Get a free 2-month subscription to a kids' e-book service
From the Cheapskate: Built for kids 12 and under, Epic provides unlimited e-books and audiobooks for a flat monthly rate.
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There's a "Netflix" for everything nowadays: music, books, magazines, videogames, Lego -- you name it.
Epic is like Netflix for children's e-books and audiobooks, offering unlimited reading and listening for a flat monthly rate.
Normally you can get a one-month trial, but for a limited time, Cheapskate readers can get a free two-month Epic subscription when applying coupon code epiccnet.
This is an amazing service, one that I wish existed 10 years ago. My youngest, who is 13, is just on the cusp of being too old: Epic's titles are intended for ages 0 to 12. Both my kids would likely have chewed through every book in Epic's library -- probably multiple times.
Speaking of which, the catalog includes over 10,000 books -- not a ton, but a lot, and with some notable authors and series. The aforementioned 13-year-old, for example, still enjoys "Big Nate," and Epic has a whopping 24 of those books.
Earlier this week, Epic also started offering audiobooks, including a ton of "Goosebumps" titles and a couple from Rick Riordan's popular "39 Clues" series, as well as Spanish-language books. The Epic library even includes some "read to me" titles with built-in narration.
The books can be read in just about any Web browser (meaning on PCs, Macs, Chromebooks, etc.), but Epic also has apps for Android and iOS.
After your trial (which does require a credit card, no surprise there) ends, the service will cost you a very reasonable $4.99 per month. (Seriously, you'd pay that or more for a single children's print book.) However, if you're an educator or librarian, you can continue to get Epic for free! How awesome is that?
If you have kids in this age range, I insist you try Epic. And while I'm making demands, someone build me a time machine so I can take this back to my toddlers. Man, they would have loved it.
Bonus deal: Check it out: the perfect tablet to pair with Epic! For a limited time, and while supplies last, Best Buy has the Nabi BigTab 20-inch (!) Android tablet for $249.99, shipped (plus tax). OK, maybe that's actually too big, at least for little kids (it's heavy), but it has a built-in kickstand and a kid-friendly interface and features (including parental controls). This is one big tablet. It normally sells for $400.
P.S. Don't forget, you still have time to enter the Cheapskate's iPhone 6S giveaway!