The Kindle. Kapow!
I feel like nothing else in the publishing world in the past year has caused such a stir as e-readers and e-books.
If you couldn’t tell from my post yesterday, I’m torn. I think there are some really cool things about the Kindle especially if you are someone who reads a lot and wants to make notes on what they read. Oh, let me see if I can think of a few people. Um, teachers. And, how about editors and agents. And I can’t forget commuters. I would invest in a Kindle if I rode the train into work every day.
But I don’t.
I love to read. I love a good story. Even though being a writer has made it much harder for me to find a good book. I need a light switch on the side of my head to turn off and just be a reader again. But that’s beside the point.
When I read, I want a book, to hold, to doggy-ear, to lose under my bed, to pass on to a friend, to run my fingers across the slightly fuzzy pages, to smell the freshness of a new book or the musty smell of a book that’s older than my grandparents. I have memories, childhood memories attached to books. And that will not be easy to forget.
And I do think the Kindle will only last until something bigger and better comes out that does everything. It can be called Super-texter-camera-phone-computer-book. And I probably won’t be able to afford one until they are on the way out. I don’t even have a cell phone yet. (Actually, sometimes I carry a very realistic toy one around and talk into it just to feel cool. Not really.)
I consider myself pretty flexible. (Don’t ask my kids for verification.) I’ll go with the times. But if libraries become a thing of the past, I will be snuggled in a corner by candlelight the woodstove – reading real books from long ago.
And that’s just the reader side of me.
The writer side of me? I hope libraries and publishers and bookstores are able to keep up with the changing times and don’t get left in the dust.
So. Did you catch all that subtext from my post yesterday? If you didn’t, you’ll have another chance to practice on Friday.
Where do you stand on the Kindle? Do you have one?
I’m pretty torn on the Kindle too. On the one hand, it can be a great way of getting more people to read. On the other hand, I’m afraid it will only feed into people’s already short attention spans. You’re probably right, though, that e-readers as we know them will soon be replaced by something even fancier. As long as books continue to exist in some form, I guess I’ll be happy. 🙂
Agreed. I don’t think readers will stop reading. I know I won’t.
I am torn too. I would love one for when I got to coffee shops or on planes. But I love to hold a book too 🙂
If they even allow Kindles on planes. And then you’d have to turn it off during take off and landing. What a pain. I’d probably bring a real book to be on the safe side! 🙂
I love my Kindle! I’m an avid reader, 2-4 books a week and have a library and office filled with overflowing book shelves. I wasn’t sure I could give up the *feel* of a book in my hand.
I got my Kindle 12/08 and I adore it! I still read DTBs I just don’t *pay* for them. I probably still get 7-10 books every couple of weeks from the library… items not available on Kindle or when a publisher thinks they’re punishing me (rather than themselves) by moving the Kindle release date back on New Release Tuesday. I get those new releases at the library.
As someone who budgets for and looks forward to every Tuesday, there are publishers losing some serious money! Instead of buying my fave authors (JD Robb, Douglas Preston most recently) latest release, I am learning to live without my own copy. I still get to read the book and re-read it as well. Just not on the same day (or for the cost) that it is released in Hardcover.
I take my Kindle out with me but also sync it with my iPhone so I never have to worry about being without a book to read.
Kindles on planes won’t be an issue, like your cell phone which you can play games on, you just turn off Whispernet (internet connection) and read while saving your battery.
Love my Kindle!
That would be kind of cool – being able to purchase books that I usually wait for. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Good to know that I could use a Kindle on planes. If I’m ever flying and have a Kindle. 🙂