Brazen eBooks is the digital book and film branch of BrazenBooks, which specialises in rare and hard‑to‑find vintage publications from around the world.
eBooks, I appreciate, are not for everyone. I began copying books more than 20 years ago for my own convenience, and it quickly became clear that other collectors were interested in them for research, quick and easy browsing, convenient storage, and the ability to search text. I agree that there is still nothing quite like owning an original copy, and if that’s your preference, please visit BrazenBooks for physical editions of many of the titles available here.
Times are changing, and although the process of archiving hasn’t changed much, the quality certainly has. Most of us now have smartphones, tablets, and laptops connected to high‑speed internet, which makes accessing digital content and large files relatively easy. Today, eBooks offer a practical and enjoyable way to access rare and hard‑to‑find material that we might not otherwise be able to locate or afford.
I like to scan books in the same way you would read them, and at the highest quality possible relative to file size. These eBooks are almost entirely my own work and have been scanned at a high‑quality setting, then optimised to produce a more manageable file size, with most A4‑sized magazines coming in at under 100 MB. Although larger than some versions you may find elsewhere, the quality is well worth the extra storage.
Books are scanned by hand using a flatbed scanner. Covers are usually cleaned up digitally — removing old price tags and other imperfections — because it’s always nice to have a decent‑looking cover in your eBook collection. Internal pages and back covers are left as they are. I always try to scan from an original copy whenever possible, and I won’t scan poor or damaged books.
Brazen eBooks gives me the opportunity to offer a much wider selection of titles covering all kinds of specialist interests. This is, and always will be, a work in progress, with new books being added all the time.
So have a look around, buy one, and see what you think. Try a digital copy before spending money on an original, or build your own library of favourite titles — tagged, organised, and always quickly, easily, and discreetly available whenever you want them.
You can find more information about digital delivery and the payment process here.