I think this debate has been going on ever since the Kindle was released, and I'm certainly not the first or the last person to join in with it. It seems crazy that so many people are getting in such a fuss about their preferred reading methods, but when I think about it it isn't crazy because you cannot smell or stroke a Kindle in the same way you can a physical book. Book stroking/smelling is definitely one of my favourite things to do. Sometimes I take my books off of the shelf just to pet them and tell them how pretty they are.
You can call me weird but I bet that I'm not the only one.
The practice of reading books goes back centuries, and much like the terrifying transition from full length frocks to dresses that show your ankles, so many people are getting pissy about the rise of the Kindle *cue dramatic music*.
I own a Kindle, but equally I own 300+ books. Whilst most of my reading is done with physical books, I've been reading more and more on my Kindle in the past few months. I do get it when people refuse to buy one, but it's so much easier to download a book, start reading it straight away and put it in my bag without worrying that the pages will get crumpled. It's interesting that I'm more worried about a few folded front covers than damaging an expensive electrical item. Wow.
Most of the books I buy on my Kindle are the cheaper ones. For example, I always check the Kindle Daily Deals to see if I can pick up a couple of books for only a few pounds. Granted, most of these books aren't at the top of my to read lists, but it did make me feel really smug when I downloaded the whole of Robin Hobb's Farseer trilogy for only £2.97. Yes, there is a big start up cost, but in the long run I think that it's totally worth it.
Also, I don't get as much TBR shame when I buy Kindle books. I have roughly ninety unread books (not including the ones on my Kindle) and that makes me cringe with embarrassment, but I don't feel that way when I add to my Kindle library.
It's also so much more practical. I'm going on holiday to the USA this year to visit my cousins and I plan to do a lot of reading. A couple of years ago we drove up to the Lake District (it took about eight hours and I managed to read two books. *selffive*) and I took about eight books with me. They were under car seats, shoved in the pockets behind the chairs and stacked up in the middle seat. When we arrived at the hotel I had to take four trips just for my books. This year, I've been stocking up on Kindle books so I only have to bring a couple of physical books with me, meaning that I can buy a shit ton whilst I'm on holiday and still have room to bring them back.
As much as I find my Kindle convenient, I adore physical books. I pride myself in my book collection (well that was probably the most pretentious thing I've ever said) and I even like it when my bookshelves are overflowing. If I read a book on my Kindle and love it, I'll buy a physical copy (I also do this with library books). There's something so special and personal about seeing all those wonderful tales in my room. I look at my bookshelf every day and it just makes me happy to see the stories I've lived and the ones I'm yet to experience.
My life long goal is to have a home-library like this, and I certainly can't have that with my Kindle.
I want to whoosh across a ladder on my shelves like this. (My aunt actually has a ladder on her shelves, but you can't move it whilst you're on it. That breaks my heart.)
And how could I possibly own all of my books digitally when I think this?
Yeah, I'll never be able to afford that many books, let alone a house that big, but it's still a dream. I do love my Kindle, but I love my bookshelves more.
Furthermore, I think books are beautiful. Like I said earlier, I love stroking the covers and admiring how much better they look in real life compared to what the cover looks like on Goodreads. I'm ridiculously sad and actually enjoy rearranging my shelves. I'm not even sorry about that.
Books also smell good, okay? I read so much I can actually tell the difference between different book smells. The Kindle scent isn't nearly as good. It's like getting new carpets--after a week or two it just doesn't smell the same.
Do you know what I'm going to say about this? I think we should live in a world where we can love (and smell) real books, but also read on Kindles as much as we want. I admit that in my heart, Kindle books will never replace the real things but I certainly don't want to eliminate them for good, just because it's something new.
This post is already ridiculously long so I'll wrap it up with my thoughts on my Kindle, credit due to my homie Belle:
New and a bit alarming
Who'd have ever thought that this could be?
True that he's no Prince Charming
But there's something in him that I simply didn't see
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