In Which I Can Read Again
There seems to be something of a divide among book bloggers among those who love their e-readers and those who wring their hands and cry NO! The smell of the pages! The folding of the corners! The survival of the bookshops! And until now, I’ve been a handwringer. Not out of choice or principles, mind, but because frankly, I can’t afford to buy books. I get my fix from our friendly local library. This cuts out corner-folding and bookshop-helping, but at least I get pages-smell. And a trip to the friendly local library, which is indeed extremely friendly.
However, over the past six weeks I have found it completely impossible to read and feed the baby at the same time. Cannot hold book up, cannot turn pages, can only dangle it perilously close to feeding baby’s head and hope to absorb words by osmosis. And since I probably spend several hours a day feeding the baby, this is several hours a day when I am not reading but 1) staring into space 2) watching rubbish TV 3) wasting endless time on twitter 4) making lists of things I should be doing and can never hope to achieve. None of these things are good for my morale or sanity. I have tried audiobooks, honestly I have. But my ears do not really seem involved with my multitasking brain. If I start to listen to a book, I almost immediately start doing 1) and 4) and probably 3) as well.
BUT HURRAH! MR IPAD HAS SAVED THE DAY! Now, he’s not perfect. He is has a mind of his own and a tendency to set out his words horizontally when I want him to be vertical, or vice versa. A real book would never do that, unless you were attempting to read it after multiple tequila shots. But if motherhood is teaching me anything, it is this: stop worrying about things that are pointless in the grand scheme of things and especially stop worrying about things you can’t control.
So yes, bookshop survival IS very important to me, but I can’t save them single-handedly, especially not at the moment. A choice between not reading e-books out of principle or not reading them at all isn’t actually helping any bookshops. As for the corners, and the smell, they fall firmly into the category of Things That Seem Far Less Important Now. And as for the cost, well, it turns out, unsurprisingly, that I have been wrong about that all along! I can borrow books from the friendly local library! That’s how friendly they are – they will lend you things even when you can’t come and visit them.
All in all: Ipad = WIN. Plus I can watch TV in bed now (extra win).
Posted on August 21, 2011, in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. 20 Comments.
To my knowledge you van tell iPad it he words should be horizontal or vertical. Only WINS then
Hurrah!
I have the opposite problem – got a perfectly good library and bad book buying habit (although have to say that I’ve curtailed that quite a bit this past year)! No matter how you are doing it, I’m glad to hear that you are reading!
I love my e-reader, but I’ll never give up paper books entirely. Sometimes I’ll read something on my e-reader and then want to buy a paper copy because I feel more like I own it when it’s paper. But the e-reader is so nice for really long books that won’t fit in my purse. And Iif I’ve been doing close reading in small print at work all day, the zoom function is a welcome relief.
For free ebooks, you must check out Project Gutenberg. Tons and tons of classic books.
I was a hand wringer over e-books too….but then maybe three weeks before I was going to ship out for Peace Corps (almost exactly two years ago now) I realized I wouldn’t be able to go to the library in Macedonia. Or the bookstore. And that I couldn’t carry two years of reading material with me.
I’m not in love with my e-reader, but I am in love with some of the things I can do with it. So many books I wouldn’t get a chance to read till I get home a year from now, I can read. And e-galleys! And sooooo many classics! (Project Gutenberg is my favorite website, no question.)
One of my friends told me she bought a kindle because she usually ends up standing during her hour-long subway commute each day, and only has one hand free for reading. And your’e right, they’re ideal for giant books…War & Peace, now way easier to read in bed or on the road.
I love my e-reader, and I’m becoming a little sensitive about people’s attitude that we are personally destroying the book trade. Yesterday I posted an article from the Washington Post about how small community bookstores are thriving. I’d like to think we can all co-exist.
My favorite thing about the Kindle is I don’t have to choose which book to commute with every day, or worry about finishing it halfway through my trip. But my other favorite thing is how much easier it is to hold and turn pages than a paper book — in bed or on a train or standing in a crowd.
I’m heading off on a two week vacation and the only question is whether to bring old Kindle or new Kindle — and which paper books to bring for those parts of the flight they make me turn off my Kindle.
I would probably not have an e-reader, even now, but my daughter looked around at my overflowing shelves, the stacks on every surface, and decided to give me one for Christmas. It took awhile to take to it, but I do love the ease of acquiring books and the portable nature of it. Instead of two large totes of books on vacation, one little e-reader will do the trick.
I wonder if an iPad would be even better?
Thanks for sharing….
Here’s MY SUNDAY SALON POST
I have all three books, Kindle and iPad, why? I still love books and not all are on e-readers, I also still love bookshops, love to attend readings and browse. My Kindle travels with me on the underground, living in London I would drive everywhere equalling less time to read, now I live in NYC I travel by underground equalling more time to read. My iPad is more of a work thing, however, the Internet, newspapers, and magazine are awesome on it. So I guess my thing is all three are good depending on you.
Tip for your iPad – go to settings, choose general > use the side switch, then tap lock rotation. Hope this helps!
Ah, thanks!
Hooray for the IPad. I don’t read my Kindle nearly as much as I should! I love flipping back and forward in books and I can’t do that easily with an eReader. But the IPad sounds great!
Oh fun, fun, fun! Isn’t it the greatest? And it doesn’t mean that you will stop reading print books (because you really won’t). It just means that you will read MORE books — and have access to them any time you need them! Hurrah for you! (And good to know iPads work everywhere, I was going to ask you about that because I’ve heard that e-readers do not… how is that possible?!?)
I am so pleased to hear that the IPad is helping you to read books! That is the most important and main thing in your life right now. It is extremely important for new mothers, who are all overburdened, to have the comfort and gentle intellectual stimulation of books.
You are helping your baby and the next generation by being able to read at this time. Books will give you a calm aura that will help your young one in many ways.
Just concentrate on NOW. The Ipad is helping now, so go for it!!
Judith (Reader in the Wilderness)
There are some things that ebooks are fantastic for, and I’m completely envious of you for being able to nurse and read that way. I remember very well trying to balance a book on my legs while nursing.
You do what you have to do! Good luck. Been there, done that. Difficult reading years.
Here’s my Sunday Salon for this week: Sunday Salon: I Wish I Were a Better Blogger. And don’t forget to sign up for the Readerbuzz August Giveaway!
I have an iPad too and I love it. However, I don’t think that having an iPad means giving upon bookshops, the smell of pages, ect. completely. I still frequent book stores and libraries even after having an iPad for a year. I love books and I’ll take them in almost any form.
Yay! I don’t think I would be able to hold an iPad and a baby comfortably, iPads seem so large! But maybe that is what I tell myself to stop from feeling jealous
You should check out girlebooks.com They have lots of classics by women available for free & better formatted than Gutenberg.
Thanks Iris, I had not heard of girlie books!
Glad to know you’re navigating new motherhood with iPad and e-books in hand! Hurrah!
oh my goodness, my first baby is due in February 2012 – now I am nervous about what it will be like reading after that!
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