Postcard For Reader

Book vs. E-book
I don't understand the appeal of e-books.

Sure, things like the Kindle can hold dozens of books at one shot. If you get bored or want to read something when you're on the bus, you can whip it out and choose from a whole library full of books. (There's a good bit about the Kindle here.)

But isn't that what a library is for?

There's something that you get from holding a book and having it in your hand that you don't get from a Kindle or any other kind of e-book. There's a certain satisfaction when you flip to the last page. Somehow, it's more suspenseful when you have to flip the page to see what happens then when you have to scroll down. (She's called The Page Flipper, not the Scroll Down-er.)

To quote Giles from Buffy:

Ms Calendar: Honestly, what is it about [computers] that bothers you so much?
Giles: The smell.
Ms Calendar: Computers don’t smell, Rupert.
Giles: I know. Smell is the most powerful trigger to the memory there is. A certain flower or a whiff of smoke can bring up experiences long forgotten. Books smell. Musty and, and, and, and rich. The knowledge gained from a computer, is, it … it has no texture, no context. It’s there and then it’s gone. If it’s to last, then the getting of knowledge should be tangible, it should be, um… smelly.

If I'm going to read a book, I want to remember it. I want to feel it under my hands as I flip the pages. The rough or smooth texture of the page, depending on how old it is or how often I touch it - not the cold, plastic feel of a Kindle.

Books aren't cold things.

So why should the things we read them with be?

~ Nicole