Download Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town For Free

About Reviews Buy it Download e-book

/

Official Downloads:

On this page, you will find downloadable full-text versions of my book in open formats that contain no DRM (a stupid, scientifically bankrupt technology that seeks to restrict how you use and copy digital files after acquiring them). They are licensed under terms set out by Creative Commons, terms that allow you to undertake unlimited noncommercial distribution of the book. Share this book! That’s what it’s for. In the words of Woody Guthrie, “Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that’s all we wanted to do.”

What’s more, if you live in the developing world — a country not on the World Bank’s list of high-income countries — you can do much more. You can make your own editions, charge money for them, make movies, translations, plays and anything else you care to, and charge whatever you want, without sending me one cent — you don’t even need my permission. See the FAQ for more. The only restriction is that you can’t export your versions to the world’s high-income countries where all my paying customers are. Deal? Deal.

One more thing: if you want this book in some format apart from the ones I’m offering, here’s how to get it: Help yourself! Literally. The book’s up for download in three open, standards-defined formats: ASCII, PDF, and well-formed XHTML. Those formats are easy to convert to your format of choice, and I encourage you to do so. I’ll host and link to any converted formats I receive, on the downloads page. Here are the ground-rules for DIY file-conversions:

  • Only use my text in your conversion. The beautiful artwork on this site isn’t mine to give away; the rights belong to the genius artist Dave McKean, and goddamn I’m a lucky man to have a cover painted by the likes of him.
  • If it’s already been converted to your format of choice but the conversion doesn’t suit you, go ahead and re-convert it for your own use and distribution. But don’t send it to me: I’m a strictly first-come-first-served kinda guy. Once someone’s converted the book to format $foo, that’s it. Otherwise I have to either mediate disputes over appropriate layout choices in formats I’m not familiar with, or I have to try to come up with pithy, info-civilian-readable descriptions of differences between formats for my download page.
  • Send me a link to the reader for your conversion so I can include it on the downloads page.
  • No DRM. If your format of choice has a means of restricting copying, use or playback, you must not use it. DRM is anti-user technology. I am pro-user, and while I’ll tolerate just about any re-use of my books, the one perversion I won’t stomach is the use of bullshit DRM in connection with it, if I can help it. (Yes, my publisher authorizes a commercial ebook edition that has DRM on it. It’s not my idea. Judging from my royalty statements, not a lot of you are interested in buying ’em either).

Fan conversions:

  • PSP/JPEGs — Text converted to a collection of numbered JPEGs to load onto your Sony PSP. 21MB ZIP archive (Thanks to Sean Bell for preparing this file!)
  • PalmOS/Plucker — Plucker file for PalmOS. 273K PDB file (Thanks to David Chin for preparing this file!)
  • Palm/Mac/PocketPC/Win/Symbian — eReader file for many platforms. 335k PDB file. (Thanks to Matt Robinson for preparing this file!)
  • PalmOS — Palm eDoc file for use with many PalmOS readers, including CSpotRun, TealDoc, and many others. 348k PRC file (Thanks to James Crisp for preparing this file!)
  • iPod/Notes — Text converted to a sequence of iPod notes. Unzip and drop it into the Notes folder in your iPod. Once uploaded onto your iPod, go to “Notes” and find the corresponding folder to start reading. 320K ZIP archive (Thanks to Max Baurs-Krey for preparing this file!)
  • Rocketbook, REB1100, GEB1150 — Rocket eBook file. 320K RB file (Thanks to Lee Murdock for preparing this file!)
  • PalmOS/PocketPC/Windows/Symbian iSilo — ZIPped iSilo file for many platforms. 300K ZIP archive (Thanks to Marcus Ekelund for preparing this file!)
  • eBookwise/ETI-2: File for the special-purpose ebook readers eBookwise and ETI-2. 496K IMP file (Thanks to Lee Murdock for preparing this file!)
  • Windows/PocketPC — Doc for use with Microsoft Reader. 372K LIT file. (Thanks to Simon Sherlock for preparing this file!)
  • PocketPC — Fictionbook2 file for use with Haali Reader and other Fictionbook2 readers. 668K FB2 file (Thanks to Chris Tessone for preparing this file!)
  • Mac/Win/Unix/Others — Latex file for generating pretty output in various formats such as PostScript and PDF. Includes options for generating different-sized pages for smaller screens. 632K TEX file (Thanks to Daniel Ashbrook for preparing this file!)
  • Crappy phone browsers: Zip archive containing the book as a series of 5k HTML files for crappy phone browsers that can’t handle larger files. 332K ZIP Archive (Thanks to Christopher Wimmer for preparing this file!)
  • Newton Classic — Ebook file for built-in ebook reader on Apple MessagePads 1×0, 2×00. 1.4MB PKG file. (Thanks to DJ Volkasko for preparing this file!)
  • eMate — Ebook file for built-in ebook reader on Apple eMate 300 in landscape mode. 1.4MB PKG file. (Thanks to DJ Volkasko for preparing this file!)
  • Newton 2000/2100 — Ebook file for built-in ebook reader on Apple Message Pad 2000 and 2100 in portrait mode. 1.4MB PKG file. (Thanks to DJ Volkasko for preparing this file!)
  • Sony Librie EBR-1000EP eBook Reader – DRM-free file for the Sony Librie e-Ink device. 320K LRF file. (Thanks to Scotty Turner for producing this file)
  • PalmOS – MobiPocket file for use with PalmOS devices. 356K PRC file (Thanks to David F. Merrick for preparing this file!)
  • Windows/MacOS/Unix — File for the Djvu reader. 1.4MB DJVU file. (Thanks to Kevin Cole for preparing this file!)
  • PSP/HTML – Text converted to a folder of indexed html pages to load onto your Sony PSP. 368K ZIP file (Thanks to David Paul for preparing this file!)
  • Java for Mobile Phones – Text converted to a folder of 64k files for the Java ReadManiac reader for mobile phones. 1.5MB ZIP file (Thanks to Martin Polley for preparing this file!)
  • Wordsmith for PalmOS – PDB file for the PalmOS Wordsmith Reader reader. 384K file (Thanks to Zak Jarvis for preparing this file!)
  • Java edition for mobile phones – Download here (Thanks to Nicholas Bennett for preparing this file!)
  • Libris for mobile devices – LBR file for Java-based mobile devices with the Libris reader. 274K file (Thanks to Jeff Wannamaker for preparing this file!)
  • FictionBook Reader – FB2 file for iPhones with FictionBook/i2Reader software. 209K file (Thanks to Pablo Untroib for preparing this file!)
  • Stanza – ePub file Stanza. 697K file (Thanks to Tsana Dolichva for preparing this file!)
  • Kindle – AZW file Kindle. 354K file (Thanks to Ian Bone for preparing this file!)
  • ePub – Epub file for various devices. 361K file (Thanks to Samuel “Iron Curtain” Abram for preparing this file!)
Dave McKean