Home » Computers & Electronics » EReaders » Kindle

Getting Library Books on Kindle

2 Like

Like 2

Pin It

Ranked #10,572 in Computers & Electronics, #212,589 overall

Get Library Books on your Kindle

Yes, you can get books from your public library to read on your Kindle! Any Kindle: Kindle Fire, Kindle Touch, Kindle DX, Kindle 3G, and other Kindles. And yes, it's a little confusing at first. Here's a step-by-step guide.

Find Your Library's eBook Catalog

Your library's eBooks are usually on a different website than the rest of your library. Look on your regular library pages for a link called something like eBooks, or electronic books, and click on it.

Then, Find Some Books

Once you've found that page, look for the pick that will let you see only the books in Kindle format. There are a lot of other formats available, but they're not the ones you want. You'll usually find this on the Search or Advanced Search page.

Add Books to your Basket

When you find books you want that are available, pick the link that says something like Add to my eCart, or Add to Bookbag. Be sure it's the one on the line that says Kindle, if there are more than one format showing.

There's usually a time limit on how long books will stay in your basket, so don't browse too much. If you want to see what a book is like before checking it out, you can go to Amazon, and either get a sample sent to your Kindle, or just use the Look Inside feature that shows you the first few pages of a book.

If a book you want isn't available, you can put a hold on it. Your library will send you an email when a copy becomes available, and you can check it out then, following the directions on this page. A hold is just like a hold on a paper book - you're getting in line for the next available copy.

Your Bookbag

You can either check out right away, or keep browsing for other books.

Check Out

When you've got all the books you want, pick Check Out from your bookbag. If you don't see a Checkout pick, look for a Bookbag or Cart button.

You'll probably need to log in with your library card number at this point. You might also need to pick which library the card is from.

Confirm Checkout

You'll probably need to confirm the checkout.

Get for Kindle

Now, you'll see a screen with a Get for Kindle button. You'll need to pick that.

Important! You'll need to do this for each book in your cart, if you have more than one.

Send to Kindle

And, finally, you'll need to send the book to your Kindle. You'll be on an Amazon page, with a Get library book button on the fith of your screen. Be sure you're sending the book to the right Kindle, if you have more than one, or have a Kindle App on your desktop or one of your other devices, then just click that button.

Again, you'll need to do this for each book in your cart. You'll probably get a separate Amazon page for each one.

Congratulations, You're Done!

At this point, you should see a screen that says Thanks. Just give it a few minutes, then turn on your Kindle, and the library book will be there. If it isn't, pick Sync from your Kindle tools.

Kindle Lending Library

If you're an Amazon Prime member, you can also borrow one book a month from the Kindle Lending Library. You need to be the primary Prime member - you can't have been added by a relative, but if you are, don't forget to take advantage of this great benefit.

Returning Books

Books will be returned automatically - you don't need to worry about returning them. They'll be removed from your Kindle when the lending period is over, so be sure to finish them! Most libraries don't let you renew eBooks.

If you want to return a book early, go to the Amazon site, and pick Your Account from the upper-right corner. You'll need to log in. Then pick the Manage Your Kindle button towards the bottom of the right-hand column. For each book you have, you'll see an Actions ... button with a Return This Book pick.

You can't return books from your local library's website, though you can see what you have checked out, on hold, and in your bookbag there.

2 Like

by EllenC

One Deal a Day lens author

Feeling creative? Create a Lens!

Squidoo