Are you wondering, “Does Amazon Prime include books?” Discover the benefits of Amazon Prime Reading and tips on how to use this amazing Amazon Prime subscriber perk. Plus, get my top picks for the best Prime Reading books you should borrow.
Think of Prime Reading as a “members only” library. As an Amazon Prime member and book lover, I’ve been taking advantage of Amazon Prime Reading to borrow books for free for years now. Did you know it’s one of the best ways to read the Harry Potter books for free, as well as several of your other favorite book series, like Virgin River and Bridgerton?!
It’s one of those perks about which I think many, if not most, people with an Amazon Prime membership are familiar.
Guide to Amazon Prime Reading
What is Amazon Prime Reading?
Amazon Prime Reading is a benefit included with Amazon Prime membership. Amazon Prime members get “unlimited access to a rotating catalog of ebooks and audiobooks” as well as comic books and magazines!
How does Prime Reading work?
Amazon Prime members can “borrow” up to ten titles from the Prime Reading library of 3,000+ books at a time for free, meaning at no cost beyond that of your Amazon Prime membership. Readers can enjoy no due dates on the books they borrow as well.
How much is Prime Reading?
Prime Reading is “free” for Amazon Prime members, meaning there is no additional charge to access the Prime Reading library beyond that of your Amazon Prime membership, to access and borrow up to ten titles from the Prime Reading library at a time.
Not an Amazon Prime member yet? Get a free 30-day trial to access benefits like the Prime Reading program and more.
How to Access Prime Reading and Borrow Books
There are three easy ways for Amazon Prime members to access the Prime Reading library to borrow books.
First (the easiest way), is to log into your Amazon account and visit Amazon’s web page dedicated to Prime Reading. Browse the catalog and click on a title you want to access. Then, click “Read For Free.” See the image below for more details:
Second, you can log into your Amazon account, search the “Kindle Store” in the search bar, then check off “Prime Reading Eligible” on the left sidebar. Browse the catalog and click “Read For Free” when you find a title you want to read. See the image below for more details:
Third, you can log into the Amazon Kindle App and click “Discover.” Then, click “Prime Reading.” Browse the catalog and click on a title you want to access. Then, click “Add to Library.” See the video below for more details:
No matter which of these three ways you borrow ebooks or audiobooks, they will be delivered to your Kindle Library in your Kindle app or on your Kindle device. In other words, you need either the Kindle app or a Kindle device to read.
If audio narration is available for the books you borrow, once you open the title to read it in the Kindle app, you will see a clickable link to download the audio files and listen. Additionally, if you have the Audible app, the audio files will be available there to download and listen to as well. See the image below for more details:
It’s so easy!
How to Return Prime Reading Books
As mentioned earlier, there is no “due date” on the books you borrow. So, technically you need not return any of the ten or fewer books you borrow.
However, you can only borrow ten titles from Prime Reading at a time. Once you try to borrow an eleventh title, Amazon will prompt you to return a title in order to continue borrowing. If you want to continue to borrow new books, then scroll through the list of your borrowed books that Amazon provides and click “Return and continue” on the titles you wish to return.
Best Books on Prime Reading
The Prime Reading library currently has over 3,000+ Prime reads in both non-fiction (including magazines) and fiction (including everything from children’s books to thrillers, science fiction, historical fiction, romance, and more). This also includes books with Audible narration in Prime Reading.
I perused the current offerings and list below my top picks for the best books on Prime Reading at the time of this post. They include bestselling books and series, as well as classics, many of which I personally read and loved, and others that I know are really popular with readers.
Fiction
- A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum (Read with Jenna Book Club pick)
- Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam (Read with Jenna Book Club pick)
- The Love Songs of W.E.B. du Bois by Honoree Fanonne Jeffers (Oprah’s Book Club pick; National Book Award Longlist)
- The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine (Reese’s Book Club pick)
- Bridgerton: The Duke and I by Julia Quinn
- The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson
- The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
- Virgin River by Robyn Carr
You can also find a ton of classics to borrow in Amazon Prime Reading, including so many titles that are on the Rory Gilmore book list (popular with readers of The Literary Lifestyle), such as The Great Gatsby, Little Women, Jane Eyre, The Age of Innocence, Romeo and Juliet, A Room With a View, The Awakening, My Antonia, The Adventures of Pinocchio, Frankenstein, Dracula, Moby Dick, Anna Karenina, Sense and Sensibility, Great Expectations, Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, 1984, Pride and Prejudice, Madame Bovary, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and more.
Lastly, believe it or not, Prime Reading is a great way to borrow some of the bestselling fiction books of all time. You can borrow free Agatha Christie books and free Harry Potter books! (I have done so myself.)
Non-Fiction
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
- 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do by Amy Morin
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
- How Not to Die by Michael Greger, M.D.
- 10% Happier by Dan Harris
- The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking
- The White Album by Joan Didion
- The House of Gucci by Sara Gay Forden
Frequently Asked Questions About Amazon Prime Reading
Before we conclude these tips on reading, I want to clear up a few frequently asked questions about this service.
Kindle Unlimited vs. Prime Reading
Many readers wonder about the difference between Prime Reading and Kindle Unlimited. In short:
- Prime Reading is a membership benefit for Amazon Prime subscribers. If you are an Amazon Prime member, you can borrow up to ten titles at a time from the Prime Reading library, which is a rotating catalog of 3,000+ ebooks, magazines, and audiobooks, at no additional charge.
- Kindle Unlimited is a monthly membership that is completely separate from Prime Reading. Whether or not you are an Amazon Prime member, you would need to also subscribe to Kindle Unlimited to access the Kindle Unlimited library. Kindle Unlimited subscribers can borrow up to ten titles at a time from a rotating catalog of over 3 million ebooks, magazines, and audiobooks.
So, the main difference between Kindle Unlimited and Prime Reading is the number of titles available. Of course, the cost also differs because they are different memberships. Amazon Prime comes with a lot of other perks (like free 2-day shipping), whereas Kindle Unlimited is a subscription meant only for borrowing digital books.
Interested in Kindle Unlimited? Get a free 30-day trial.
Prime Reading vs. Audible
Since Prime Reading comes with access to certain audiobooks, readers also wonder about the difference between Audible and Prime Reading. In short:
- Prime Reading is a membership benefit for Amazon Prime subscribers, by which they can borrow up to ten titles at a time from a rotating catalog of 3,000+ ebooks, magazines, and audiobooks.
- Audible is a monthly membership by which members get one credit per month, with which they can listen to any audiobook in Audible’s full catalog and/or access to unlimited listening to the Audible Plus catalog and exclusive discounts, including 30% off additional purchases each month.
Learn More:
Is Prime Reading Worth It?
If you are already an Amazon Prime subscriber, Prime Reading is definitely worth it, so long as you can find titles you want to read, as there is no charge beyond that of your Amazon Prime membership to borrow books this way.
If you are not already an Amazon Prime subscriber, then you should review all the benefits of the Amazon Prime membership to determine whether it will be valuable to you.
