This fad of electronic books has me concerned. I say "fad" because I simply can't believe that people will lose their senses forever and think that staring at computer screens all day, staring at cell phone screens to text people every spare minute, and then staring at a Kindle or iPad screen to read a book all evening is truly a good idea. Just typing it sounds idiotic.
I'm as big a fan of progress and technology as the next person, but I am truly concerned with electronic books, if only because the very idea goes against every core value of any true book lover. I recently had the opportunity to inspect one of these bibliophilic monstrosities, and here are some conclusions I reached:
1) Button, button, who's got the button? I don't know about you, but when I'm reading, I like to relax. The worries of the day, the stress of life...all melt away as I lose myself in a fantastic adventure, dramatic love story, or comedic monologue. The last thing I want to think about is which button I have to push. To turn the pages of, say, a Kindle, a button can be pushed on either side of the page to go forwards or backwards depending on the reader's whim. No more licking the fingers to turn paper pages for these aristocratic readers. Oh, no. Simply the touch of a button.
Then there's the Bookmark button. Want to save your place for later? Simple. Just go to the "Bookmark" button or key. Because Lord knows when reading paper books, there's no way to save your page. It's not like a piece of paper can be stuck in-between the pages and...oh wait.
How about highlighting or taking notes for all those sticky college textbooks? Writing in the margins or pulling out the ol' highlighter is a thing of antiquity. Now buttons highlight for us. Of course, after notes are taken and passages are highlighted, one cannot simply view them by...reading. Oh, no. One must go to the "View Notes/Highlights" section of the "book." A nice evening of reading is starting to sound a bit more like an Introduction to Computers course for college freshmen, huh?
2) It keeps going and going and going...or not. When enjoying a good book anywhere, (the office breakroom, the beach, the car, the living room, etc.), the last thing one wants to encounter is a "low battery" signal. Let's face it: when we're reading is a time when we're on low battery and need a recharge via frivolity. Nothing like reaching the climax of your book only to not be able to turn the page due to insufficient battery juice. No reader of "old fashioned" books ever encountered this problem. Sure, Kindle and iPad batteries can be charged and last up to a month, but with all the things to remember on my "To Do" list, remembering when I last charged my book is the last thing I want to see on there. Come on - "charge my book"??? Are you even listening to yourself right now?
3) Pardon me, I seem to have...washed your book. Let's get down to brass tacks. It's happened to all of us: a friend borrows a book and either loses it or destroys it via pet, the elements, or (my personal favorite) the washing machine. This happened to me a few months ago. I lent a book to a dear friend, and when she returned it to me, I noticed my name was not printed in the front as it had been. She proceeded to tell me that her husband, deciding she was spending too much time reading it, had hidden the book in the washing machine. She went on to do a load of laundry, and...the rest is history. (Interesting sidenote: did you know that washing a book with bits of red in the cover will turn a load of whites pink? Yeah, me either). Being the kind friend that she is, she bought me a new copy of the book, good as new. This brings up two black marks against electronic books: loaning books becomes hard as you are loaning not just one book but an entire library (and what will you read while the borrower has your reader?) and replacing a washed Kindle or iPad just might get a little pricier than a washed hardback. Which brings me to point #4...
4) Have you seen the price of these things??? I am a bargain hunter. Perhaps bargain bloodhound would be the more appropriate term. I can sniff out a deal anywhere and in any conditions, particularly when it comes to books. There is nothing I like better than entering an antique shop or used book store and walking out with $50 worth of books for a fraction of the cost. I did a little research on these electronic books, and if you're thinking of buying one, I hope you're ready to take out a second mortgage. The cheapest new Kindle I could find was $79. A deal for some of you technological fiends out there, but let me remind you: that is $79 for an empty shell as far as I can tell. I could find no books that actually come with the Kindle for $79. Those are "sold separately" just like the batteries needed to run the stupid thing. Other Kindles ran from $99 to $199. (iPads are not a part of this research project because they can also double as computers). Book downloads seem to run anywhere from $3.99 to $8.99. A bargain? Sure, as books go. So that's a tab of $82.99 (before tax) to read one book. And if you want a warranty to protect your electronic reader from anything from water damage to nuclear holocaust, that'll run you another $25. $107.99 (before tax) just for the simple pleasure of reading. Do you know how many regular, used books I can buy for that amount of money? I have gotten so many books for 5 to 25 cents, it's obscene.
5) Can YOU read more than one book at the same time? One selling factor to these electronic readers is the appeal of "taking your whole library with you everywhere." And I admit, at first glance, that has a certain level of appeal. Any of my wonderful books at my fingertips. Anytime. But unless you're some kind of Star Trek alien, I highly doubt you possess the talent of reading multiple books at the same time. Kindle or not, you are stuck in the same predicament as we mere mortals: no matter how many books you have at your fingertips, you can only read one at a time. So owning a Kindle that stores 1,400 or 3,000 books at a time is pointless. You can't read one at the same time you're loaning one to someone else, and you can't read two books at once. The only appeal I see to this is to be a "book snob" and whip out your Kindle at anytime, anywhere simply to prove a point or win an argument. (But this technique will not win you many friends).
We can argue the pros and cons of electronic readers versus the old fashioned kind for days on end. I'm sure there are many proponents and opponents on both sides. Let me leave you with one last thought: Besides the fact that it is nice to give the old eyes a rest from staring at some kind of screen all day, and besides the opinion that too much technology makes you stupid (can you see Shakespeare composing Hamlet on a Kindle or Newton writing up his theory of gravity on an iPad?) is the simple fact that technology is taking away from our interaction with other human beings. First letters and "snail mail" were fazed out to make room for emails; now phone calls are dwindling as texting takes its place. Human interaction is slowly being replaced by machines. When this happens, we lose a part of ourselves. Yes, I realize the irony of this statement as I type this post into my computer and send it out into the cosmic void of the Internet. But I'm trying to engage with you, the reader, and hopefully make you think.
One of my husband's and my favorite ways to end the day is to cuddle up in bed, each of us with a good book in hand. We share the occasional passage with each other, but, for the most part, we enjoy very different styles of writing and genres: he has his thrillers, and I have...everything else. And that is the last strike against electronic readers: only one person can read them at a time. Unless you both have one and lie in bed, remote and removed, clicking buttons and running out of batteries equally. This seems very Fahrenheit 451-esque. No, thank you. You may keep your overpriced, cataract-causing doodads. I will be content to be old-fashioned, find my bargains, loan books to friends at the risk of having them washed, and end my day snuggling in bed with my husband, reading away.
