You probably know someone who got a Kindle for the holidays. You also probably know an array of people who think the Kindle is a poor alternative to a bound novel. One recent status update I read lamented about how, "A cold, heartless Kindle will never replace the tangible ecstasy of a book, your little robot isn't going to replace my Lovecraft collection!" But I disagree.
I was an English major in college, and the books collected through classes were my merit badges.
Leaves of Grass and
The Complete Works of Flannery O'Connor were proud proofs of my education, and I firmly believed in the benefits of a well-stocked bookshelf. But one day when writing my senior thesis, I had to check out a Kindle from the library. There are rare texts not commonly found in print that are available on the Kindle, and I needed one such book for a reference. Two hours after renting out that sleek piece of technology, I was hooked.
First let me start by lamenting the English major's backpack. There's no shortage of texts to weigh you down, and I literally almost crashed my bike several times from being thrown off balance by the weight of the books I carried. Even an avid reader knows the perils of their hobby; I remember a time when I would carry at least three recreational books in my bag, leaving little room for crucial things like my wallet. Now, however, my back is spared. I can carry all four
Game of Thrones books around me, along with old Russian folk tales, Jonathan Franzen's complete works and some
Master and Margarita, for good measure. With my Kindle I can gauge my mood in the doctor's waiting room and choose from an array of texts that may suit it. Walking around with a personal library has few drawbacks.
I also use my Kindle to avoid honestly answering the dreaded "what are you reading?" question that every bibliophile gets. It's annoying enough when someone interrupts your reading to ask what it is, but the situation becomes worse when you have to embarrassingly show them the
True Blood cover you're holding. The Kindle lets me lie, so to unsuspecting snoops it looks like I'm reading
Crime and Punishment every darn day.
I do understand the benefits of having a "real" book to hold, dog-ear and place on your bookshelf. But as a busy lady, I have little room for huge texts holding me back. With my Kindle I don't have to sacrifice leaving a text at home, and I can enjoy novels that range from incredibly tacky to incredibly rare anywhere I go.
What do you think of the Kindle?
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Comments (32)
I was one of those snobs who was against it until I realized carrying three-four books or more a day was a hassle.... now my Kindle is my best electronic friend, and since I can carry many books at once, I'm actually reading a lot more books, and different types of literature in general, than I ever have.
I freakin' love my Kindle. It's fantastic to not have to carry around large textbooks on campus all day. Also, I feel like it helps me read faster and more.
I still like having bound books, but my Kindle is amazing.
I think that my brain would boycott my head if I ever separated from my Kindle for more than a few days. I am a fan of smaller purses, so the kindle made it possible for me to take my reading everywhere I went. Before I had my kindle, I used to read off of my iPod touch and my Macbook Air, but I couldn't take my Mac everywhere and my iPod screen is only 3.7" big...not to mention I'd only get five hours of battery.
By the way, if you've got a kindle, you should also get eCalibre. It's a great program that converts different file types into mobi files for you to read on your kindle. I have a bunch of pdfs and epub books that I read that way and it's a good program to back up all of your stuff as well.
I got the app for my ipad and my computer. Heaven. I still love to have a physical book though!
I was also a book snob, I cherish pages and I bookmark and scribble in them all. I am a true convert now. Rather than scribbling I keep my notes and they are ALL IN ONE PLACE. I have more than 400 books on my kindle and I get my magazines there, too. It is the only thing I can't live without anymore.
I don't like real books anymore. I have an iPad and it's loaded with all kinds of books, mostly free I got from the Gutenburg project.
The back lighting, the customizable font size, the book marking, high lighting, the dictionary and its light weight make the iPad a great instrument with which to read.Despite its convenience, I will never choose electronic readers over real books. I don't feel the same connection with e-books as I do with those I can feel. Also, I do not want to risk losing my books in an electronic malfunction. I like knowing that the pages of my book won't suddenly glitch and vanish right in the middle of reading. Paperback all the way.
