eBook vs. a Book

January 17, 2012

Although I have had my Kindle for a number of months, I only just recently finished reading an entire book on it. Nothing against the machine, but I guess I was in a non-reading phase for a while. Nonetheless, I have to say I did really enjoy reading on my new device.

One of the first benefits I realized, as I was stretched out on my couch with my Kindle on a pillow, was that I didn’t have to try to hold the book open. I loved being able to just sit back and click a button when I was ready to move on. I left the Kindle on my lap and only touched it when I was ready to go to the next page. The other advantage, I soon recognized, was that while I was lounging, I could enlarge my font size so the text would be easier to read from my lap. I never really thought I would use this feature right away, but it kept me from having to hold my Kindle.

The Kindle even has child appeal, as my seven-year-old daughter was intrigued just by the novelty of the gadget. She said, "Here, I’ll hold it for you, and you just tell me when to go to the next page." She has never offered to do that with a book before.

While traveling this summer, I did bring my Kindle with me—fully loaded with music, games and books—ready to fire up to stave away the boring hours on the plane. Since my kids easily kept me from being bored, I never used it for more than listening to a few songs at a time though. However, it was a lot more convenient than packing several books and magazines that I didn’t have room for anyway.

I do think I will continue borrowing books with paper pages, but now having used my Kindle, I can clearly see the benefits of the device. If I can ever really stick with my treadmill routine, I can see myself reading on my Kindle as I walk since the font can be made large enough to see from across the room. I might also use my Kindle to listen to music as I exercise, since I have added many of my favorite songs to my machine for easy access.

Although I am not ready to choose one reading medium over another, I am ready to give reading on a Kindle two thumbs up!

Jacqueline R.
Blue Springs South Branch