This very clever website is like Netflix for books. In just three easy steps – Request, Read, Return – you’ve practically got a new library at home for your tots. You sign up for membership based on how many books you want to rent at a time, and the prices vary based on that. You pay per book and the more books you rent, the lower the price (so for 5-9 books it’s $1.75 per book, plus a monthly membership fee of $9.99). I rent 3 books for each of my 2 tots, so the total price per month is $20.49. Yes, this is like going to the library without the actual excursion (except that it costs). I have the best intentions to take my kids to the library, but last year we had time to go exactly twice. For busy families, this allows exploration of books that libraries provide, but with the convenience for those with busy lifestyles.
The great thing about BookPig is that it filters your selections based on the reading level of your tot (but you can remove the filter if you choose). It informs you of the reading level of each book, so there’s no guesswork. You then create a queue of all the books you want. Once you return finished books, it sends the next set to you. And if your tot loves a book, you have the option to buy. This is an especially convenient feature since all of us buy a TON of books that end up being shelved indefinitely. It keeps your bookshelves well-edited and honestly, at the end of the day, saves you money since you aren’t buying random books all the time. Most importantly, your tot gets to read lots of books!