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Kindle Deals

So I have developed a habit of checking on the Kindle Deals on Amazon. Amazon owns the Kindle, of course, and will offer sales on Kindle books to get people to buy  book and talk about it with their friends in order to inspire more sales perhaps? Sometimes popular and best-selling books go on sale for a day or a month and it can be a good deal as long as you don't mind the Kindle e-book version. Most of the Kindle books are fiction. I mention it here at the university because nonfiction books sometimes go on sale, too.

More often the nonfiction Kindle Deals are books that might be on the New York Times bestseller list or otherwise in the news. Beware the popular science books that may or may not include accurate information. I don't generally see scholarly science or health science books but they do occur. Look at the publisher to determine if the book is a scholarly book. Or consider the expertise of the author to the subject of the book. And is the date too old for the contents to still be up to date and accurate? The Kindle publication date reflects the release of the Kindle book, so switch to the hardcover version to see its publication date to determine the true release date of the book into the world.

I like  some of the history books, too. Sometimes a classic book is offered and I cannot resist it. Or a book that has been made into a movie so they are trying to get buzz about the upcoming movie. Or a new book from a book series is being released so older books from the series are put on sale.

Like any sale, decide if you really want or need it and establish a budget for what you can afford to spend. Sale prices vary but are often between $0.99 and $6.99. Authors have a say in allowing sales and setting prices.

There are Daily Deals that are only on sale for one day. And there are monthly sales. There may be other limited time sales of varying lengths; I cannot tell. Some Kindle Deal books seem to always be listed, which means the price is really the book's regular price now.

I also have a personal Kindle Unlimited account, which for a fee, allows me to "check out" up to 20 books that fit the Kindle Unlimited category. And sometimes the Kindle Deal books are also Kindle Unlimited books, which means I could read them already with my Kindle Unlimited subscription. The Kindle Unlimited subscription currently costs $9.99 a month. Kindle Unlimited rarely includes bestsellers so consider whether it includes the books you like to read.

• Kindle Deals
• Science Vendors Guide