Paper or plastic?

Paper or plastic. This is a question for me, not just when I’m buying groceries, but also when I’m buying—or borrowing—books. Do I buy the book printed on paper? If so, I have to either drive into Austin or order it online and wait. Do I buy the e-book? If I do, I can get the book instantly, which is good, because I usually put things off until the last minute. Even when I borrow reading material from the library, I sometimes have the same conundrum. Do I check out the paper edition or the e-edition?

I have some friends that live and die by the e-reader. In fact, I recently had to help a friend figure out why none of her new e-books would download on her device. Turns out, she had several hundred titles on her device and was out of memory. She’s a reader.

“E-books are easy to transport, easily fit into a purse, are lightweight, and I can read in the dark,” said library board president Mary Jo Jenkins. “It saves your place. You can also adjust print size, which is important for people of age or failing eyesight.”

On the other hand, Austinite Hannah Foeh never reads e-books, only those printed on paper.

“It’s nice to have the book in my hands, especially since lots of my books are second hand and they have that distinctive book smell, which I like,” Foeh said. “Also, I’m just not very good with technology so I’d rather go browse a bookstore on my own than worry about some algorithm just showing me what it thinks I’ll like.”

Research suggests that not only do we remember more of the books we read on paper, we also feel more emotionally connected to them. (The Guardian 2012).

I also enjoy highlighting parts of books that I especially like, whether it’s a particularly beautiful description or a hilarious anecdote. Yes, e-readers have a highlighting tool, but it’s just not the same. With paper, you can pick up a book, give it a quick flip, and see what you have marked.

I know many folks who read e-books out of necessity. Those who can’t easily get out of the house, or who read so much that they can’t make enough trips to the library or bookstore to feed their habit depend on e-books. In addition, e-books tend to be a bit cheaper than paper books. For those who buy 50 books or more a year, that can add up to real savings.

However, one of the joys of reading is sharing your books with others. Most e-books do not allow you to loan them to friends. Paper books can be loaned, traded, and given away an infinite number of times. Those who know me know that one of my missions in life is to increase 1000 fold the number of people who have read Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. I have multiple copies that I loan out as much as possible.

However, I’m not going to lie. In some cases I prefer the e-book. When a title runs more than 400 pages, I find it somewhat difficult to curl up with the massive tome. In those cases, I choose the lightweight e-reader edition.

I think the only reasonable conclusion to draw is to be grateful that we have both media available to us.

An update

Both Cherry and Inland (which I mentioned last month) were excellent reads. Karr’s fast pace and present tense in Cherry imbue the reader with a sense of urgency. The dialog and descriptions in Inland were especially impressive and apt. Obreht’s ear for language, her sense of place, and her compelling plot pull the reader fully into the story and keep her there until the heartbreaking conclusion.