Print Books vs. eBooks

I never thought I'd ever have to weigh in on this debate. Heck, I'm still not sure if I'm qualified enough to even entertain the thought of weighing in on this debate, but I'm going to do it anyways.

For Christmas 2011, I asked for a Kindle Keyboard 3G (they were on sale at Best Buy for about $89, and I'm all about sales, so I told my mother about it). Much to my surprise, I actually received one. I spent the morning hooking it up with my Amazon account and downloading free classic books.

That may be the only thing I ever use my Kindle for - reading out-of-copyright books. I may make an occasional Kindle-Only (or eBook-Only) purchase, but my free books far outnumber the purchased books on my device. I did buy my friend Kellie's book, because I absolutely loved it when I proofread it, and I want to support her. (You should, too!!)

I'll admit that it's nice to have an entire library in my purse whenever I travel. I don't have to worry about wrinkling pages, losing my place, or having my sister steal one of my books, because I have nearly a hundred of them on one little device. It's absolutely amazing what technology can do. 

I love the little page animations (or the electronic-ink refresh, I suppose is the proper term). I love the fact that it's not an actual screen, and that it's actually better in sunlight than a paper book. (The only thing that I don't love is that it's the ad-supported version, which means I see ads instead of book-related screensavers on the power-saving screen. But I don't really mind; some of the ads are pretty neat.)

However, there are a few things that paper books just do better.

1. That new-book smell. Sniff that Kindle, Nook, or iPad all you want - it'll smell of nothing but cold hard plastic (or perhaps the leather case you've put on it). Books, however, have an entire range of smells. There's new book, old book, really old book, food-covered book, accidental-fruit-juice-spill book, and everything in-between. I love sniffing books. (NO! I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM! LEAVE ME ALONE!)
2. Flipping pages. I love long books. The longer the better. I want something I can curl up with for hours without running out of story. (That may be why I enjoy reading series books more than I do stand-alone books.) I love flipping through the pages, feeling the pages under my fingertips and hearing their rustling. (The book-smell that accompanies this is just a bonus!)
3. Initiating conversations. If I see someone reading a book that I like, sometimes I'll go over to them and ask them how they like it. (Note: read sometimes as never, because Lauren is too scared of other people, and you'll get the general idea of how often I do this.)
4. Used bookstores. You can't go hunting for eBooks in a large store like 2nd & Charles or some sort of pawn shop. eBooks are one-owner only. And that's not cool at all. Some of my best books have come from secondhand book stores. It's like a treasure hunt!

I will always favor my paper books over my Kindle, but a Kindle is also handy to have at times. It's useful on long road trips if you've got limited space but still want to bring a ton of books with you.

(Note: I would enjoy my Kindle so much more if I could put the books that I already OWN on it. If I could stuff my entire bookshelf onto this device, I would probably die of happiness. Find a way to make it happen, Amazon! Please!!)

Kindle does have one thing going for it, though: It's easy to self-publish, if you're able to put in the time and know-how in order to do so. (It's certainly easier than finding a publishing house willing to look at your story.) One of these days, I may publish a book on Kindle, or maybe a collection of short stories. (I'd love to have a physical copy of my first novel. That's all I'm asking.)

Do you like print books or ebooks better? Is there room for both in this world of ours, or are print books doomed to the fireplaces eventually? Weigh in!