Book It

I'm not usually the type of person who goes out and gets the newest gadgets or the next "big thing" in fashion. So I was a skeptic at first when these book tablets like Kindles and Nooks started showing up. I thought books were something that shouldn't be messed with and that e-Reader could possibly compare. Until I realized how cool they were. I still have reservations, but they were suppressed a great deal when I laid hands on my very own Kindle Fire. I'd still hate to say I was a part of "the downfall of the book", but when you really examine it - I have high hopes that all forms of literature can co-exist.

Kindle Fire - Value for your money is reason enough to own one of these things. They're being sold at $200. More specifically, $199, as if anyone looks at that number and rounds down to $100. Either way, that's less than it's costing to make them. Someone's scared of Apple. Based on sales, Apple's their main competitor. Based on common sense, they shouldn't be. If a kid ran up to you, snapped your laptop in half, then tried to charge you $700 for the monitor... that's essentially the iPad. 

On the other hand, you've got the Kindle Fire. It's lightweight. It's the adorable size of a paperback book and has more things in it than your family's junk drawer. Color magazines. A lending library. Free apps & games. Documents. Wi-Fi internet. Books downloaded into your palm without even having to get up. Your music and radio stations from around the country. The list goes on and I'm in love with it. I just read a 900 page book and instead of lugging around an obnoxiously sized hardback, I was able to easily carry around the Kindle and read it anywhere. I've always liked to read, but this thing has me flying through books and loving it.

Books -  On the other hand, there's nothing like a good ol' fashioned BOOK. A few weeks in the honeymoon phase with my Kindle, I walked around a Barnes & Noble. It was like visiting a long-lost friend. Bookstores just make me happy. The smell of newly-bound books, the coziness of arm chairs & cafes... you can't beat the atmosphere. But I didn't realize how much I missed it until I walked up and flipped through a book. It had been a while, and I have to say it was more satisfying than dragging my finger across a glossy electronic screen. There's something great about curling up with a real book with worn, dog-eared pages.  Instead of a notification telling you you've completed 64% of a story, you can actually feel the width of the part you've read and compare it to the section you still have to finish.

Like I said, I'd hate to be a part of the "downfall" of the book. We've already been a witness to the end of cassette tapes, VCRs, Discmans, and even worse - the video store. (Side bar: I want to see a movie that's older than a month ago but newer than the day I was born, where can I find it? Without stores like Blockbuster, they're like lost toys waiting to be discovered and purchased on eBay. Sad.)   Anyway, I'd hope tablets and books can live peacefully side-by-side, hopefully setting an example for people. 'Cause a good majority of the human race have yet to learn how to do that.