I've got a Nook Color, but same difference, right? I love it. I'm a big reader, and I was starting to run out of space in my bookshelves... again. The library really isn't a feasible option because I like to read the same book many times. And man, I've bought multiple copies of the same book because they get so beat up riding around in my purse.
I am a huge fan of e-readers, and I tend to have a poor opinion of people who act like the physical part of the book is what it's about. It's the words. If it's not the words that are transporting you, then you simply like the idea of being a reader, in my opinion.
@chicbananas@xanga 's argument about an electronic glitch is really the only downside that makes sense to me. Thus, while I have a Nook now, I will keep my library, just in case!
i'd have an e-reader by now if it wasn't for my employer's policies on electronics at our desks. all i do is answer phones all day, so that's my reading time.
i find it kind of silly to claim that books are superior. if you're a true book-lover, you know that the medium doesn't matter as much as the text itself. whether it's in a book, on a computer screen, or chiseled into stone, a great story is a great story.
I also rebelled against E-book readers until...now. *Gerry stands up to introduce herself* Ahem, my name is Gerry and I am a proud owner of a Nook Tablet
.
My Kindle saves trees. Yay!
I didn't realize how much more convenient the Kindle was compared to physical books until I got one. It's easier to carry and easier to hold, allows me to mark my favorite quotes, etc... I don't have to worry about the binding falling apart or being judged for my reading material. Before I got my Kindle I didn't care either way, but I love it now. I also like that books that are in the public domain now are free on Kindle :)
I love my Kindle! I am going to school online and my books are usually in digital form, so its way easier to read them on my Kindle then on my computer screen. Plus there are a ton of free/cheap books available :)
I absolutely love my Kindle! I carry it with me everywhere. I'm a substitute teacher right now, so I just keep my Kindle in my purse so it comes with me each day, and I have plenty of reading for my lunch break and 40 minute prep period, during which I usually have nothing to do. It's also AMAZING for traveling. My family takes a vacation to Puerto Rico for a long weekend almost every winter, and it's usually 3-4 days of laying around soaking up the sun. I used to weigh my carry on down with books to keep myself occupied while sunbathing - now I just take my Kindle. :) I once heard someone make a big deal out of the fact that it has to be turned off during take off, but honestly, I'm willing to put up with that instead of dragging 5-6 books around when I travel. I just browse the Air Mall catalog during take off to pass the time. :P
There is only one problem I have with it. I personally don't find it all that convenient for reference books, as I find it easier to just slide in a bookmark or dog ear a page to go back to later, than using the highlight function and all that. However, I was a sociology major, not an English major, and my textbooks weren't available for Kindle anyway. As far as pleasure reading is concerned, I would never give up my Kindle. Of course, if I really want to read something, I will still read it if it's not available on Kindle, and if there's a book series I began collecting before I got my Kindle, I keep buying physical copies of those books so I don't break my collection. :)
@chicbananas@xanga - Everything you buy and keep on your Kindle is also kept on Amazon's online library for access. So a kindle can hold something like 6k books, but your online library is limitless. and is always available. Even if your kindle crashes.
I love my kindle. I have my bookshelf, still, full of the books i'd purchased before the kindle but i haven't added any new "real" books to it since. I keep the physical books that i love and must handle and i've gotten rid of most of the others and replaced them with the kindle version. When the entire Harry Potter series and Sookie Stackhouse series are available for a decent price on Kindle, i might get rid of the physical copy of those as well. *shrugs*The kindle is just nice. It's instantly nice. and i love the selection of free books available. It has me reading a much more diverse selection.Some of my early childhood education texts were available (and cheaper!) for my new Kindle. Getting one for Christmas also gave me the kick in the ass I needed to start reading all the books Ive been dying to read for so long! I'm also working on getting some children's books on it to experiment with using a Kindle at my daycare job. Its incredibly convenient to not have to carry a freakin library in my bag to and from work and school.
