Books

One of my favorite smells is the smell of books. I love the musty mixed with wood smell of old books. I love the crisp smell of new books. I anticipate that smell that just envelops you when you walk into a bookstore, of stiff book spines and fresh paper.

There is nothing better to me than waking up early in the morning, never getting out of bed, just reaching over for a book and reading in bed until lunch (so that hasn't happened in over 3 years, but still...).

I love long baths with a good book. I love a good book paired with a blanket and a sunny day.

I just LOVE books, period. Not just the act of reading, but the actual book, the black letters against the white pages, dogged with repeated use; the weight of them on my lap; the collection of them on my bookshelf.

And the words, how they fit together to make something, but then how you can just take them apart, or just a phrase, and well, make poetry of that in itself. I love how wrapped up I can get in those words, how affected I can become.

Which is why I am appalled at the new book, the Kindle. What a vile little creation. Don't we understand that the words are only part of the book? Are we so concerned with convenience and getting what we want exactly when we want that we are forgetting the goodness of permanence? And what about our eyes? I thought computer screens were supposed to be bad for the eyes.

I will not lie and say that I didn't research this little product because even I am seduced by any book in the world at my fingertips. But it only took a few minutes for me to realize what a travesty this could be. In addition, it seems pretty pricey. For $250, you should be able to download books for nominal prices. But a new release is still $10. That seems a little steep. And in the wrong hands (mine!), a very expensive little gadget. I read fast and doubt I could resist downloading at least 1 or 2 new books a week.

So this may be the way of the future, but for now, I will stick to my library and local bookstore. And if I have no choice, I will begrudgingly get one when our world has gone to pot. I suppose my grandkids will have to come over and repeatedly show me how to turn it on and download the books on the thing though.