First up, a year or two ago, I couldn’t have even imagined writing a post like this. Somewhere between turning 26 and turning 29, I lost the plot with books. I think it also happened because I moved houses and lost touch with my library.
It was a glorious library – tiny, filled with books from the floor to the ceiling and had that special library, musty, smell. The proprietor was an old man and any time I would enter, he would be watching a discussion on a news channel. But understanding the sacredness of choosing a book, he would reduce the volume as soon as I’d step inside.
My sister took a picture of me in that library and darn don’t I look happy.
I was still into paperbacks then. I had a Kindle but used it mostly as a bookmark for my paperbacks. I only really started reading on the Kindle when I was disenchanted by an order of a paperback. The paper was thin, the font size unreadable, the cover was turned, and it took 5 days to arrive, when the urge to read had already passed. That’s when I earnestly began to read on the Kindle – so much so that I don’t think I can read a paperback anymore.
Has it changed the way I consume books? Yes! I think it has opened up variety for me. Before I would rely on buying paperbacks of known authors. I explore and experiment a lot more now.
Although I do miss seeing a colour cover page since the Kindle only shows it to you in black and white. But I have the Kindle app on my phone and I make it a point to admire the covers on it.
Ebooks have made the gap between wanting to read a book and getting that book miniscule. And there are so many books I want to read whose paperbacks aren’t available – or they’re too expensive. And while the physical market has to rely on sales to justify printing books, the virtual market is my paradise.
I’m relatively new to the concept of audiobooks. I only recently took a subscription for Audible, all because The Sandman was available for free. Although I hemmed and hawed with the decision to take Audible for so long, by the time I registered, The Sandman was no longer free. But I used a credit so it was all okay in the end.
I had of course read all about the advantages of audiobooks, how you can multitask with them, and they’re a great way to reduce screentime, etc. What I have found instead is, I cannot multitask with Neil Gaiman’s dulcet tones narrating the shenanigans of Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams to me. I have also found it makes me restless. I’m grateful it has episodes so I can pause after finishing one. It does reduce screentime I suppose but since I started it while reading something on my Kindle, I don’t know how much actual screentime it reduced!
After I finish The Sandman, I have my eye on picking up Pride and Prejudice narrated by Rosamund Pike. I heard a sample and the way she has changed her voice between Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet is delightful!
What I feel ebooks and audiobooks have done for me is given me access to books in different formats, where they’re instantly available, they don’t take up space, and allow me to adoringly stare at my phone as I jump with joy at my collection of digital books.
I will say this: I had thought that reading needed to be done a particular way. With a book in hand, a coffee on the table next to you, wearing a soft off-white sweater. It took me sometime to understand that reading can be done in whatever way I want. And ebooks made me see this.
A Kindle has been the best investment I have made and the joy of ordering [and receiving] a book at 12 AM on a Friday night is unparalleled.
Have you tried either, both or are you a paperback loyalist? Tell me!
This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon.
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