The E-Reader Debate

I usually read books the traditional way of actually opening a book. This is the way people have read books for generations and there seem to be few drawbacks except the possibility of paper cuts and that books are extremely flammable. These two dangers never really cross my mind while reading though. When I fist heard about e-readers I initially assumed it was just a fad that would die out. Why would someone buy an expensive e-reader and then spend even more money on books? (Ever heard of a library???) I just never really got the point of it until I got one for Christmas.

Honestly I didn’t want an e-reader for Christmas. My mother kept showing me different ones such as the Amazon Kindle or the Barnes & Noble Nook; and I wasn’t fazed a bit. But then my sister cunningly pointed out to me that the Nook Color connected to wireless internet and was remarkably similar to an I-pad. This was a clever loophole to my parents rule against having a laptop. I imagined I could check my email whenever I wanted to, watch stupid videos on youtube, watch Netflix on it; the possibilities seemed endless. This was what convinced me to get one; honestly I didn’t care about reading more books.

When I got my Nook, I was thoroughly impressed. Easy to navigate, full touch screen, and access to tons of applications, I think I procrastinated for a week before I downloaded an actual book on it.

Once I actually went to the Barnes & Noble site on it, it was simple to find a book. It was just like searching for a book online. I was awed by the array of choices. You can even read magazines and picture books on it. It’s actually very convenient to read these on the Nook Color because it’s easy to zoom in on small captions and photographs without the resolution of the screen interfering. I ended up looking up a Nicholas Sparks novel but decided against it after glancing at the book reviews. Fortunately the site recommends other books to you based on your previous novel selections. This led me to finding a new favorite author and a fresh genre.  I ended up downloading a Jill Mansell novel and was introduced to “British chick-lit” which is more entertaining, humorous and witty than your typical American gooey romance novel. It’s like having your own personal librarian to recommend books to you. There are special deals on books just like at a book store. I’ve found that the books cost about the same as they would in paperback but are much cheaper than hard cover editions of the book.

The greatest thing about reading a novel on a Nook is that it is adaptable to you. You can change the brightness of the screen as well as the font, font size and color of the text. Book marking pages and highlighting text is really just at the touch of your fingers. Some novels can even be read aloud to you. There is even a way to lend a book to a friend; this device is really the future of books and libraries.

I would recommend a Nook to anyone who really enjoys reading. It’s great if you blaze through a book and want to read the sequel immediately after; it’s just a click away. If you travel a lot and don’t want to carry around heavy novels, this is a lightweight solution. If you always lose your bookmarked page, a Nook is made for you. Barnes & Noble really addressed the most common reading complaints when making a Nook.

There are a few drawbacks though. The Barnes & Noble account is hooked up to a credit card which could present problems to some people but to others this could be viewed as an advantage. The biggest drawback for me (not that I really want to complain about it) is that I use this device to procrastinate from doing work on a daily basis. I watched almost six seasons of “How I Met Your Mother” in less than a month on my Nook. Honestly this is probably a personal problem though.

Overall I have changed my views on e-readers and think they could definitely be a prominent tool for schools to utilize in the future. Although libraries are more cost effective, e-readers offer a more adaptable and personalized experience with the novel since you can’t highlight and notate library books. I give e-readers two thumbs up (and my thumbs proudly have no paper cuts from books).