Whenever you read a great book, it’s only natural that you want to share it with your friends and family. maybe they will love it too, and you can all discuss it together! But what about when your book is in digital format?
E-readers are a great way to pack a ridiculous number of books into one small device and can save a fortune on what you’d normally spend at the bookstore. You can also borrow eBooks from your local library and various apps and websites, making reading more accessible than ever.
You are reading: Why can’t i loan kindle books
But when it comes to sharing e-books with other people, it’s not always easy. Let’s say you just finished an awesome book and want to send it to his best friend so he can start reading right away. it’s possible?
This is the good news; There are a few ways you can share certain Kindle eBooks with your friends and family. Some of these methods are more suitable for the occasional loan, but some facilitate the regular exchange of Kindle books between loved ones and close ones.
So, without further ado, here’s my complete guide on all the ways you can lend Kindle eBooks to your friends and family. I’ll start with the pros and cons of lending eBooks, and then discuss the different ways you can do so.
the advantages of lending kindle e-books
saves you money
kindle ebooks tend to be much cheaper than their print counterparts, so you’re probably already saving a lot of money if you’re used to digital reading. But by lending and borrowing eBooks, you’re saving even more of your hard-earned money.
remote loans
These days, it’s getting harder and harder to meet in person, especially when you’re separated by distance. Unlike traditional printed books, you can exchange and share e-books with each other, even thousands of miles away. no more paying for expensive shipping costs; Plus, it’s a great way to stay in touch with your loved ones, even when you’re away.
kindle not needed
If you want to share an e-book with a friend or family member, they don’t necessarily need their own e-reader (and you don’t have to lend them yours!). They can read it using their internet browser (by going to read.amazon.com), or they can simply download the free Kindle app on a smartphone or other device.
they are easy to share
kindle books that are marked “shareable” can be shared with literally anyone! a simple click, and it is shared with them by email. they will generally have seven days to open the link and download the title and fourteen more days to read it before it is automatically returned to them.
dip your toes in the water
When you start sharing e-books with other people, chances are you’ll end up borrowing them. Borrowing an eBook is a great, no-obligation way to try out a title. if you don’t like it, you haven’t lost, and you can simply return it and try a new title.
don’t chase lost books
Because e-books are automatically returned to you at the end of the 14-day loan period, there’s no need to chase your friend for that lost book you always forget to bring with you. Whether they’ve finished reading it or not, that ebook will be back in their possession after a maximum of 21 days (that’s the 7 days to download, plus a 14-day loan window).
share with strangers
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You’re not limited to sharing eBooks with your friends and family. Sites like Lendle make it easy to exchange e-books with complete strangers from all over the world. Having access to such a large pool of other eBook readers means there are endless titles to choose from, and getting started is a breeze.
When you sign up to lend, you’ll be asked to share a list of eBooks you already own and would like to share with the community, and you can update it as often as you like. The more often you lend your eBooks, the more often you can borrow them from others.
Another website that works in a similar way is booklending.com. you can type the book you would like to borrow into the search bar and results from users around the world will appear with the desired title. if the e-book isn’t immediately available, they’ll email you as soon as it is.
goodreads also allows you to share books by connecting to your amazon account. Just follow the instructions on their website and you’ll be able to share any eligible book with other members of the Goodreads community, whether you know them or not.
the drawbacks of lending kindle e-books
you can only share them once
Eligible kindle books can only be shared once total. once you’ve borrowed a particular ebook, you can never borrow it again, even if it’s from a different person. so make sure your friend or family member really wants to read it before you click “borrow this title.”
not all books can be shared
That’s right, kindle only allows you to share select books with others, and most ebooks in the kindle library aren’t actually marked as shareable. To check the status of a book and find out if it’s shareable, check the product details section. popular titles, bestsellers, and new releases are less likely to be shareable, while less-demanded ebooks tend to be eligible for loans.
only one reader at a time
Only one person can read an e-book at a time. As soon as you lend a book to someone else, it is yours and yours alone for the entire loan period. So if you were planning to share an e-book with a friend and both read it simultaneously, then you are out of luck. the only way to do that is for both of you to buy the book separately.
a short loan period
Speaking of the loan period, as I mentioned before, there is only a fourteen day window for your friend or family member to read your borrowed e-book. this might not be a problem for shorter novels and speed readers, but if it’s an epic or they have a busy schedule, 14 days can be a bit of a squeeze. and as we already mentioned, it is not that you can lend it to them again so that they can finish it; once it has been lent once, it cannot be lent again.
lend a kindle book to friends and family
These are two of the easiest and most popular ways to share a kindle ebook with others.
kindle book lending: the ‘manage your contacts and devices’ method
this is the easiest and most used way for kindle users to share books with each other.
