When you hear the name “Gutenberg”, your first thought probably is of the Gutenberg Bible. Printed in the 1450s by Johannes Gutenberg, in Mainz, Germany, the Gutenberg Bible was the first major book printed in the West using movable type. It was the revolutionary advancement in technology that introduced printed books to the Western world.

But do you know about Project Gutenberg? Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is part of an equally revolutionary advancement in book publishing: the eBook. Hart, who unfortunately passed away in 2011 at age 64, invented eBooks. His Project Gutenberg continues its mission of digitizing and archiving cultural works, to “encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks”. Not only is Project Gutenberg the oldest digital library, it is one of the largest and it is free.

Project Gutenberg offers more than 42,000 free ePub books and free kindle books that you can download or read online. An additional 100,000 free eBooks are available through Project Gutenberg’s partners, affiliates and resources. All their eBooks are high quality and were previously published by “bona fide publishers”.

A new service from Project Gutenberg facilitates online publishing by contemporary authors through its self-publishing portal. It offers a free Authors Community Cloud Library, a social network Self-Publishing Portal. This Portal allows authors to share their works with readers as well as allows readers to provide comments, reviews and feedback to the authors. Every eBook has its own Details Page, Star Ratings, and Reader Comment area. There is no charge for using this service. Registration is not required for reading or downloading the publications or comments. However, registration is required to upload a book or post a comment.

Project Gutenberg is a remarkable volunteer-driven venture. They are grateful for donations of money and services. Whether you’re a booklover or an author who is a booklover, Project Gutenberg is a revolution you should join!