This afternoon, while browsing The Well-Trained Mind Forums, I stumbled across a downright *thrilling* discovery. In an old thread, I found a link to this Wired Magazine article about custom-printing public domain books. Now, I'm an avid Google Books user, but *hate* reading books online (as do my kids). I also dislike printing everything out as it results in significant paper/toner usage and just isn't quite as nice as having the actual book in hand. Unfortunately, many of the public domain books that I love are either impossible to find, or prohibitively expensive.

The Espresso Book Machine will turn a digital copy into a library-quality, perfect bound book in just minutes (how magical is that?!), but unfortunately, only a handful of book stores in the U.S. own the machine. Even more distressing is the lack of a shipping option offered. Finally however, I found this: the Harvard Book Store will print and ship books! And better yet, their search system appears to tie into Google Books directly. This really is, in my mind, completely revolutionary and opens a whole new world of possibilities for homeschoolers!
After quick deliberation, I ordered copies of the following (at a mere $8/apiece):

• Handbook Of Nature Study: For Teachers And Pupils In Elementary Schools by Dietrich Lange
• Nature Study in Elementary Schools: A Manual for Teachers by Lucy Langdon Williams Wilson
• In the Child's World: Morning Talks for Kindergartens, Primary Schools and Home by Emilie Poulsson (I adore this book and refer to it often!)
• Nature in Verse: A Poetry Reader for Children by Mary Isabella Lovejoy
• The Child's Fairy Geography, Or, A Merry Trip Round Europe by Forbes Edward Winslow (absolutely delightful and quite informative!)
• Legends of the Middle Ages: Narrated with Special Reference to Literature and Art by Hélène Adeline Guerber
• Scenes and Characters of the Middle Ages by Edward Lewes Cutts (contains some good information not readily available elsewhere)

• Sharp Eyes: A Rambler's Calendar of Fifty-Two Weeks Among Insects, Birds, and Flowers by William Hamilton Gibson (referred to often by Emilie Poulsson in the above volume)
• The Book of Nature Myths by Florence Holbrook
• The Fairy Land of Flowers: A Popular Illustrated Botany for the Home and School by Mara Louise Pratt-Chadwick
• The Stories of My Four Friends by Jane Andrews (The "Four Friends" are the four seasons)
• Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children by Walter Barnes (a fairly useful anthology)
• Merrie England: Travels, Tales and Historical Sketches and Bonnie Scotland: Tales of Her History, Heroes and Poets by Grace Greenwood (excellent!)
• Chaucer for Schools by Mrs. H.R. Haweis (also excellent!)
• Stories from Old English Poetry by Abby Sage Richardson
• Old Ballads in Prose by Eva March Tappan
• The Open Road: A Little Book for Wayfarers and The Friendly Town: A Little Book for the Urbane by Edward Verrall Lucas
• A Book of Golden Deeds of All Times and All Lands by Charlotte M. Yonge
• English Fairy Tales and More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs
• Ethics for Young People by Charles Carroll Everett ("A dry subject attractively treated")