- log in to your amazon account and go to the manage your content and devices tab.
- On your account page, you should see a list of all the kindle books you have already purchased. select the button on the left side of the book you’d like to loan, and click the loan button for this title.
nb, as I mentioned earlier, not all books in the kindle library can be shared. If the “borrow this title” button doesn’t appear, the book may not be shareable. you can check by visiting the product details section. If the book is shareable, but you’ve already lent it to someone else, there will be a “borrowing” tab next to the book cover.
- Once you have clicked on borrow this title, you will be transferred to a new page. When prompted, enter the email address of the person you want to lend the eBook to. You’ll also be prompted to type your name in the “from” box, and you’ll also have the option to write a message to the recipient.
- now, click ‘submit’. everything is ready! remember, the recipient has only 7 days to open the email and download the title. they then have a 14-day reading period, at the end of which the e-book is automatically returned to you.
kindle book loan: the product detail page method
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Another popular way to share your favorite kindle ebooks with friends and family (and, well, anyone) is through the product detail page in the amazon kindle store.
- go to the kindle store and choose the book you would like to share. Remember, you must have already purchased the eBook before you can lend it to someone else.
- now, check that the title is shareable. To do this, open the ‘product details’ section, where it will indicate the status of the book.
- Assuming it’s a sharing eBook, click “Lend This Book” which is a link at the top of the page.
- Now, a new window should appear, where you will be asked to fill in the name of the recipient, as well as your own. Just like the first method, you can also leave an optional message to the person you’re sending the e-book to.
- click ‘submit’ and voila! You have successfully borrowed your e-book. remember to ask your friend to check their email so they don’t miss the link for a limited time.
how to borrow kindle ebooks
If your friend or family member loaned you one of their eBooks using the two methods above, follow these steps to download it.
- Go to your email inbox and open the email that was sent to you through kindle. The email must be tagged with amazon.com, and the subject line will mention a borrowed kindle e-book.
- click ‘borrow your book now’.
- to read the e-book, you’ll need to download the free kindle reading app if you don’t have an e-reader of your own. If you already have the app or plan to download it directly to your e-reader, you can click ‘accept borrowed book’.
- If you don’t have the app or an e-reader, no problem. you can still click ‘accept borrowed book’ and download the app via the next page.
- If you are not already signed in to your amazon account, you will be prompted to sign in now.
- Select the device you want to download the ebook to and click the ‘accept borrowed book’ button on the right side of the amazon page.
how to return a borrowed kindle ebook
If you’ve lent an ebook to a friend or family member, they’ll automatically return it after a maximum of 14 days, so you don’t have to worry about forgetting to return it.
but if you’re a very fast reader or have changed your mind about the book, you might want to return it to her sooner. here’s how:
- open the manage your content and devices tab in your amazon kindle account.
- select the book you would like to return early by clicking the three little dots to the left of the book cover.
- click ‘remove from library’ and click ‘yes’ when asked to confirm. this will delete it from your library and immediately return it to the person who lent it to you.
kindle book loan: the family library method
If you want to share eBooks with your immediate family, then Amazon’s Family Library feature is worth a look. This allows up to two adults and four children to share not only their Kindle eBooks, but also their apps and audiobooks with each other.
The downside is that the device used to read these shared eBooks must be the designated family library-enabled device, so it won’t work on just any phone or tablet.
However, there is an advantage; there is no limited loan period like the previous two methods; you can share your eBook with your family for as long as you like, so they can take their time reading it. and you can also read the same book simultaneously.
To get started, you need to select the other people in your family who will use the family library. here’s how:
- go to amazon home
- click the ‘add adult’ button
- the other adult (remember, a maximum of two are allowed on one account) too they have to sign in to their own amazon account and accept the invitation.
- both of you should click “accept” when asked to confirm that you will share payment information and responsibilities when necessary.
- now click ‘create household’
- you can now choose the media you would like to share between your household. for example ebooks, audiobooks or games, then click ‘next’.
- you can follow the same steps to add children to the account by selecting ‘add a child’ or ‘add a teen’.
Once you’ve set up Amazon Family Library, it’s easy to share books with each other. Go to the “Manage Your Content and Devices” tab in your Amazon account and choose which book you’d like to download. simple!
conclusion
While not all Kindle eBooks are shareable, many are. Now, it’s easier than ever to lend and borrow eligible eBooks among friends and family.
Don’t have an e-reader yet? don’t worry, reading ebooks doesn’t have to leave a hole in your pocket; Check out our guide to the best free eBook readers for Android and iPhone.
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