Abstract: The present invention relates to method and apparatus for downloading an e-book via a portable electronic device in communication with a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) server over the Internet, the method comprises activating a wireless application protocol (WAP) browser to enter into an e-book Web site provided by an Internet service provider (ISP); displaying a pane containing an e-book catalog option sent from the e-book Web site on a display of the electronic device; reading the catalog option selected on the display for retrieving an e-book catalog; sending the retrieved catalog to the WAP browser prior to showing the same on the display; reading a name of e-book selected from the e-book catalog; downloading the selected e-book; and storing the downloaded e-book in a memory of the electronic device for offline reading.