I’m Want to Back-Pedal on Those Things I Said About eBooks

2022 has been a big year for me. No, I did not do anything extremely life altering like moving to a different country or buying Twitter or anything like that. I am not running for Senate or even changing religions.

Yet, my viewpoints are changing on all kinds of things. Some of my long time core stances on ideas are toppling like Jenga blocks.

[Don’t get worried though. This post isn’t going to be about recently leaked Supreme Court drafts. I will never post about about that on this blog. This isn’t that type of blog.]

In my heart-of-hearts I have these core stances that seem to guide me through life. Some are serious like, “Don’t kill people”. Some are based on fear like “Don’t let birds or bats get get close to your head.” Some are specific to my particular sense of humor like, “The stupider the adult comedy movie, the more I know I need to see that movie.” (I’m talking about you Scary Movie, Scary Movie II, The Other Guys, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar. ) These tenants help me know how to feel and react to life.

Lately though, I have been surprising even myself.

First, (and this one has been developing over the past few years) I have decided that Star Wars is fun and I do not hate it after all. I used to really hate Star Wars because I never saw the original three movies when I was a child and I felt alienated from the hub bub over the prequels that came out when I was in my 20’s. My husband’s side of the family really likes the movies and for me the Star Wars franchise was always something that I had no personal connection with.

However, lately, Mr. Katie and I have been enjoying the Star Wars shows on Disney+ and I have been enjoying them. He taught me that the secret to enjoying Star Wars is to remember that the stakes are very low and the good guys are probably going to win in the end. Also when watching, it matters very little if you haven’t been all the Star Wars movies or shows. All the matters is what is currently happening on screen. Star Wars seems very Zen in this way. Perhaps a college professor somewhere teachers a class called Star Wars and Zen Philosophy. I am sure you could take this class somewhere. If you are interested you can read about my Star Wars change of heart here, I wrote about it around this time last month.

But this post isn’t about Star Wars, it is about the eReaders in general and the Kindle specifically.

Lately, I have made a full 180 degree switch on my feelings about Ereaders.

I know . .

It seems like a mundane thing to have strong feelings about. Why do I even have a stance on eReaders? Well, you might too if you were a librarian.

I used to hate eReaders. I know that most people don’t have such strong feelings about eReaders, but I do. I have been helping people with their eReaders for more than a decade.

My ill will towards them was multifaceted. First of all, I have helped many people across several workplaces (i.e. libraries) to figure out how to load books onto their new eReaders and tablets since they became widely purchased. I started helping people to do this over decade ago and let me tell you technology has come a long way in the past 10 years. When I first started helping people use eReaders, I do not even think every library had Wi-Fi. Also Overdrive, the product that many libraries use to purchase and distribute eBooks, was not as user friendly ten year ago as it is today. I remember a time when most eBook downloads required using a USB cable and plugging the eReader into the computer. Finally, the most accurate reason that I had such ill will towards eBooks is that customers would come to the library for help because they were already frustrated in their own failed attempts at downloading eBooks. They already came with their own baggage. In my career, I have helped many people who seemed to be already mad when they walked into the library that eBooks on Overdrive were frustrating to figure out how to download. Me thinks I have some eBook PTSD.

These experiences crystalized a belief in me that eReaders were more trouble than they were worth. Also people who had them, did not seem to know how to use them. It was maddening.

I also have some issues because over the years, because I have heard comments from some well meaning people to the extent of, “Why don’t you just get rid of all the books in the library because people just read eBooks these days anyway?” To me this viewpoint ignores the fact that not everyone has equal access to technology. A digital divide exists. Not everyone has the equipment or the ability to use the equipment to access eBooks. Also eBooks cost more to purchase for libraries than non-digital books and Overdrive changes a fairly high maintenance fee to service the public with digital books after the books are purchased by the library.

Needless to say, I have had a bee in my bonnet for years about eBooks.

Though, I must confess, I did not completely abstain from eBooks. I have been a faithful eAudiobook consumer for a long time. They have gotten me through some long drives and allowed me to experience book series that I have loved. I know that I am a little bit of a hypocrite in my love of eAudiobooks.

As I write this, I laugh at myself. This is silly. I am confessing to you, dear reader, like I am in a confessional at church exposing my eReading sins.

But lately, my feeling about eReaders have changed. I am in love.

Mr. Katie got me a Kindle Paperwhite as an anniversary present and it turns out, it was the thing I didn’t know that I needed in my life. I love it. I know you shouldn’t love objects, but it makes reading so effortless.

Mine came with a little leather-like cover that opens like a book. Every time I open it, it is on the extract right page that I stopped on. Also it is backlit, so I can read in bed with the lights off.

Since I got it less than three weeks ago, I have done way more reading than I was doing before I had one. I always thought that an eReader would not work for me because I rarely finish books within two weeks and two weeks is the borrowing period that Overdrive (Libby) gives patrons at my library. Guess what though? I finished the first book I borrowed from Libby in about a week and half. I never read that fast!

I like the way I can increase the font. I am getting old eyes these days. I like the way at the bottom of the page, my Kindle lets me know how many more minutes it estimates it will take me to finish a chapter and finish the book. I like the way there are fewer words on a page than in a traditional book, somehow this feature makes reading less intimidating. I like the way it is thin and light and very portable. I can fit it in my purse easily. Sometimes I put it in the center console in my car.

One of my favorite features of my Kindle is that while I can access the internet on it to buy more books or browse offerings, it is clunky to use it as a tablet. I like that I would not really use it for scrolling the internet like I would do on my phone. I do not need the temptation of scrolling the internet on my reading device. I have been reading the internet less since I got my Kindle. Yay!!! I need to read the internet less in my life.

I plan to read both “free” eBooks from the library and sometimes purchase books from Amazon. I already bought a book of nursery rhymes to read to Preschool Nugget and a longer book for myself that is not in my library’s catalog. I have also downloaded three books from Libby.

In conclusion, I might have been a tad bit wrong about eReaders. I do see the value now. I do not think I will ever exclusively read on an eReader but my Kindle Paperwhite is giving me something I did not know that I needed.

Also, if you need help using your eReader, I will help you. Begrudgingly maybe, but I will help you.