Whether the masses know it or not, Google has been recreating the Library of Alexandria in an online format. While it is still a work in progress, the Google Book Search is home to hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of printed documents that have been digitized for your searching needs. In terms of actual books, works that are out of copyright are available for full download and printing at no cost to the user.

The applications of the Google Book Search are almost endless. The first things that pop into my mind are the English classes that I had to take in college. Well, not the classes themselves, but the hundreds if not thousands of dollars that I spent on books. Take Shakespeare – I had to buy two different anthologies of Shakespeare titles. In the mean time, Google Book Search has the entire works of William Shakespeare available for full download. Full download! Come on!

I could easily be in a few thousand dollars LESS of student loan debt if this service was available ten years ago, damn it.

Since I know a lot of college students (and those who talk to college students) find their way on to my blog, I’m making the strong recommendation that you check Google Book Search for the texts needed in your literature and English classes before you go spending hundreds of dollars on anthologies. Speaking as someone who is in a great deal of student loan debt, trust me – every little bit counts when trying to save money in college!