Re-Evaluating My View on eBooks

For most of my life, I haven’t enjoyed eBooks. I was always the kid that had a physical book in my hands: during lunch and recess, in the middle of the night, on long car rides. I would go to the library on a near weekly basis during the summer and check out a tall stack of books that I would get through in only a few days.

It’s not just my childhood nostalgia that makes me love physical books. The texture of paper under my finger tips, the smell of an old book, even the act of seeing how many pages I’ve read – all of it is enthralling. The look of books on the bookshelf is even something I enjoy immensely. As much as I hate consumerism, I can’t help but fall into it just a little.

As time went on though, especially as I grew older, my feelings towards eBooks slowly adapted.

There were a few factors that lead to this, one of them miraculously being fanfiction. I’m one to admit that I’ve read my fair share from a whole host of fandoms – Archive of Our Own is practically burned into my phone screen. The thing about fanfiction these days is that it’s almost entirely online. This means that I’ve spent many hours reading on a screen, something I wasn’t accustomed to before.

On a screen there is the beauty of dark mode that makes things easier to read, especially in bright lights where a white book page is blinding.

EBooks are also a huge convenience. No matter what, my phone is nearly always in my pocket. So, on road trips, flights, and even when I’m just waiting in long lines, it’s easy to whip out my phone and crack open a book. Though there, hopefully, isn’t any real cracking.

Carrying along a book, especially one that’s over four hundred pages, can be a bit of hassle. It’s another thing I need to keep track of, something I could accidentally leave behind, and another spot in my miniscule amount of allotted carry on. A phone – or e-reader if you enjoy – is much smaller and can hold a multitude of books.

Another convenience factor is that the number of books expands. Recently, I was re-reading The Underland Chronicles, something I haven’t done since elementary school. Most of the books were on the shelf at my local library but one, the second book in the series, was always checked out. Instead of waiting for it to be reshelved or putting the book on hold at another library, I saw that the eBook was still available. So, I went with that option. In the mere click of a button I could read the book instead of waiting up to weeks.

I’ll also admit that the price of eBooks is also a drawing factor.

I’m a college student which means that I have to gather a lot of textbooks – being a creative writing student means novels and short story collections are also thrown into the mix. All of these books add up to hundreds upon hundreds of dollars. EBooks help cut that price.

Not only do I no longer need to lug around 500 page books to the library, classes, and my dorm, but I get a nice cut in price when I order digital versions of books instead of physical ones. For anyone starting the new semester and feeling the hurt on their pocket, I highly suggest getting a Kindle account and renting books from there if you can. It’s a real life saver.

Textbooks aren’t the only eBooks I’ve bought though. One series that I love dearly, All For The Game, is available through Kindle at 99 cents a book. That means you can get the entire series for about five dollars – that is until the new books are finally released.

I still love physical books, and they’ll always have a place in my heart. Every time I find a second hand bookstore or a walk into a thrift shop, I know exactly what I’m looking for. Going forward though, eBooks have carved out a place in my reading world. As I’m writing this I’m already thinking about checking out book two of The Raven Cycle digitally.

Support your local library, use Libby and Hoopla, and see if there are digital releases of your favorites or the next title on your TBR. I know I will.