To enter without an Amazon Prime membership or downloading a book or magazine through Prime Reading, you may send a 3×5 card with your complete name, address, e-mail address and phone number to Prime Reading Sweepstakes, P.O. Box 6009, Morton Grove, IL 60053. Mail-in entries must be postmarked by May 13, 2017 and received by May 17, 2017 to be eligible. Limit of one (1) entry per person using only one (1) e-mail address throughout the Sweepstakes Period, regardless of entry method. You may not use multiple Amazon Prime customer accounts or e-mail addresses to enter the Sweepstakes, and entries submitted through multiple accounts or e-mail addresses will be disqualified.

—Sweepstakes Terms (at AmazonSmile*)

It’s not clear from that if downloading a comic book counts…my guess is that it does, but I’m not sure.

Okay, here are some suggestions for you for Prime Reading May 2017!

Unless otherwise noted, these are also available at no additional cost for members of

Kindle Unlimited (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

Amazon’s monthly subser (subscription service). My guess is that all of them will be available through KU, which has many times the number of titles, but it’s possible some (the Marvel comics?) might not be.

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The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood: 4.2 stars out of 5 | 4,293 customer reviews

There is currently a much buzzed about series on Hulu based on this dystopian novel…so if you want to read the book pre-binge, you can!

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling (illustrated by Mary GrandPré)

Ready to read it or re-read it? 4.7 stars | 14,352 reviews

Current magazines include:

• Consumer Reports
• Sports Illustrated
• Family Circle
• Wired
• Us
• National Enquirer

and many more!

Ms. Marvel Volume 1: No Normal (comic book)

There are 20 titles in the Marvel Comics in Prime Reading category right now…comics, of course, will probably look best on a tablet (although people do read them on phones and laptops/desktops).

The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson #1) by Rick Riordan

4.7 stars | 4,107 reviews

The Color of Secrets by Lindsay Jayne Ashford (audiobook narrated by Heather Wilds)

This is just one of 49 titles this month that has an audiobook with it. You can download it and then just listen to the audiobook, if you want…and those are often pretty expensive.

That gives you some different possibilities. Here’s a list of some more books in PR this month…just ones that caught my eye:

• Breakthrough by Michael C. Grumley (over 5,000 reviews | 4.4 stars)
• Bright Side by Kim Holden (4.8 stars, over 2,000 reviews)
• The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee
• The Doctor Is In: Dr. Ruth on Love, Life, and Joie de Vivre by Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer and Pierre A. Lehu (Dr. Ruth was recently interviewed by Len Edgerly on The Kindle Chronicles podcast)
• Whisper My Secret: A Memoir by JB Rowley
• Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (4.5 stars | 7,525 reviews)
• The Boxcar Children (The Boxcar Children Mysteries Book 1) by Gertrude Chandler Warner and L. Kate Deal (really beloved British children’s series)
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery and Richard Howard
• Laugh-Out-Loud Jokes for Kids by Rob Elliott (4.5 stars | 3,993 reviews)

Those are just a few of the more than 1,000 titles! If you have other suggestions for Prime Reading for me or my readers, feel free to let us know by commenting on this post.

Enjoy!

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My current Amazon Giveaways:

Star Wars Day through 40 years of Star Wars!

Giveaway by Bufo Calvin

Prize: Star Wars: Thrawn by Timothy Zahn (at AmazonSmile*)

• Winner:Randomly selected after Giveaway has ended, up to 1 winners.

• Requirements for participation:
  • Resident of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia
  • Follow @TMCGTT on twitter
  • 18+ years of age (or legal age)

Giveaway:
https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/0ce7b24b32a4a670

Start:May 4, 2017 6:32 AM PDT
End:Jun 3, 2017 11:59 PM PDT

It’s going on that long in part so that it covers the actual 40th anniversary of Star Wars (of the release in the USA) on May 25th 2017. Also, this book, which has good reviews and is new, is $14.99 in the Kindle edition…which is a lot for me for a giveaway. 🙂

Good luck, and may the Force be with you!

347 entrants at the time of writing

—

LAST HOURS FOR THIS GIVEAWAY!

