^that's a Brad Paisley reference...but about books.
I am on the fence about e-readers. I mean, they seem super convenient - I can take a TON of books with me wherever I go, without lugging them around. It would take up less of my very limited shelf space, which is good, because I am officially out of space. Because of this, I went to a used book store yesterday to trade/get rid of a TON of books and they would only take a few. Of course, I couldn't resist buying a few more too, so I am back with the same amount I had before and no place to put them. A Nook or Kindle would solve that problem (the space, not the getting rid of the ones I don't want...gotta find a solution to that!)
But a Nook is not a book. You don't get the same experience. Instead of feeling the soft pages between your fingers, you get a skinny, cold, hard thing. Instead of hearing the pages as they turn, you click a button. You can't smell that new/used/unique book smell. You can't fold the corner of the page to hold your spot (which I rarely do, but it's the thought of not being able to that I don't like.) You can't see the cover get all beat up because you've re-read a favorite for the 112th time.
Despite my wholehearted love of real books, I have downloaded the free Kindle app on my computer. I have also found a bunch of sites for free online books. I don't know how I feel about that either. I don't like reading on the screen, but I do like that I have the opportunity to download and/or read online (free, because I'm cheap) books that I don't own/wouldn't necessarily buy.
My birthday is coming up, and don't get me wrong: If someone wanted to buy me a Nook, I'd take it and say thank you. But I'm not going to spend my money on one when I can spend it on a real book that I will really love, and that will make my shelf look pretty. Because that's the point, right? ;)
