I've seen Stanza praised elsewhere as a legitimate challenge to Amazon, the sort of app that could make the iPhone a mini-Kindle. I think that's true up to a point. The app is first rate and the potential is clear. If Stanza could bring other e-book prices in line with Amazon's, that would be a real victory for competition and for readers everywhere.

Stanza is compatible with any iPhone or iPod Touch running the iPhone 2.x software update.

[Ben Boychuk is a freelance writer and columnist in Rialto, Calif. Feel free to drop him a line.]