Stanza

In my App Store browsing, I stumbled upon the eBook reader Stanza. There were a few different applications for reading eBooks, but Stanza is the application that has truly stood out.

What caught me by surprise is their large amount of fully available and free books. I immediately tapped through and downloaded not one, but six great classic novels. I was stunned still by the simple reading interface. The eBooks are stored as RTFs (although there are options to import multiple formats, such as PDF), and users view each page separately, flicking through as though leafing through a normal book.

Tapping the screen opens a few options on the bottom, from browsing chapters to changing font size, and there is even an option to search for specific text. It’s also simply to just hop back to the main menu, as the software automatically bookmarks the page.

If a user is interested in importing their own eBooks, there is a computer-based program by the same name that is downloadable from LexCycle that allows that exact thing, but please note that it is only available to Mac users, so Windows users have my condolences.

The program is still technically in beta (on its sixth edition), but I would easily say that this is one of the most complete eBook readers available, at least of the apps that are free. I plan on using it plenty, and I know a few sites to get my own free eBooks, so this ought to be an entertaining application for those boring train rides. Now I can be the trendy man with the iPhone instead of the imposing figure carrying an old edition of Freud’s ‘Civilization and Its Discontents’.

Oh by the way... if you want to see something fun, turn your iPhone sideways at any point that you're browsing this program.