The New York Times has a different take on Kindle and other e-book readers. The article is not the standard doom and gloom end of books as we know them or its opposite rah! rah! e-books are going to save the world. No, this article worries about how someone reading a book on a Kindle will be able to advertise what they are reading.
Without a cover to give away one’s literary taste, how will this affect book choice as statement? Or maybe it will open up a new sense of freedom for those who worry about what their choice of book says about them? Someone who wouldn’t be seen with anything less brainy than say, James Joyce, can take a break and read a trashy romance and no one will know. Though Kindles are not that common at the moment so you may want to be careful. Public Kindle reading may draw attention from other readers who may ask if they can look at your Kindle and they will easily be able to see the list of books you have loaded on it. Busted!
As for my own Kindle, I’ve had it long enough that I am out of the honeymoon period. I still love it but I don’t use it as much as I expected. Not because I don’t want to. It’s weird, or maybe I’m weird, but even though I have a bunch of books on it, I think of it only as the book that is in progress. For instance, I am still reading the correspondence of Emerson and Carlyle on it and while I could also be reading Grub Street or David Copperfield or the letters of Mark Twain, or any number of other things, when I look at my Kindle I think “Emerson and Carlyle” and don’t even consider the other options. It is like it is a single book instead of multiple. Maybe one of these days I will have to make it a point to have two books going on it at once and see if that somehow changes the way I think of it.
That’s something I never thought of before. I remember when I used to ride the public bus in San Francisco a lot, I always had a book with me, and liked peeking to see what others were reading. Sometimes a title would make me curious, and I’d jot it down to look up for myself later! I probably wouldn’t even notice if someone was reading kindle.
Heh, I like the idea of stealth guilty-pleasure reading with the Kindle. The bookworm’s equivalent of a bottle in a paper sack. It’s interesting how you see the Kindle as *a* book rather than a library. Have you had much use for the dictionary or annotation feature?
You will readily imagine that I never see anyone else reading in public without craning to see the title of the book! I hadn’t thought about the absence of product placement with the Kindle. I’m very interested to hear more about how you are relating to it, though. You’re definitely my most significant test case!
I never thought of not being able to tell what someone else is reading, either. What an interesting predicament. I think it’s wonderful having so much at your fingertips. I’ve got to go out and order Slaves of Solitude this weekend because our library does not have it. If I had a Kindle…
How interesting that you think of the Kindle as one book — but it makes sense! We’re so used to thinking of our devices (regular books) as holding one book, that I can see why it wold be hard to think in another way. I’m curious what the process of getting used to the Kindle will be like.
This is a great post! I’ve been curious how Kindle will affect us fanatic book readers – and I like this different perspective. Not sure if I can move over to Kindle just yet, but now I have some food for thought!
It’s funny. One of the things I said I’d like my dream ebook reader to have is the ability to see what others are reading, with the added ability to hide it, if I don’t want others to see what I’m reading. However, those who pontificate on such things, as they did in the NYT article, never seem to be looking at the whole picture. I think there is more potential than ever to run around letting thousands of people know what you’re reading: you can do it via Goodreads, Facebook (which allows you to grab what’s in Goodreads and post it to your wall), Twitter, etc. And readers in real life do not tend to be THAT shy about asking each other what they are reading. Even I, someone who pretty much hates to talk to strangers, have been known when confronted with books that are lying flat in people’s laps or on tables, and I can’t see the cover, to ask, and people do the same to me. My guess is that we will all just start asking people what they are reading when we see them holding an ebook reader. We might actually strike up new friendships with readers who say, “I’m reading I Capture the Castle for the umpteenth time. I just LOVE this book.” Wouldn’t that be radical?
Jeane, the article mentions the very same thing that you describe and how Kindle and e-books could hurt such “free” advertising for publishers.
Sylvia, I can read all those free Harlequins Amazon gave away a month ago and no one will know. I reading Emerson and Carlyle, yeah that’s what I’m reading
As for the dictionary, I’ve used it a few times. It is surprisingly good but not as good as the Oxford dictionary on my computer. The annotation feature is wonderful. I like it very much for both highlighting and writing notes and it is very easy to use.
Litlove, not being able to see what someone is reading does put a n interesting twist on spying on other’s reading material. I will be sure to give another update in a month or two on how I am relating to my Kindle.
Grad, the instant gratification of the Kindle can be addictive. So far I have only downloaded free books onto it. Not all new books (or old ones for that matter) are available for Kindle but that is becoming less of an issue I think.
Dorothy, it does make sense that I see the Kindle as only one book. It surprised me though. I expected that I would be hopping from book to book as the whim struck but so far that has not happened.
Laura, Kindle certainly has not replaced my paper book buying habits except when it comes to classics in the public domain because I can get those for free I no longer buy them unless they are in some way special like a Norton Critical Edition or something. Otherwise, the Kindle is just another book on the shelf.
Emily, you make a very good point that there are other and numerous ways to share what you are reading with other people besides advertising it with the book in your hand. And yeah, if I were interested in enough to know what someone was reading but couldn’t see the title, I would definitely ask!
I am not in any way opposed to the Kindle and/or Kindleism — but for me, no. It will just never work. Reading a page [paper] and a screen will never be synonymous, for me.
Lettuce not hasten the extinction of the book!
You bring up a good point about public domain books. One could have an entire library of the classics on the Kindle… *but*… it will be obsolete in a few years. Even mass market paperbacks will last a good couple of decades, but the Kindle is already on its second generation. How long before one has to buy another gizmo costing hundreds of dollars to house the same books in a new format?
Ah well, it wouldn’t do for me anyway because I like to have new translations and critical editions, at least for my favourites. I can use the library for the rest. If they start getting rid of classics then I’ll be in trouble!
Your waning use of the Kindle is interesting. I can’t help thinking of the Kindle as perfect for people who travel (including those with long commutes) – just to have access to literature without having to carry ten books along. I know I would use it that way. Otherwise I enjoy flipping pages so much, the actual feel of a book in my hands, I can see myself not reaching for my Kindle as long as a physical book was competition.
Cipriano, I understand how you feel. To me the Kindle doesn’t replace paper books, it is only another way to read a book.
Sylvia, You are right, a good paperback is never obsolete. Since I am not digitizing my whole library I am not worried about it. The Kindle in many respects is like the progression from phonograph to record to eight track tape to cassette tape to CD and now to mp3. We can still use the old technologies along with the new.
Verbivore, yes, it would be perfect for people who travel or have long commutes. I unfortunately don’t have any impending trips to test it on. Maybe I should work on fixing that!