eBooks are digital versions of texts that can be accessed and read online. The Library collections includes access to over 600,000 eBooks to support your online learning and research.
You can read eBooks online or download them for offline reading.
We often recommend using the Read Online feature as this gives you more options to add annotations, bookmark pages, print or copy text from the eBook. Some of our eBook suppliers have accessibility features to read the book aloud or change the text size and background colour.
Most eBooks can be downloaded for a period of 24 hours to ensure all users are given a fair chance to access them. If an eBook is on loan to another user you can choose to be added to a reservation list and will be notified when the eBook becomes available.
You can access your downloaded reading in Adobe Digital Editions and this can be downloaded for Microsoft, iOS and android devices. There is a guide to installing Adobe Digital editions at the bottom of this box.
All our eBooks meet our accessibility requirements and have enhanced features such as 'text to speech' to support your needs. Please find our accessibility statements from our main eBook suppliers in the box below. You can also access the Aspire Report rating for each publisher.
You can find E-books in a variety of ways.
Why do I need to search in more than one place?
The Library uses three main platforms -Ebook Central (Proquest), VLeBooks and Ebsco. You can find out more about these suppliers from the navigation panel to the left hand side.
We also have other smaller, subject specific collections from a range of suppliers and publishers. You may find more information about those on your Subject guides or you can look at the subject pages in the navigation panel to the left hand side of this screen.
It's worth noting that not all texts are available in eBook format.
The Library cannot digitise or create eBooks in-house; they must be purchased via academic suppliers. eBooks can only be purchased for institutional multi-user access if the publishers have made them available. Many publishers (particularly those of texts aimed at practioners, as opposed to students) have not made their titles available as eBooks.
Some titles will be available for individual eBook purchase (i.e. via Amazon for Kindle) but not for institutional purchase. The availability of an eBook via Amazon or a similar online eBook seller is no guarantee that the title in question will be available for the Library to buy.
Where a book is included on one of your module reading lists, we will try to purchase a copy as an eBook and there will be a direct link to it from within the list.
Many of our eBooks are purchased as part of large or multi-disciplinary packages from specialist eBook suppliers across a wide range of publishers and subjects. We are constantly adding to the eBook collection, so it's always worth checking Library Search to see what we have on a subject.
Watch this short video to find out how to search for and access eBooks from Library Search.
There is a PDF of the slides used in this recording and a transcript below.
As well as the larger multi-disciplinary collections of eBooks, we also purchase smaller, subject specific collections of eBooks and some of our larger subscription databases may included eBooks as part of their overall collection.
Although many of these are included in results from a Library Plus search, sometimes, it's good to be able to browse through a smaller, subject specific database. The list below shows the majority of suppliers who provide access to eBooks.
You can also find details of some of the recommended subject sites from the navigation panel on the left hand side of the screen.