Diary of a Mad Editor

Before I head off to the gym in my ongoing quest for stomach fat loss, I thought I’d respond to this post by Dan Agin on The Huffington Post. "Kindle Armageddon . . . " echoes the pro-eBook theme, I’ve been drumming for a while. But that’s not why I wanted to respond to it, exactly. Mainly, I wanted to react to many negative comments made to the post from individuals who, like certain publishers, see eBooks as the enemy of regular books. I suppose it’s human nature to be protective of an old technology in the face of a newer technology that is perceived as a replacement.

Although, Agin’s post was a little too Kindle-centric in his view of eBook market, his core message that eBooks are not a fad and publishers need to get with the program is right on target. I don’t believe he’s making a case against regular printed books or suggested that eBooks are superior or even that eBooks will ever completely replace printed books as these commenters suggest. He’s merely saying what I and many others have been saying all along — that if publishers continue to fight against the advent of the eBook as a serious medium for the written word, they do so at their own peril.

Personally, I love printed books as I’ve stated many times in the past. I’ve read thousands of books in my lifetime and I currently own hundreds of them. But, if I could afford an eReader, I’d own one of those too. As one commenter stated, it’s true that "eReaders and eBooks are not a necessity" — but there are times when it would be damn convenient to have an eReader.

I remember when I was a senior in college. On Thursdays, my final semester, I had this window of several hours between my Shakespeare II class and my T.S. Eliot seminar in the evening. I would kill time as best as I could. Mostly, though, I read books. I would carry around several at one time, usually polishing off 5-10 volumes per week. Once, I even read 20 books in one week (a fete I haven’t duplicated since). As much as I loved reading, carrying around all those books every day was a pain in the ass (and back and shoulders, etc.) If the technology had been available back then, I definitely would’ve had me an eReader. Likewise, right after graduation, I found myself on a long train ride to visit my grandmother. Plenty of books to read, but not a lot of physical space to stretch out and enjoy. An eReader might’ve made the experience a bit more pleasurable as I wouldn’t have had to bother my neighbor every time I wanted to retrieve another book. Just before Christmas, I was waiting on my father at his doctor’s office. I had a library book — a hardcover. It was a long wait and after a time holding the weight of the book became a little uncomfortable. Not to mention the fact that nearly every time I flipped a page this old man would throw me a hard stare as if the barely audible sound of a page turning was somehow rude. Having an eReader in the doctor’s waiting room would’ve been nice. And there’ve been plenty of other occasions where I’d have preferred an eBook to a so-called "real" book. And that’s what eBooks are good for — not as a permanent replacement for physical books, but as nifty stand-ins when regular books aren’t as convenient or readily available.

Regardless of whether you agree with that assessment or not, eBooks are here to stay, so killing the messenger won’t change the message or alter reality.