Sidestone Library Program

Sidestone Press is a member of the Open Book Collective (OBC), an international initiative that enables libraries to support independent open access publishers in a coordinated and sustainable way.

All Sidestone books can be read freely online, and >78% titles are available as open access downloads. Library support helps make this possible. By contributing to Sidestone Press through the Open Book Collective, libraries help sustain the publication and global availability of open access scholarly books.

Since adopting this model, Sidestone publications have already facilitated more than one million downloads worldwide, demonstrating the broad reach and impact of openly accessible academic research.

Through the Open Book Collective, libraries can support the work of a range of open access publishers, infrastructure providers, and scholarly initiatives via a single platform. This collaborative model reduces administrative overhead for libraries while helping sustain diverse, community-driven scholarly publishing.

Supporting Sidestone Press

Libraries that wish to support Sidestone Press can now do so through the Open Book Collective. Contributions through OBC directly support our open access publishing activities and help ensure the continued availability of high-quality scholarly books in archaeology, heritage studies, and related fields.

Information about supporting Sidestone Press through OBC can be found here: https://openbookcollective.org/packages/27/info/

Why libraries support an open access publisher

Our publishing model is based on the principle that scholarly knowledge should not be restricted by technical, financial, or geographic barriers. Open access publishing allows research to be read, downloaded, and shared globally without paywalls.

Library support helps make this possible. By supporting Sidestone Press through the Open Book Collective, libraries contribute to the long-term sustainability of open access scholarly publishing while ensuring that high-quality academic research remains freely available worldwide.

Supporting libraries therefore play an important role in enabling:

• the continued publication of open access scholarly monographs
• the global availability of research without paywalls
• sustainable, independent academic publishing infrastructures

Benefits for Supporting Libraries

Libraries supporting Sidestone Press receive a number of practical benefits in addition to supporting sustainable open access publishing:

• Full access to the Sidestone ebook collection via IP recognition, allowing users at the supporting institution to download all our publications directly from our website.
• A 25% discount on printed books ordered directly from Sidestone Press.
• Become a patron by sharing your account. If you have a partnership with an institute that is not likely to be able to afford their own membership (small museum/institute, university from a developing country), feel free to ask us to add their IPs to your account at no extra cost. As long as their usage is in line with your own usage, we are happy to add them to the program as part of your account.
• Title information can be automatically imported to your library system via OCLC/Worldcat global collection (Collection name: Sidestone Press Books | Collection ID: sidestone.ebooks) and via ExLibris. We can also provide regular title updates via e-mail. We are currently setting up a title database with Thoth.

Why we work with the Open Book Collective

The Open Book Collective provides a sustainable funding framework for open access book publishing by bringing together libraries and publishers in a transparent and collaborative environment. By participating in this initiative, Sidestone Press can focus on publishing and disseminating scholarly work while libraries benefit from a streamlined way to support multiple open access initiatives.