TL;DR
On January 1, 2026, works published in 1930 entered the U.S. public domain. Standard Ebooks prepared and released 20 free ebook editions of several landmark titles now free for people in the U.S. to read and reuse.
What happened
January 1, 2026 marked Public Domain Day in the United States, the date when books first published in 1930 became part of the public domain. Standard Ebooks says its volunteers prepared a selection of 20 titles from that year and made free ebook editions available. The crop of works moving into the public domain includes widely read and influential books such as Franz Kafka’s The Castle (in a 1930 English translation published posthumously by Max Brod), Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon, William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, Langston Hughes’s Not Without Laughter, and Agatha Christie’s The Murder at the Vicarage. The organization also points readers to additional material catalogued by the Public Domain Review. The piece situates the 2026 releases in the longer history of U.S. copyright, noting earlier, much shorter statutory terms and later extensions that lengthened protection to 95 years after publication.
Why it matters
- Works entering the public domain are free in the U.S. to read, share, adapt, and build upon without seeking permission.
- A significant group of influential 1930-era books becoming available restores access to decades-old literature previously held under long copyright terms.
- Standard Ebooks’ volunteer editions make several landmark texts readily accessible in curated digital formats.
Key facts
- Public Domain Day is observed on January 1; on Jan. 1, 2026, books published in 1930 entered the U.S. public domain.
- Standard Ebooks prepared and released 20 free ebook editions of selected 1930 titles.
- Notable authors with works entering the U.S. public domain include Franz Kafka, Dashiell Hammett, William Faulkner, Langston Hughes, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Evelyn Waugh.
- The Castle (Kafka) was published in English in a 1930 translation released posthumously by Max Brod; that translation helped spark English-language interest in Kafka.
- The Maltese Falcon has been widely ranked among top crime and mystery novels and was adapted into the 1941 film starring Humphrey Bogart.
- As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner employs multiple narrators and stream-of-consciousness techniques.
- Not Without Laughter is Langston Hughes’s semi‑autobiographical first novel and was published during the Harlem Renaissance.
- The Murder at the Vicarage is the first full-length novel to feature Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple.
- Strong Poison introduces Harriet Vane, a character modeled in part on Dorothy L. Sayers’s own life.
- The Faraway Bride adapts elements of the Tobit story from the Apocrypha and is set in 1920s Manchuria.
What to watch next
- Availability and download numbers for the 20 Standard Ebooks editions published for Public Domain Day 2026 (these editions are available for free download, per the source).
- Whether new adaptations or derivative works based on 1930 titles appear now that those works are in the U.S. public domain — not confirmed in the source.
- How publishers, archives, and other projects respond to the 1930 public-domain cohort with new editions or scholarly work — not confirmed in the source.
Quick glossary
- Public domain: Creative works whose intellectual-property rights have expired, been forfeited, or are inapplicable, making them free for public use without permission.
- Copyright term: The legally defined period during which creators or rights holders control the use and distribution of their works.
- Posthumous publication: A work published after the author’s death, often handled by an executor, editor, or estate.
- Stream-of-consciousness: A narrative technique that seeks to represent a character’s inner thoughts and impressions in a flowing, often non-linear manner.
Reader FAQ
Which works entered the U.S. public domain on January 1, 2026?
Books first published in 1930 entered the U.S. public domain on that date.
Can people in the U.S. now reuse these works freely?
Yes. According to the source, these works are free in the U.S. to read, share, adapt, and build upon without seeking permission.
Did Standard Ebooks publish new editions for Public Domain Day?
Yes. Standard Ebooks’ volunteers prepared and released 20 free ebook editions of selected 1930 titles.
Do these public-domain rules apply worldwide?
Not confirmed in the source.
Blog → Public Domain Day 2026 in Literature Read 20 of the best books entering the public domain in 2026 Happy Public Domain Day! Around the world, people celebrate Public…
Sources
- Standard Ebooks: Public Domain Day 2026 in Literature
- Happy Public Domain Day 2026!
- Public Domain Day 2026 | Duke University School of Law
- The cultural works becoming public domain in 2026, from …
Related posts
- Going immutable on macOS with Nix-Darwin — reproducible, versioned configs
- FreeBSD: Home NAS, Part 1 — Configuring a ZFS Mirror (RAID1)
- Round the tree, yes, but not round the squirrel — a Perelman paradox