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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

How's This Gonna Work, EBook?

I read The Little Engine That Could a lot these days. Both of the kids love it, but it's little Veda who toddles over to me and deposits it in my lap. If I told you how many times a day she does this, there's a good chance you wouldn't believe me. Every time through I do the same character voices, the same sound effects, the same wiggles and jiggles. And every time Veda does the same enchanting grin in the same places.

I bet we could still do that with the ebook version.

Yet, for as many times as I've read that book to her, she's "read" it to herself far more. What do you say to that, ebook? Looking at books independently has been a favorite activity for a loooong time around here, and it started well before I would have trusted either of them with an expensive electronic device. (Truth be told, I still wouldn't let them handle an expensive electronic device.)

And what about all of the touch-and-feel books, the lift-the-flap books, the scratch-and-sniff books? What will the e-answer to those literary novelties be?




I heard a few days ago that Amazon now sells more ebooks than traditional books. It made me feel a bit like a dinosaur since I seem to be the only book lover in all the land who doesn't have an e-reader, and I'll probably start getting myself psyched up to make the switch. What about baby books, though? It's not that I think there won't be an answer, but I just can't imagine what it might be.

Does anybody else think about this?
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Posted by at 1:45 PM

3 comments:

  1. EmmaApril 5, 2011 at 4:20 PM

    I'm with you on the ebooks! I actually got a Kindle for Chrismtas and while i do enjoy how i can trek around tons of books, I can't imagine having eirik reading a book on something like a Nook right now. he adores the lift flap books! I just dont think that baby books will ever go away. Older kids books maybe, but baby? Nope. =)

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  2. MandyApril 13, 2011 at 10:05 AM

    nah, no way. There will always be kids books, if not for the learning to flip pages, colors, etc. Plus, I just will stomp my food very hard on the ground, b/c even though I do like my kindle, I still loooovvvveee my books!

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  3. Michelle IlesApril 29, 2011 at 9:07 AM

    I don't have an e-reader, either, and I probably never will. There are so many things that a real book has and and e-book just cannot replace. There is the "look" of a favorite book--old, worn, pages slightly discolored--you can tell it's been lovingly read, time after time. And then there is the smell. I don't know why, but I've always enjoyed the smell of books, especially old ones. Finally, I have yet to anticipate what's next by scrolling down the way I do when I turn the page of a book. It's just not the same. :-)

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