planetebook.com
What Planet eBook Is and Why People Use It
Planet eBook (planetebook.com) is a small, curated library of classic literature you can download for free. The site focuses on well-known titles (think Orwell, Austen, Dickens, Tolstoy, Melville) and offers each book in multiple formats so you can read on different devices without messing around with conversions. The homepage pitch is straightforward: “100% free” classic eBooks for common devices.
What makes it different from the giant public-domain libraries is the scale and the intent. Planet eBook is not trying to be the biggest. On its “About” page it explicitly frames the project as a “small selection” of “high-quality eBooks,” positioned as a more pleasant alternative to rougher-looking free files you find elsewhere.
What You Can Download: Titles, Authors, and the Size of the Catalog
Planet eBook’s catalog is mostly a “greatest hits” list of public-domain (or otherwise out-of-copyright) classics. The site has a single “Free eBooks” index page that lists the full collection A–W, and it’s a manageable number of titles rather than thousands. From that index you’ll see books like 1984, Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby, Moby-Dick, War and Peace, and many more.
There’s also an “Authors” page that acts like a second navigation route: pick an author and jump into the books available for that writer. The author list includes names like Austen, the Brontës, Conrad, Dickens, Fitzgerald, Hugo, Joyce, Kafka, Orwell, Twain, Wilde, and others.
The practical implication: if you want breadth (deep cuts, obscure pamphlets, multiple editions), you’ll hit the ceiling quickly. If you want a short list of classics that are easy to grab and read, it’s set up for exactly that.
Formats and Reading Experience: EPUB, MOBI, and PDF
Planet eBook publishes downloads in three mainstream formats: EPUB, MOBI, and PDF.
Here’s what that means in real use:
- EPUB: Best for most phones, tablets, and modern e-readers because it’s reflowable text (you can change font size, margins, and sometimes fonts). Planet eBook pushes EPUB as the practical choice for mobile because resizing text is painless.
- MOBI: A legacy Kindle-friendly format. Planet eBook still offers MOBI specifically for Kindle devices and even provides basic “copy to Documents folder” instructions for sideloading via USB.
- PDF: Fixed-layout pages. Planet eBook highlights PDF for typography and “elegant” presentation, which fits the site’s quality angle. PDFs can look great on larger screens, but can be annoying on small phones unless you zoom constantly.
That device guidance is actually one of the site’s better features: it’s not a long technical tutorial, but it covers the common “what format should I use?” confusion and points to typical reading apps (like Adobe Digital Editions for EPUB on desktop, and Google Play Books/iBooks on mobile).
Copyright and Legality: The Important Fine Print
Planet eBook repeatedly positions its library as out-of-copyright classics, but it also includes a country-specific caution. The “About” page says the books it publishes in Australia are “in the public domain and out of copyright,” and tells readers to check their own country’s copyright laws before downloading.
That warning matters because “public domain” is not globally uniform. A book can be public domain in one country and still restricted in another depending on author death date, publication date rules, and local copyright terms. If you’re unsure, the safest approach is to treat public domain status as jurisdiction-dependent and verify for your location before redistributing files.
For context, large public-domain projects like Project Gutenberg also emphasize public-domain availability and focus on works whose U.S. copyright has expired, with a big volunteer digitization pipeline behind it.
How Planet eBook Compares to Bigger Free eBook Libraries
If you compare Planet eBook to a massive library like Project Gutenberg, the contrast is simple:
- Planet eBook: curated list, “small selection,” emphasis on clean reading experience and multi-format downloads.
- Project Gutenberg: huge scale (tens of thousands of titles), multiple formats, and a long-running volunteer production model.
So the “best” option depends on what you’re trying to do. If you’re building a large reading list, doing research, or chasing obscure texts, Gutenberg (and other big archives) are usually faster because of sheer coverage. If you’re helping someone get started with classics and you want a short menu of familiar books that download cleanly in EPUB/PDF/MOBI, Planet eBook is easy to recommend.
Trust Signals and Basic Safety Checks
Planet eBook is a long-running domain (it has been registered for decades according to at least one third-party site checker), and it’s a simple content site rather than a store asking for payment details. That said, third-party “is it a scam?” scores vary across services, and those services often rely on automated signals rather than deep audits.
A sensible approach is to judge it like any download site:
- Prefer downloading only the books you recognize as classics and likely public domain.
- Avoid giving unnecessary personal info.
- If a page tries to push unexpected installers or redirects (not something Planet eBook is advertising as its model), back out and use another public-domain source.
The good news is that Planet eBook’s core promise is straightforward: browse a list, click a title, download an ebook file.
Key takeaways
- Planet eBook is a curated, free-download site for classic literature, built around a smaller collection rather than a massive archive.
- Downloads are offered in EPUB, MOBI, and PDF, with simple guidance for phones, computers, and Kindle devices.
- The site states its books (as published in Australia) are public domain/out of copyright, and it tells you to confirm rules for your own country.
- If you need breadth and volume, a large library like Project Gutenberg is the natural complement.
FAQ
Is Planet eBook actually free?
Yes. The site advertises its downloads as “100% free,” and its catalog pages present books as free EPUB/PDF/MOBI downloads.
What file format should I choose?
EPUB is usually the best default for phones/tablets because you can resize text. MOBI is aimed at Kindle sideloading. PDF is best when you care about fixed layout/typography and you’re reading on a larger screen.
Is it legal to download from Planet eBook?
Planet eBook says the books it publishes in Australia are out of copyright/public domain, but it also warns you to check your local laws. Legality depends on the book and your country’s copyright rules.
How big is the library?
It’s intentionally small and curated. The “Free eBooks” page lists the full set in an A–W index rather than thousands of entries.
If a title isn’t on Planet eBook, where else can I look?
Project Gutenberg is a major public-domain library with a much larger catalog and multiple formats, and it’s often the next stop when you need more variety.
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