One Murder More (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

by my sibling, Kris Calvin

1 winner

Requirements for participation:

• Resident of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia
• 18+ years of age (or legal age)
• Follow Kris Calvin on Amazon (you’ll be notified when future books are added to Amazon…I think that’s the only contact you get, although I’m not positive)

Giveaway: https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/ffab73bbd6512571 

Start:Apr 30, 2017 9:46 AM PDT
End:May 7, 2017 11:59 PM PDT

Prime Reading this month: November 2016

Prime Reading this month: November 2016

Amazon just recently introduced

Prime Reading (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

a new benefit for Prime members (who typically pay $99 a year).

They can read from a list of about 1,000 e-books at no additional cost.

Since this is a rotating list, sort of like Netflix or Hulu or Prime Video, I thought I’d try out a new feature where I’ll recommend some books on the list early in the month. Prime Members can have up to ten books out at a time…and usually, six people on the account can have the same book (or magazine) at the same time! Alternatively you might have the same book on an EBR (E-Book Reader) and a phone, for example.

Here’s the list:

Prime Reading for November 2016 (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

• 1,016 titles
• 349 with Audible narration (meaning you can listen to the audiobook as well as sight-reading it)
• Children’s Books (73)
  Comics & Graphic Novels (24)
  Literature & Fiction (217)
  Mystery, Thriller & Suspense (173)
  Nonfiction (434)
  Romance (163)
  Science Fiction & Fantasy (97)
  Teen & Young Adult (55)

Here are some suggestions:

“I want to read it again/I’ve been meaning to read this/my kid should read this”

• The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien: this is a prequel to The Lord of the Rings, lighter in tone. I damage my geek cred when I say this, but I prefer it to The Lord of the Rings. 😉 It does have audible narration.

“Fantastic Beasts is coming out…I want to re-read Harry Potter”

• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling and Mary GrandPré (the first book)

“I want something to do”

• Dad’s Book of Awesome Science Experiments: From Boiling Ice and Exploding Soap to Erupting Volcanoes and Launching Rockets, 30 Inventive Experiments to Excite the Whole Family! (Dads Book of Awesome) by Mike Adamick
• How to Draw Fantasy Art and RPG Maps: Step by Step Cartography for Gamers and Fans by Jared Blando
• The Urban Sketcher: Techniques for Seeing and Drawing on Location by Marc Taro Holmes
• The Family Tree Problem Solver: Tried and True Tactics for Tracing Elusive Ancestors by Marsha Hoffman Rising and Sharon DeBartolo Carmack

“I just want to read some fiction”

• Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim (my Significant Other and I both read this and both liked it…that doesn’t always happen)
• Where We Belong by Catherine Ryan Hyde
• Fallout (Lois Lane) by Gwenda Bond
• Pines (The Wayward Pines Trilogy, Book 1) by Blake Crouch
• Hour of Need (Scarlet Falls Book 1) by Melinda Leigh
• Huntress Moon (The Huntress/FBI Thrillers Book 1) by Alexandra Sokoloff
• Edgewood by Karen McQuestion
• No Turning Back (The Kathleen Turner Series Book 1) by Tiffany Snow
• Sapphire Blue by DeAnn Smallwood | 4.4 stars | 223 reviews
• The Sisterhood by Helen Bryan | 4.2 stars | 3,925 reviews
• The Lions of Lucerne (Scot Harvath Book 1) by Brad Thor

“I want some time-tested science fiction”

• The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick
• The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis

“I like pictures with my words”

• Archie (2015-) #6 by Mark Waid and Veronica Fish
• The Essential Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury by Bill Watterson
• Scott Pilgrim (of 6) Vol. 1: Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life – Color Edition by Bryan O’Malley and Nathan Fairbairn
  The Complete Peanuts Vol. 1: 1950-1952 by Charles Schulz
• 14 Years of Loyal Service in a Fabric-Covered Box: A Dilbert Book by Scott Adams
• Vampirella Vol. 1: Crown of Worms (Vampirella (2011)) by Eric Trautmann and Wagner Reis

“Never stop learning”

• The Everything American Government Book: From the Constitution to Present-Day Elections, All You Need to Understand…by Nick Ragone
• Famous Crimes the World Forgot: Ten Vintage True Crime Stories Rescued from Obscurity by Jason Lucky Morrow | 4.4 stars | 228 reviews
• Philosophy 101: From Plato and Socrates to Ethics and Metaphysics, an Essential Primer on the History of Thought (Adams 101) by Paul Kleinman
• The Rules Abide: The Thinking Fan’s Guide to Baseball Rules (With History, Humor and a Few Big Words) by Jim Tosches
• 1,001 Facts that Will Scare the S#*t Out of You: The Ultimate Bathroom Reader by Cary McNeal
• The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century by Claire Prentice

“Now you’re cooking!”

