Looking for something to read and can't get to the Library? Here are links to some mostly free online ebook sources.

Everyone should have membership with Auckland Libraries. It is free to join for Auckland residents, check the link to join up now. You are able to borrow ebooks and audiobooks without leaving home!

When you choose a book, you can log in with your library card number, and can start reading in your browser. When you have joined Auckland Libraries, and started reading books, you do have the option of downloading an app, such as Overdrive or Libby so that your book becomes a bit more portable, especially on a phone - Auckland Libraries has a guide for the apps. These apps can be adjustable to display dyslexic fonts, large print and lighting.

You can read freely and anonymously on their site, or create an account to keep an ongoing bookshelf. And there are books from all over the world (you can even search by countries on the globe).

Many books, most of them classics but freely available, and downloadable for ereader devices or onscreen.

Access to a colelction of selected reference e-books containing biography, literature, science, history, social sciences and more. Accessible from within the school network.

Have some fun with online Comics.

Still reeling from the loss of his mother, Jonas escapes into his vivid daydreams. After making his way through a portal in his grandmother’s strange painting, he finds himself lost in a fantasy world, unable to return. A webcomic.

House cats Elvis, Puck, and Lupin report on such breaking news stories as “The people are missing!” and “There’s a box with a towel inside it on the kitchen table.” Select ‘Past Reports’ for a list of topics or click the random button you will find at the bottom of each comic.

Though being the new kid is never easy, it’s especially hard for Peter, an average kid whose classmates include a mummy, a pumpkinhead, and a skeleton. A webcomic.

This webcomic follows John Egbert, who on his 13th birthday plays a video game that unleashes the apocalypse

Do you like listening to stories while you're crafting or cooking? Try some of these mostly free options.

Auckland Libraries have a great selection of audiobooks.

Radio NZ's Storytime has a selection of NZ novels and picture book stories you can listen to without needing to join up or download apps.

Watch comedians, the PM and TV people read NZ bedtime stories at TVNZ. Maybe you could try and sit down with the younger people in your bubble for storytime.

Lit2Go offers audiobooks, plays, short stories, and poems that have been tailored for use in classrooms. Along with each free audiobook, you’ll get citation information, play time, and word count. Some, like Shakespeare’s Hamlet, have an accompanying PDF that can be used to read-along with the text.

For Sci-Fi readers… Mind Webs was a radio series that began in the 1970s. Over 169 half-hour shows were recorded until the series ended in 1984, of which over 150 shows have been archived and can be accessed.

If you have access to Spotify, check out Spotify’s “Audiobooks” playlist for a list of audiobooks that are always being added to by the service. Spotify is free to listen, or you can go premium if you don’t want the ads.

Short Story Guide is designed to help middle school / high school teachers, students, and reading lovers find the right story and allow them to easily read online short stories free, where possible. It has examples of many types of stories. The stories are listed by theme, note that if the story isn't freely available there is no link.

Words and Pictures to Comfort, Inspire and Entertain Children in Lockdown... A collection of short stories, poems, essays and pictures has contributions from more than 110 children’s writers and illustrators, including Lauren Child, Anthony Horowitz, Greg James and Chris Smith, Michael Morpurgo, Liz Pichon, Axel Scheffler, Francesca Simon and Jacqueline Wilson. The collection, published by Bloomsbury, is dedicated to the doctors, nurses, carers, porters, cleaners and everyone currently working in hospitals.

Contact Whaea Rachel by email if you have a question about any of these links, or have suggestions for other links.