Are you an e-reader or do you prefer to read your literature the old fashioned way? Don't get me wrong, I love everything about this wonderful electronic age and as you can see I clearly waste much too much time on Twitter, Facebook and my blogs. But when it comes to books, my beloved books, I want to hold them in my hand. I want to feel the crisp paper in my fingers... I want to smell the ink... I want to hear the crinkle of the paper as I turn the pages. I want to feel the weight of the book. I want to look at it. A book in its three dimensional state, to me, is very much alive. It is the holder of dreams and lessons and fantasy and instruction. It carries a history especially when it has been passed around from friend to friend. I am a voracious reader. I love all sorts of books and go through phases of different genres. At the moment I have been fixated on memoirs. Of course I also adore a lovely cook book.
My children got e-readers for Christmas. They love them and because of this they have inhaled books of epic proportions. Because of this I too love the e-readers. But for them, not for me. I am sure one day I too will succumb to electronic print. Yes, the thought of getting a book in the middle of the night is intriguing and appealing. But I haven't gotten to that point. If I have run out of books in the middle of the night I still have my iPhone and I can find any number of friends on Facebook and Twitter who are also suffering from various age-induced sleep disorders. I'm plugged in too much as it is. When I am reading I would prefer not to be.
Besides, if we had no books our homes would be so bland, drab and lifeless. For once a book has been inhaled and loved it's life is not over. In fact, once a book has been finished a new life has begun. Books serve as art in how they fuel our minds, but they also serve as art in how they fuel our visual appetites. If we all stopped buying books on paper our lives would be so much emptier. For, however would we fill our shelves and decorate our walls?
To me, there is nothing so visually stunning or entertaining or provocative as a wall or a room filled with books. Don't you quite agree?
My children got e-readers for Christmas. They love them and because of this they have inhaled books of epic proportions. Because of this I too love the e-readers. But for them, not for me. I am sure one day I too will succumb to electronic print. Yes, the thought of getting a book in the middle of the night is intriguing and appealing. But I haven't gotten to that point. If I have run out of books in the middle of the night I still have my iPhone and I can find any number of friends on Facebook and Twitter who are also suffering from various age-induced sleep disorders. I'm plugged in too much as it is. When I am reading I would prefer not to be.
Besides, if we had no books our homes would be so bland, drab and lifeless. For once a book has been inhaled and loved it's life is not over. In fact, once a book has been finished a new life has begun. Books serve as art in how they fuel our minds, but they also serve as art in how they fuel our visual appetites. If we all stopped buying books on paper our lives would be so much emptier. For, however would we fill our shelves and decorate our walls?
To me, there is nothing so visually stunning or entertaining or provocative as a wall or a room filled with books. Don't you quite agree?