• The Everything Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook (Everything®) by Rachel Rappaport
• The Unofficial Game of Thrones Cookbook: From Direwolf Ale to Auroch Stew – More Than 150 Recipes from Westeros and Beyond (Unofficial Cookbook) by Alan Kistler
• The $5 a Meal College Vegetarian Cookbook: Good, Cheap Vegetarian Recipes for When You Need to Eat (Everything Books) by Nicole Cormier

“I’ve got my traveling shoes on!”

• The World: A Traveller’s Guide to the Planet (Lonely Planet) by Lonely Planet
  You Only Live Once: A Lifetime of Experiences for the Explorer in all of us (Lonely Planet) by Lonely Planet
• The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World: Over 600 Secrets of the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom by Susan Veness
• Lonely Planet London (Travel Guide) by Lonely Planet and Peter Dragicevich

“I’m getting a jump on my New Year’s resolutions”

• Habit Stacking: 97 Small Life Changes That Take Five Minutes or Less by S.J. Scott
• 15-Minute Calisthenics Workout for Beginners: Supercharged Bodyweight Exercises to a Lean & Toned Body (No Gym. No Special Equipment Required.) by Chris Clarke
• Principle-Centered Leadership by Stephen R. Covey

“I like to read magazines on the plane/porch/beach”

• Smithsonian
• Better Homes & Gardens
• The New Yorker

“What else have you got?”

• D.W. the Picky Eater by Marc Brown (for kids)
• Vader’s Little Princess by Jeffrey Brown (humorous “children’s book” with Darth Vader)
• What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe (a New York Times bestseller fairly recently)
• WIRED by Douglas E. Richards | 4.2 stars | 3,905 reviews
• C.S. Lewis: A Life Inspired by Christopher Gordon and Wyatt North
• Guns (Kindle Single) by Stephen King
• I Work at a Public Library: A Collection of Crazy Stories from the Stacks by Gina Sheridan
• The Lions of Lucerne (Scot Harvath Book 1) by Brad Thor
• Whisky Tango Foxtrot by Mr. Lynne M. Black Jr.
• The Immortal Circus (Cirque des Immortels Book 1) by A. R. Kahler
• The Cats that Surfed the Web (The Cats that . . . Cozy Mystery Book 1) by Karen Anne Golden
• Sinbad (Singles Classic) by Kurt Vonnegut
• Half Way Home by Hugh Howey
• My Seinfeld Year (Kindle Single) by Fred Stoller
• It’s Not Elementary: The Mistakes of Sherlock Holmes (Kindle Single) by Noah Axler
• No Ordinary Billionaire (The Sinclairs Book 1) by J. S. Scott

Remember, that’s just a tiny fraction of the more than 1,000 titles. If you are a Prime member (in the USA, at least), you can have up to ten of these out at a time, but there is no limit to the number you can borrow in a month. This is a rotating list: these titles may not all be in Prime Reading next month. However, if you borrow one and you still have Prime, you can still read it even if it is not in Prime Reading any more.

Oh, and every one of these titles is also available to

Kindle Unlimited (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)

members (as well as close to 1.5 million more titles)

This is my first one of these…let me know if you find it helpful, or if you have other suggestions. Feel free to tell me and my readers by commenting on this post.

Join thousands of readers and try the free ILMK magazine at Flipboard!

All aboard our new The Measured Circle’s Geek Time Trip at The History Project! Do you have what it takes to be a Timeblazer?

* I am linking to the same thing at the regular Amazon site, and at AmazonSmile. When you shop at AmazonSmile, half a percent of your purchase price on eligible items goes to a non-profit you choose. It will feel just like shopping at Amazon: you’ll be using your same account. The one thing for you that is different is that you pick a non-profit the first time you go (which you can change whenever you want)…and the good feeling you’ll get.  Shop ’til you help!  By the way, it’s been interesting lately to see Amazon remind me to “start at AmazonSmile” if I check a link on the original Amazon site. I do buy from AmazonSmile, but I have a lot of stored links I use to check for things.