RESOURCES

Most UK ebook buyers use Amazon, Apple or Kobo. In the US, Barnes & Noble/Nook is a popular option too. 

If you already have an Amazon account it’s easy. Download the free Kindle app from the App store. Buy the ebook through your Amazon account. Read it using the app.

If you’re not a fan of Amazon you can support their rival, Kobo. Download the Kobo app and set up an account on Kobo.com.

If you have an iPad/iPhone, you might find the Apple books app is already downloaded for you. That's another great option.

The same titles are usually available to buy in all stores so it doesn’t matter which one you choose. Both Poetry for Life and Other Chronic Conditions and Poetry for Loving Life: Energizing Short Poems are available to buy on all ebook platforms (that includes stores and library services such as Smashwords, Hoopla, OverDrive as well as Amazon, Apple, Kobo, B&N).  

One key difference is that Amazon also offer a subscription service called Kindle Unlimited (KU). Authors can choose to include their titles in KU, which means that readers who subscribe to KU can read them for free. Kobo have an equivalent service, and the available titles will differ. Other platforms may do too. My poetry books are not available in any subscription service; you buy them individually as you would a paperback.

Ereaders are designed for reading long documents – reading on an ereader is closer to reading on paper than on screen. They also have a very long battery life, and of course fewer distractions than a tablet/phone. So if you read a lot of ebooks, they are a nice-to-have. Fortunately, you won't get eye strain reading a poetry book on a normal phone or tablet.

If you do get hooked on ebooks, you can buy a Kindle (for books bought through Amazon) or a Kobo (for books bought on Kobo.com, and Kobo also supports library borrowing). There are other makes too. I have a Kobo and also do a lot of my reading on my mini iPad. 

Yes, you can. On Amazon, you can buy an ebook for someone who lives in the same country as you. Select ‘Buy for others’ and give the recipient’s email address. Apple also have a gift option. (On Kobo, you can only send a gift card, not a particular book.)

Yes, you can. The libraries in Kent, where I live, use a free app called LIBBY. This is mind-blowingly fantastic. Download the app. Enter the number on your library card. Set up a PIN if you’ve never accessed online library services before (you might need to do this in person at the library). Then you can borrow ebooks, read them instantly and not even have to remember to return them – it’s automatic. 

My books are in the library. If you can't find them where you live, you can ask for them to be ordered in (anywhere in the world). Here are the details:

Poetry for Life and Other Chronic Conditions by A. K. Davidson (Straw Hat, 2024) ISBN: 9781899587827

Poetry for Loving Life: Energizing Short Poems by A. K. Davidson (Straw Hat, 2025) ISBN: 9781899587841.