Present word count of WIP: 56,585 (Yes, I’ve cut and revised some)
I love my Kindle. I love my iPhone and iPad with iBooks and the Kindle app (as well as a few other e-reading apps like Stanza, DB Bookshelf, etc.) I have a brand new Nook all set to give away as the grand prize at my book launch next month (date still to be announced). So I’m definitely a fan of e-reading.
I’ve gained a lot ever since I began accruing digital books:
1) I’ve gained a LOT of books because it’s so easy and quick, not to mention cheaper.
2) I’ve gained space because I’ve been able to downsize my physical library (though I still feel a bit sad when I see the new roominess on the shelves downstairs…more about that in another post).
3) I do a lot more reading because I take my iPhone or Kindle everywhere and if I find myself waiting in line or something, I can pull out my book.
But what have I lost in the process of switching to e-reading?
Two things:
1) The physical delights of turning pages, smelling the paper, and the grounded feeling of knowing exactly how far into the book I am and how far I have yet to read. (I have been reminded of those delights lately since I’m having to borrow many books from the library to get through my “Thriller Thursdays” list.)
2) Privacy.
My whole family has access to my Kindle library since each of them has a different kind of device (though Allison can’t access hers for the next year and a half), but it’s not them I’m worried about.
It’s the e-readers themselves.
As pointed out in this article by Richard Lea in The Guardian, published July 5th, they’re spying on us. Really.
I don’t know about you, but somehow I’d prefer to be the only one doing the “reading.”
What do you think about your e-reader device gathering intel on your interests as you read? Are you going to think twice the next time you’re tempted to highlight a passage? Or is this one more freedom you’re willing to let slip through your fingers in exchange for market convenience?
Perhaps I should divert from NPR’s “Thriller” list this next week and, instead of reading James Patterson’s Kiss the Girls, pull a book from their Science Fiction/Fantasy list…
Say, George Orwell’s 1984. From the library, of course.
Originally posted 2012-07-16 14:12:40.