Thursday, July 7, 2011

E-Readers vs. Books

I apologize for posting late. Two of my children had their wisdom teeth out this morning and one of them isn’t doing very well. If you think about it, send some good thoughts and prayers our way, will you?

If any of you know me, you know that I love books. I have bookshelves in every room of my home that are overflowing. The books who don’t fit on the shelf are neatly stacked in front of it until I can figure out where to put a new shelf.

This has been somewhat of a sticky situation for me because since I love all of the books I own for the most part, I haven’t been able to get rid of them, and there really isn’t any more room to put any more of my beloved books. And, of course, new books come out every month that become favorites and when I buy them, I can only add them to my stack.

There didn’t seem to be a solution for me, until the Kindle came out. The Kindle can store 3500 books inside its tiny frame. It allows me to make little shelves with all the e-titles I buy and categorize them any way I want. It seemed so easy. But the drawback was that I was afraid holding a Kindle wasn’t going to be the same as holding a book and smelling its pages--especially when it’s new. I love that new book smell.

The thing that amazed me, however, was the fact that when I bought my Kindle, I bought the lighted cover with it. Opening that cover, with its "new" smell, totally gives me that feeling of having a book in my hands. (I also heard they are going to start marketing a “new book smell” spray for the book people like me.) And the little light is so convenient when I want to read and the baby is sleeping. All of my concerns went out the window. I felt like I had a book in my hands, I had the new smell I wanted, and easy access to any title I could ever want. (Although that quickly became a drawback. I can finish one book, browse in Amazon for the next one in the series at any time day or night, and with a quick click of a button, I own it! It’s so easy! Of course, it’s all wonderful until I get my Visa bill. LOL)

Long story short, I love my Kindle. And I know my sagging bookshelves love it, too. It seems like more and more people are turning to e-readers these days, because of its convenience, but is that really true? Do you own an e-reader? Why or why not?

14 comments:

Charlie Moore said...

I do not own an e-reader yet, Julie. Mostly because I can't afford one. I will get one eventually. Folks are buying (in very modest #'s) the 13 short stories I have at the Kindle store so I feel I should return the favor at some point. Like you I enjoy the ability to turn a page and while I probably don't have the stash you do there are many books in my home as well.

I sure hope your children get to feeling better soon. Getting wisdom teeth out is tough. Both of my boys went through it. A mother's love goes a long way.

Charlie

Debra Erfert said...

Both of my boys had their wisdom teeth surgically removed in preparation for their missions, and for the next two days or more they had swollen jaws. Their only relief came in ibuprofen and continuous icepacks, and sleep. It was their decision, but I still felt so bad. Watch out for fevers.

I do not have an e-reader. I probably will break down someday and buy one, or ask for one for Christmas. I don't buy that many books, as compared to you, it seems, and I still can't get past that image of a single drop to the floor. I'm kind of klutzy. What happens if it breaks? Do you lose all your downloads? Do you have a backup thumb-drive?

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

Deb, Kindle keeps a record of all my downloads so if anything happens, I buy a new one, whatever, I still have all of those downloads I bought. I can also share with my son's e-reading device which is nice. And I do buy a lot of books. I think I'm somewhat of a bookaholic. I just love them. :)

Charlie, you have short stories up? I need to go check that out!

Jon Spell said...

My wife issued an ultimatum that I could not bring any more books into the house. (Because I have a stack of low-priority books on the shelf already.) I broke this rule immediately by giving her books as presents. (This seems to be ok.) Then I got her a Kindle 2 weeks ago, but she hasn't tried it yet because she's been in the middle of the Mistborn trilogy. And, finally, I have obeyed the letter of the law by buying books, but leaving them in the car to read on breaks. ("Look, I'm not bringing them into the house!")

She told me I can use the Kindle, too, so I may have to try it out. I have read a few things on my iPhone, but it's not that rewarding, all things considered. (Great in a pinch, though.)

battraws said...

I'm a bookaholic, too and all my shelves are overflowing - and I love it! Except the storage problem really is a problem. I haven't gotten a Kindle because I love books. I've been worried that it won't be the same experience. But if you like your Kindle, maybe it's ok.

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

Jon, one of the great things about a Kindle is you can have all those Bible-thick books on your Kindle and carry the entire series around in its tiny little frame. I love that part! And how smart of you to give her books for gifts! :)

Mindi, I really didn't think I would love it as much as I do. It's such a great thing for my book habit and shelf-space issue. If you ever get one, let me know what you think of it! :)

jodi said...

My children gave me a kindle for Christmas. I love it. I took it on vacation this summer it was nice to have a variety of books that all fit in my purse!

Unknown said...

I resisted Kindle for a long time, before I bought one earlier this year. I love it.
I have my scriptures, hymn book etc with me all the time, as well as a large number of books.
My biggest problem is that I don't have to wait until I can drive to a bookstore, so I sometimes overspend on books, OOPS!
I still go to Desert Book or Seagull once in a while, to be near the real books.

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

Jodi, I love that it fits in my purse, too!

Mary, that's my only problem--it's TOO easy to buy the books! Just one little click and before you know it, your book budget is blown. It's funny that we both go to Seagull and Deseret Book once in a while to be near the real books. (And to see mine on the shelf. Is that vain?) :)

Unknown said...

The only saving grace on the spending is that ebooks are less expensive than paper books.
There's nothing that smells better than a book store, except maybe a bakery, and DB sells Lion House baked goods, so its the best of both worlds.
My biggest problem is that if I go to one of the rare book signings we have down here, I have nothing to have signed.

Debra Erfert said...

Waaay back when I was young we had these things called autograph books, where we'd have movie stars or baseball heroes sign their names on pages of small decorative books. If e-readers are all the rage, I wonder if autograph books will come back into fashion? Hmmm, just a thought.

Melanie Goldmund said...

I don't have any e-reader, partly because I am a natural-born miser. I do have a Kindle for PC app, though, which I use to read sample chapters to see if I will like a book before I order it from my local on-line book swap. I've seen some things about Kindle that really bother me, though. Because I live in Germany, I apparently have to pay VAT on e-books that I buy through amazon. Twice I've downloaded e-books, and both times, the price was fifty cents higher than what the author had promised on his or her website. On other books, I've been told that the sale price of 99 cents doesn't apply to me, and I have to pay 7.99 instead because it's only for people in the USA. Why? I downloaded this app through amazon.com, but when I find a British book that's only available on amazon.co.uk, I can't download it there. Say what? Yet with real books, I can order them from either country and it doesn't cost me extra. Amazon.de has a very good selection of English books that I can order, and there is no charge for shipping inside Germany. Sometimes, I'll buy a used book through the marketplace and have it shipped from either America or England. The shipping costs three euros, and even with that included, the total price of the gently used book is usually less than the Kindle price. so I'm not yet convinced that the Kindle or any other e-reader is the right thing for money-grubbing little me.

Anonymous said...

i love my kindle too....i miss using my cutsie book marks.
two of my kids will be getting their wisdom teeth out soon...any advice?

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

My advice is to have lots of mashed potatoes, pudding, jello, apple juice, gatorade, ice cream, and the good kind of chicken noodle soup on hand. Also, fill the prescriptions as soon as possible and get lots of ice packs ready. I think the key is keeping them comfortable and finding things that they can eat. It was a long road for one of my kids who was really bruised from it!

Good luck! You'll have to let me know how it goes.