E-books have become the new source of reading material. In fact, in some locations, a lot of bookstores that have closed due to the excessive number of readers who have traded reading a physical book for reading an e-book. But what’s so special about an e-book that causes so many readers to drop physical books? Is there anyone who still enjoys reading physical books instead of e-books anymore?
E-books and physical books can both have their pros and cons. For e-books, many readers enjoy being able to have a large access to purchasing a new book inside a tablet. Readers no longer need to make the long trip over to the bookstore or library since they can simply purchase a book with a tap of a button. It’s also much faster to receive the book than if the reader went to the bookstore since the book can simply be downloaded onto their tablet or e-reader.
In addition, e-books are also easier to take to travel since they are small and light. If a reader wanted to read multiple physical books over their trip, they would need to take a bag and pack books, which can be heavy and can take up a lot of room.
E-books also help readers who have tons of books at home but have no room to keep the books have an easier method of storing multiple books on their tablet or Kindle. The books are also easy to access on their Kindle or tablet, which can make reading more convenient. This is something I struggle with since there a lot of books that I like to reread several times, but I run out of space to keep my books and they usually end up in the basement where I can’t see them and therefore forget about them.
As great as this all sounds, e-books can also have some cons associated with them. For one thing, many readers still enjoy the feel, touch and smell of books. I love the smell of old and new books since it brings an association of nostalgia of spending days in the library reading one book after the other. I also love the feel and smell of a new book with the pages being crisp and stiff from never being used!
With an e-book, you can’t enjoy the feel of flipping pages of a book or the smell of new or old books. Instead, you can only touch a cold computer screen, which takes away a lot of the sensations associated with having a physical book.
In addition to this, some e-books can be expensive. Buying the books themselves is cheap, for the most part. But buying the actual device is where it can be expensive.
This isn’t always true, however. There are some Kindles or tablets that are very cheap. One for example, according to Amazon, the Kindle e-reader is only $59.99. The Kindle Fire is more expensive since it includes apps and accessories whereas the Kindle e-reader is for readers who only want to read books on their device.
The one con of buying a physical book at the bookstore is that they can also get expensive, where the average book is $16. The highest amount of money that I have paid for a book was $18 for a hardcover. However, with a physical book, you have the option of going to the library and choosing a book which only costs money if you return the book late or forget to renew. With some libraries, they also offer e-books that you can rent on your Kindle.
One good thing about having a physical book is that you can actually see the illustration on the book or feel the texture of the illustrations. On Kindle books or e-books, you can see the illustrations on the covers of the book. But it’s one thing to see it on a screen and another to actually be able to touch or see it on paper.
Another thing is that often books will have posters inside the cover as a bonus, or at least for YA books. Sometimes, the inside of the cover will simply be decorated with gorgeous fan art from readers who are passionate about the books. With Kindle or e-books, you are unable to have this.
In addition, with physical books, sometimes the pages are cut a certain way, or the spine is designed a certain way that gives an extra quality to the book that you are unable to get with a Kindle or e-book. Therefore, if you enjoy the extra features with illustrations or designs of a physical book, then an e-book or kindle book may not be for you.
There are so many different pros and cons to owning a physical book or an e-book that it can be hard to decide which is better. There are some people who love e-books and other people who wouldn’t dare abandon their own physical books. You may be like me and just enjoy both. I love physical books since I like the experience of going to the library or bookstore and having the feel or smell of books. But I also sometimes enjoy reading a Kindle book when I don't have time to run to the library or bookstore.
There is no clear division between which is better. It really depends on the type of reader whether you love the sensations of reading a physical book or if you simply want the convenience of reading an e-book. Whatever type of book you choose, just make sure that it’s something you enjoy.
