I am still not a convert. One would think that I would be after having read all of Mansfield Park on my Palm during downtime in medical school (when I should have been studying). I just enjoy the feel and weight of an actual book in my hands and reading something on a screen is just not the same. There is no new book smell, no actual flipping of pages, no cool colorful bookmarks, or dog-eared pages (and no paper cuts). Not to mention…how could you possibly enjoy illustrations and cool covers on a black and white screen? Probably if it cost $60 instead of $360 I would be singing a different tune. As a children’s writer I wonder how many people would buy a $360 device for their children. Although…maybe if they bought one for themselves and tried to hide it from their kids, they could trick them into reading with it.
But NPR’s Lynn Neary answers what I think is one of the most important questions: can you take the Kindle to the beach? The short answer is you can as long as it doesn’t get wet or get buried in the sand. I’m not sure that I would feel comfortable hiding it in my beach bag like I do with my cell phone while I go for a swim.
On the other hand, I am still waiting to get a really cool do-it-all computer book like Penny’s on Inspector Gadget. That is something I would definitely buy.
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