Sorry, can't do it. As Rupery Giles once said: "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 rich. The knowledge gained from a computer is a - it, uh, 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, uh, tangible, it should be, um, smelly."
I cannot at all truly concentrate and comprehend text on a screen. If it's something like browsing websites, sure. But tell me to read a chapter from a novel and get invested in the story through a monitor and I'll likely not even remember half of what I read unless I reread the same thing over and over again. I had that issue with my school texts, trying to read the e-versions. I just wound up repeating stuff without realizing it because it would not sink in. And overall, most students will mention that having that book in front of them in place of a computer screen is far more beneficial to acquiring the knowledge. I know that I can't just re-read typed notes (especially ones I did not type) for a test, I need to write them on paper and then read them over and over again.
I borrowed a friend's kindle for several days to try it out. Maybe I would have liked it, but despite what everyone kept saying to the contrary, reading the screen hurt my eyes.
I just bought my Nook a few days ago, so I love this post and am very happy in the decision to buy an ereader. But allow me to suggest something... if you're going to buy an ereader buy a nook! Nooks are made by Barnes & Noble, so you'll still be supporting them with your purchases of both the reader itself and the books you buy on it.
By buying a kindle you're supporting the competition.. amazon... and although I like amazon, I really want to see Barnes & Noble stay open. I still love going to bookstores and looking at books, reading a few pages, etc... but if the bookstores close I won't be able to do that anymore.
Plus, depending on what you're looking for... the nook may be the way to go anyway. The nook is lighter than the kindle, the battery is a lot longer, and as an ereader is generally better. However, if you're looking for more features of a tablet, like good apps, then the kindle would be better. GO NOOK!
I definitely see the benefits of it, but I'm still a paper book lover at heart.
First, I never carry more than one recreational book, so while it's nice that the Kindle can hold more than one, it really doesn't affect me. It'd be nice for textbooks, but I'm about to graduate...lol.
Second, someone got me a Kindle Fire for Christmas. It's a cool little toy, and I was happy to borrow Mockingjay to finish off the Hunger Games series since I didn't own the books, but I just didn't feel anything staring at that computer screen. I felt like I was reading off a computer screen and it kind of hurt my eyes. I could tell a difference and I didn't like it.
I love dust jackets, cover art, and the way paper feels. I like art before the chapters and special fonts to accompany a series. I like carrying a book.
I mean it definitely annoys me when people ask me what I'm reading (especially if it's in a series. I can't really explain that!), and especially for travel purposes it'd be great to have access to tons of books. I'm not saying people shouldn't have e readers. I'm just saying I personally strongly prefer books.
Also, I have a feeling e readers are endangering my future profession (editor) so I might be biased?
@x__RainOnHerParade@xanga - The Kindle screen isn't the same as the Kindle Fire screen. The latter is a tablet, not meant to be an e-reader. Reading on the Kindle is exactly the same as reading on paper, really.
i haven't tried it yet... i find i do much of my recreational reading outside in the sun over summer- have you used it in the sun? i feel like it would have a glare or you wouldnt be able to see it right, or it would overheat, etc... ?
I was one of those who initially decided I hated the kindle because I absolutely loved bound books. But, when I saw a friend's kindle, I started getting into the idea of them. Then a friend had me download a Kindle App for my PC, and I was hooked. I got mine for Christmas and I love it! I still like bound books, but I love my new Kindle!
I would LOVE to own a Kindle or a Nook. I've messed with my friends a few times & I'm in love with it, but I don't like to dish out money on myself.. I'm hoping my hubby will buy me one soon. =) Anywho, I would own it for recreational books, but as for school books, no. I need to be able to high light & flip back to pages over and over again.
I hated the Kindle at first, but then my bf got it for me and I can't put it down. I bring it to work, on the subway, appts, everywhere. I love it!!