Kevin Meyer, Tempo Editor
Pictured above: As e-books become more popular, personal libraries may become a thing of the past.
Books, and words in general, have power. They have the power to change something, stir emotions and make someone think outside of the box. Would books still have this power if everything was read on an e-reader?
Books are powerful things that need to be interpreted to discover their true meanings. There are many people out there who only read via e-readers now, and many people who are strictly hardcover/paperback readers. To me, having that book in your hands and being completely immersed in it is what separates books from e-books.
This may be a personal thing (and I can’t be the only one who feels it), but I struggle sometimes to get into a book as much on my Nook from Barnes and Noble as I do with a regular book. There’s something about just sitting around with a book and reading that inspires me to keep going and completely divulge myself in a story.
An e-book can be distracting. Whether it is the Internet connection on some of the devices or the multitude of apps, an e-reader is ripe for distracting moments. There’s something about reading a book completely excluded from the world around you.
I find because of this, I can read a book far faster than an e-book with the same page count. The faster you read, the more books you can get through, which is always a plus.
Being able to share good literature is a significant factor between e-books and real books. With e-readers, there sometimes is a way to “lend” a copy of your book via the device, but it’s not normally the case with your entire library. The first time you buy a regular book, a person does not need to worry about this; they can pass it on to whomever they like or even sell it someplace online if it didn’t fulfill their expectations.
I like to think I’m not only creating a library for myself, but also the people in my life now and in the future. A lot of the books that I read may still have impact by the time I have kids of my own. Having these copies lined up on a bookcase someplace will just be a reminder of how they impacted me and how they can still be read by future generations. I’m already in the process of distributing my literature to friends. I pass books on to others like it’s nobody’s business, and this simply would not be possible with most e-readers.
The idea of a library is just thrilling to me. A room lined with books — books that I’ve read. It’s just something that an e-reader cannot compete with.
Cost is another issue with e-readers. Of course, the first purchase of a device can be anywhere from $150 to $250 for the newest technology. Then the cost of each book must be calculated as well. I buy my books online, sometimes even used for under $8; it’s just the way I shop. E-books are regularly $9.99 or more. It doesn’t seem like much, but it does start to add up in the long run, and we’re college students — money certainly matters.
With all that being said, e-readers do have their conveniences. The big one is being able to read in the dark. Unless you own some special light for your book, the nighttime is a book’s worst enemy and an e-reader’s best friend. However, e-books struggle in direct sunlight, which is a win for books.
I think it’s ignorant to say that soon all books will be in this form, since it’s just not practical right now, but there will be more pushes for an e-book world.
I can’t fathom a day where books are just not a part of me or the main contributor of our world when it comes to information, stories and opinions. It’s kind of like when you move away to college. You don’t know how much you need and rely on your parents till you’re without them. The same can be applied to books; people would miss them too much, and the world needs books.
Photo provided by Kevin Meyer.
Kevin Meyer
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