I love, love, LOVE to read, and one of my greatest desires in homeschooling is to pass the love of reading on to my children. I also want them to appreciate classic literature. The words are beautiful. The language of yesterday makes one think. I want classics to have a big role in our homeschool.
I usually prefer traditional paper books to e-books, but I put both my Kindle and iPad to the test when I recently reviewed the entire set of Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks. Did I become an Ebook convert? You’ll have to keep reading to find out.
About Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks
Yesterday’s Classics provides a package of 225 classic children’s books in Ebook format. Available in both Kindle and Epub files, Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks are compatible with virtually any electronic reading device. The Kindle edition works on the Kindle, and the Epub edition works with the iPad, Nook, and other reading devices (including the Kindle App).
Each Ebook comes with a table of contents and illustrations (if there were illustrations in the original print book). The Ebook package contains 22 different genres geared toward children from kindergarten through middle school, though the books can certainly be enjoyed by those older than 13 or 14.
Titles include
- Tanglewood Tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- The Story of the Greeks by Helene A. Guerber
- Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt
- Famous Men of Rome by John H. Haraan
- Tales from Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb
- The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan
- Heroes Every Child Should Know by Hamilton Wright Mabie
- and many more.
The Ebook package also contains several helps to guide you in using the Ebooks.
- List of all books, arranged by level, title, author, and genre
- List of all books with descriptions and thumbnails
- Guide to Ereader devices and software
- Guide to downloading files and transferring them to an Ereader device
The Yesterday’s Classics Ebook Package is offered at $99.95.
My Experience with Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks
As a book lover, I was SO excited to download Yesterday’s Classics. I requested both the Kindle and Epub files, as I have both a Kindle and an iPad. The books are downloaded in 13 zip files (26, if you are downloading both editions of the books). Each zip file took a couple of minutes to download.
I followed the directions in the Guide to Downloading Files and Transferring them to an Ereader Device. The file transfer went well and didn’t take long at all. I did my downloading and transferring while watching TV, so I didn’t feel like I was waiting for my computer all night.
Yesterday’s Classics on the Kindle – Once I had the books transferred to my Kindle, I began organizing them into collections, based on author, genre, and age range. That took a long time. In fact, I’m still not finished, but it’s worth it to me to have my books organized, so I can easily find them. Organizing was made easier by using the book lists included with the Ebook package.
Though I didn’t have time to read all 225 titles, I gave several of the books a good look. First, I looked at Our Island Story, because I own the print copy of the book, and I wanted to compare. The table of contents is clickable, so you can skip to any chapter you like. The illustrations are also all contained in the Ebook edition.
I also checked out A Child’s Book of Stories, which had beautiful illustrations (black and white on the Kindle) to go along with classic children’s stories, like Hansel and Grettel and Cinderella.
My biggest concern about books on the Kindle is formatting. I’ve downloaded some free books before, that have no table of contents and really bad formatting, and it makes reading on the Kindle very difficult. Not so with Yesterday’s Classics. Each book I checked was formatted very well and was easy to read on the Kindle.
Yesterday’s Classics on the iPad – I imported Yesterday’s Classics to iBooks on my Kindle. It’s a little detail, but I love that each of the Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks has a lovely Ecover displayed on my iBookshelf.
I read A Child’s Book of Stories, so I could compare reading it on the iPad to reading it on the Kindle. The formatting was wonderful on the iPad, too, and I loved that the illustrations were in color. As on the Kindle, the Table of Contents is clickable, allowing you to skip to whatever chapter you like.
Reading Yesterday’s Classics on both the Kindle and the iPad was very pleasurable. I may become an Ebook convert yet!
The Low Down on Yesterday’s Classics
The Pros:
- 225 Titles in the package
- Many titles are suggested in classic curricula, such as Ambleside Online.
- Each Ebook includes a table of contents and original illustrations
- Available in Epub and Kindle files, so you can read them on any device
- Book lists, arranged by level, title, author, and genre are a huge help!
- A great way to add lots of books to your library at an affordable cost
- Good customer service. If you accidentally order the wrong format, you can get the right format. Or if you need both formats, you can get the second format free of charge.
The Cons:
- Many of the titles are available free on the internet, though the formatting may not be as nice
My Overall Opinion: Of all the homeschool products I’ve reviewed this year (and there were a lot of good ones), this was hand’s down my favorite! I absolutely love reading these books, especially on my iPad, with the colored illustrations. I’m already penciling several of the Yesterday’s Classics Ebooks into our curriculum for next year. Yesterday’s Classics has completely changed my feeling about Ebooks, and for the better!
Important Information about Yesterday’s Classics
Website: www.yesterdaysclassics.com
Price: $99.95 for the Ebook package
Recommended Ages: Kindergarten through Middle School, though both older and younger children would probably enjoy some of the books.
Sample: Download (scroll down the page) The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins
Other Products by Yesterday’s Classics: If you’re not sold on Ebooks, Yesterday’s Classics also offers books in paperback format. Prices vary by the book.
To see what the rest of the Crew has to say, visit the Homeschool Crew Blog!