So what's up with the Kindle and the Nook and other devices that can hold thousands of ebooks all in one little machine that can fit in your purse? While I know I would LOVE to be able to have any book I want at my fingertips no matter where I am, I just can't understand being able to feel justified in spending actual money on something I can't hold, touch, or smell (yes, smell is very important while enjoying a good book). And what can you do after you read this virtual book? You can't put it on your shelf. You can't see it while walking through a room and be reminded of the good time you had with this book or that. You can't hand the book to a friend and say 'you've GOT to read this!'. If, heaven forbid, you hate the book, you can't sell it on Amazon and recover at least a little of the money you spent on it.
As far as I'm concerned, reading a book is an experience beyond looking at the words. The act of holding a book and turning the pages and, yes, even folding down the corners when you get interrupted is just as much a part of the experience as the story you're reading.
Having said all this, let me tell you I've never actually used a Nook or a Kindle. The closest I've ever gotten to one is when I sat across the aisle from an old man on an airplane who seemed intensely engrossed in his Kindle. So, tell me readers, is it really worth it? What's so cool about an ereader?
I don't know when my love for books began. I don't particularly have any memories of books from my early childhood but it had to have started sometime. I really started reading (outside of school) in 7th grade. I joined a book club at my middle school that consisted of me, a really smart girl named Mickelle Johnson and the assistant librarian. We would meet before school once a week and discuss books. The library at Dixon Middle School was old and worn. The second I walked in through the doors I would smell the smell of old books, dust and old carpet. It is a smell that I will never forget, and one that I love. We would sit at a table near the back placed between two large shelves- the fantasy section. It was here that Mickelle introduced to me the realm of fantasy.
My older brother, Aric, was also an influence. He was rarely ever seen without a book in his hands (or pockets). On family car trips he would read the ENTIRE time. I don't know how he didn't get car sick. When I was in high school his bedroom was next to mine. At night I would go in before bed and tell him good night...he would be reading. When I woke up in the morning to get ready for school I would go in to tell him good morning....he was still reading.
Anyway, while I do love reading, it is BOOKS that I am in love with. Actual books. It is my dream to have an enormous library in my home one day (getting a home is first on the list of course). One with wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling black bookshelves. (one of those cool ladders that rolls along the shelves would be cool too) Some people have large DVD collections, other people collect CDs. Well not us. It's books we want.
