Week 11 Prompt
Week 11 Prompt
When E books were introduced years ago, I made a vow that I
would never use an electronic device to read a book. A book should be something
you hold in your hands and turn the pages. Smelling a book whether it be brand
new or old and yellowed is something I enjoy. How could I get that fabulous smell
from a Kindle? Then, a couple of years ago, I noticed when I went to read small
paperback books, the print was getting smaller and smaller to my eyes. I felt
the strain in my eyeballs. It appears that I was getting older and my eyes were
getting worse. It was always a several weeks wait at the library to get a large
print copy of popular books. So, on a black Friday special, I did what I vowed
never to do, I bought a Kindle. A whole new world opened up to me. I could make
the font as big as I wanted! I could read in bed with the lamp off without
disturbing my husband. I didn’t have to drive to the library anymore. I could
download the books from the libraries Overdrive. I felt silly waiting so long
to get on the E book bandwagon.
My manager at work is in her early seventies. She is an avid
reader, but she complained it was just too much for her eyes to read more than
a few minutes each night. She tried using a magnifying glass, but her hand
would get tired from holding it after a few minutes. I brought my Kindle into
work and let her play around with it. She was amazed how simple it was to use
and download books from the library. She purchased one for herself and couldn’t
be happier. I think E Readers are life changing for senior citizens.
My experience with audio books is mixed. I only listen to
them when we drive for long vacations. My husband gets so absorbed in the story,
he drives under the speed limit, and sits at red lights long after they turn
green. He said he gets distracted listening to the book and trying to drive. So,
we listen to audio books when I drive and when he drives when we listen to
podcasts. For some reason podcasts don’t affect him like audio books.
How do E books and Audio books affect appeal factors? In my
opinion, they increase sales. I feel like I can read an E book faster than a
paper book. I can read at night in a dark room, without disturbing my spouse.
You can listen to an audio book when you are cleaning your house. You can get
through a book faster this way, which means you need to purchase or check out
another one. I am happy that I was wrong about E books being just a faze. I can
enjoy more books now than I ever would with paper print books. I do still miss
the smell, however.
I am embarrassed to admit that I, too, once held the opinion of - *in an affronted voice* "An eBook...?!? NEVER!!" However, after years of hauling several (not even just one) 400-500+ page books with me on vacation, terrified of "not having something to read" but in reality rarely actually having time to read while on vacation, I began thinking twice about the convenience of an eReader. Even then, I only tried one after having won it as a raffle prize lol
ReplyDeleteI did end up changing my opinion on eBooks and eReaders, and have owned a Kindle Paperwhite for several years, which has been especially helpful since I started living abroad and literally couldn't bring my personal library along with me... Now, given a choice, I prefer a physical book for all the reasons you first mentioned, but if the choice is either reading an eBook version or not reading the title at all, I'm just fine with the eBook.
Thanks for sharing your personal experiences! Mine are very similar. Great response!
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