It's the season for books on the beach, but that doesn't mean you'll have to ... ahem … "shell" out money if you're packing an e-book reader along with that sunscreen.

Some websites let you download or borrow e-books for free for a limited amount of time. — Getty Images

Amazon's BookLending.com and Lendle let you borrow and lend Kindle titles for 14 days. You can get free e-books to keep forever at Open Library, Project Gutenberg, Free-ebooks.net and Google's Reader Store.

See also: Would you cuddle up with an e-reader?

Or, with a library card, you can get free e-books and audio books from OverDrive.com.

Don't own an e-book reader? No worry. You can download special aps onto your laptops, tablet computers and smartphones to let you read to your heart's content. Check Amazon and Barnes & Noble for these free programs.

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Sid Kirchheimer writes about consumer and health issues.