How to you keep your children supplied with books?
In our household it’s a steady round-robin of the local public library, the teacher’s book collection, the school library, and excursions to the bookstore. And of course my well-used account on Amazon.com, and increasingly BarnesAndNoble.com. Occasionally, I will borrow books, but more often I give them away – back to the school or library, or handed off to Book Angels or unsuspecting relatives.
My husband has complained for years (predating the children) about the boxes of books I hauled around from house-to-house-to-apartment-to-house. His reading consists of Make magazine and Blackberry Hacks, so he just doesn’t get my need to hold on to the tattered copy of I, Robot from my youth.
With all the ways to get books, you wouldn’t think we would need any more. But, my gentle readers, let me be the first to warn you: the world is about to change right under our feet.
The future is here and its name is nook.
E-readers went mainstream in 2007 with Amazon’s launch of Kindle and now the Kindle 2. Now everyone and his book-selling brother is getting into the e-reader business, and many, many authors are launching their e-books along with those old-fashioned paper types.
Meanwhile the kids, by which I mean the tall ones called teens, are leading the pack with e-reader apps on their iPhones, downloading the latest YA book to share with their friends. Let us pretend the piracy of e-books doesn’t exist, because that’s just wrong.
Now nook has arrived on the scene, just in time for Christmas. It’s pretty. It’s real. You can go to Barnes and Noble and touch it, heft its tiny weight and marvel at the idea of having your entire library in the palm of your hand. It’s being marketed like the new Paris Hilton, and it just might change the way we read. I think teens and adults will lead the charge, but will children’s books be far behind? Picture books will always be around, with their glossy pages and gorgeous illustrations, but how long will it be before the kids want their own nook? They’ll curl up at night with their small screens, their own library of e-books just a finger-touch away.
I’m thinking a year or two, 2014 at the outside.
It’s an exciting time to be a reader, or a writer, and as Newsweek boldly proclaims, Books Aren’t Dead.
But my husband will be pleased when I get rid of all those paper books (not yet, dear, not yet).
How about you? Would you buy an e-reader for yourself, or for Christmas?
Hi Susan. I haven't commented on any of your posts, but I have been reading them and you're doing a great job! I had to mention that in hearing about e-readers and the worries for authors that might accompany them, I never expected my kids to have any interest in them at all. Then the other day my 10 year old came home and told me about them like he had made a new discovery. We looked at one on Amazon and then at the price to download the books to it. He decided it wasn't worth it. He would rather just buy a book. I would love to get rid of all of our books and never have another one to store here, but I just don't see it happening. My kids are too cheap to shell out the initial cost for one thing, but also, they really like holding a book. Plus, I'm not so sure about bringing a Kindle or Nook to school as an elemetary or middle school student. Students here usually have to have a book with them for silent reading at all times, and I don't see parents trusting kids with an expensive e-reader in their backpacks. Time will tell though…
Thanks for reading, and sharing . . .!
I think you are right that now is not quite the time. But soon. First the readers have to come down in price, which they inevitably will. When they hit that $99 price point, I expect to see them flying off the shelves (then again, nook is already on back order!).
My kids like the feel of their paper books too, but then they haven't had a practical option yet.
And the schools . . . in our schools, we've already transitioned to electronic textbooks for math, and a couple other subjects, even for the elementary grades. Our high schools hand out laptops when the kids enter as freshman. Maybe e-readers will be standard issue in 10 years? 5?
It's an interesting time! Thanks for the comment!
Hi Susan,
I'm waiting for the price to come down too, but I particularly like the idea of being able to enlarge the text. Paperbacks are getting hard on my eyes and I'm sure this is going to be a big hit with others who are visually impaired or just older if they would just try it. As a writer, I'm seeing lost of possiblities.
Cynthia –
My mom would really like that feature too (enlarging the text), if she ends up getting one. Thanks for commenting!
It's not the time, it's PAST time, and Nook is certsinly NOT the way to go. Firstly, because there aren't any. B&N doesn't seem to "get" the electronic's supply chain, and they won't be on the shelves for Christmas. I can say, though, as someone who gave away her high school copy of I, Robot AND the complete collection of Galaxy magazines that it's a GREAT time to buy a Kindle! But seriously, it's past time we stopped cutting down trees to provide entertainment. I started reading ebooks in the mid 90's on Palm devices and I own thousands of ebooks. But, when I move, I can carry the books–all the msny thousands of them–stored away in secure digital cards, in my purse.
I was surprised that B&N didn't have them in stock when I took my mom to go check them out! For all the hype, they certainly missed the timeline on that one.
I think there's no stopping the wave on e-readers, though, whether it's iPhone, Kindle or nook (or Palm! Wow. I still have my old one).
Here's a great post on the Top 10 Myths About e-books by the incomparable Nathan Bransford (agent extraordinaire).