There’s an old saying that the tech industry might consider. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” I’m thinking books. I work in an industry that’s running after ebooks, sometimes at the expense of actual books. You know what I mean—the kind printed on paper. With a cover. An object. What techies don’t seem to understand is that something happens to you when you’re reading a book. It changes you. Curled up in a chair with a half-pound of bound paper in front of you, you become absorbed. Chair, person, paper. All one. And you’re taken somewhere else. I’m not saying that reading online isn’t valuable. Clearly it is. The experience, however, isn’t the same. Industry moguls express surprise at vinyl’s return. They shouldn’t. It wasn’t broke either.
After reading a meaningful book I’ll carry it around with me for days like Linus’ security blanket. Its mere presence reminds me that something profound happened to me while I was spending time with that tome. Especially meaningful books I hesitate to shelve away with the others. No, I want them to hand to remind me. To bring back, at a glance, the fascination they engendered. Let’s call it enchantment. Capitalism removed enchantment from the world. In the heat of materialism’s fervor, it made all alternatives irrelevant. That’s what’s driving the ebook craze. Hey, I’m fine if you like to read on a piece of plastic, but please leave the option of paper for those who prefer to truly get lost.
I spend most of my waking hours (and all of my sleeping ones) surrounded by books. When my eye falls on one that I really enjoyed, I take a nanosecond pause to appreciate it. We all have to decide how we’ll spend our time on this weary old planet. A good deal of it will be work, and if we’re lucky it will be doing something we enjoy. Otherwise we have roughly five hours of waking time five days a week to squeeze in the necessary and the enjoyable. Some will go out and party with friends, others will stay home and read a book. Many will use devices to fill the time outside the office, whether alone or with friends. I tend to be in the book crowd. I’m not embarrassed by that. Books have been good to me. Very good. They say reading is fundamental. I would add that reading a real book is life itself.