Demise of books?? REALLY??

The past weekend I’ve read a number of news stories predicting future styles and trends; some of the ideas seemed a little crazy to me and others I found rather discouraging.  The most discouraging one predicted, or rather recommended, the demise of the printed book.  Electronic content is more efficient and more economical the writers argued. 

What I think is a book is more than just content.  It is heft, smell, design, the little sticker on the back that tells you where you bought it,  the wrinkled pages that remind you that you read most of it while you soaked in the tub. 

Our house is packed with books on many subjects.  We have shelves of books about the Civil War; we have bound sets of antique classics. Our bedside tables are piled with recent fiction.  We have Stieg Larson nestled in with volumes on garden design and chess strategies.  And there are shelves whose contents clearly say  “Grandkids, these are yours!” 

Reading, after all, is a solitary activity.  It’s between you and the book you are reading.  There is so much to read you can never get bored.  For me, the most remarkable stories are biographical tales that recall how a person faced adversity.  Diaries kept by pioneer women, housewives during the depression, or just ordinary women during extraordinary times fascinate me.  Maybe it’s the snoopy part of me?

The best part of reading is that your imagination gets to work on its own without being fed from any other source but the writer’s voice