Is Julie awesome or just great? (Today is her Birthday, so both!) Real Topic: E-book or print, which do you prefer?
Julie:
Today is my birthday so your discussion topic is about how great I am. And GO!
Ok really, I love both electronic and print books. I mean, I’m in the process of putting together my library, so of course print books have a special place in my heart, and on my shelf. Now as far as types of print – paperbacks all the way. I HATE hardback books. I hate them especially when I fall asleep reading and they hit me in the face. Can we say ouch!? So paperbacks are my preference. Another thing I love about print is you can get an author to sign your book, and then you have this pretty fantastic souvenir/collectible to put on your shelf. That being said, I do love ebooks too. My kindle has a bajillion books on it, and it weighs almost nothing. I can take it anywhere, and if I finish a book I’m reading and am still out and about somewhere, I can just move on to the next book without having to get up and find one to read. But the downside of ebooks for me is the lack of a true shelf. I’m very visual, and I can’t remember all the stuff I own digitally. I can’t just walk by a shelf and see what I have. That makes it easier for me to end up with multiple copies of a book (print and digital). You also can’t share/swap/etc ebooks like you can print books. So there are pros and cons for sure.
Rose:
So first of, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JULIE! Secondly, I would say that Julie is both awesome and great. I mean, why else would I have asked her to co-blog with me? As far as e-books or print books, it depends. I prefer print books for books that I really like. You can get the author’s to sign them. They have pretty covers. Its nice to hold an actually book in your hands. Other the other hand, I can take my kindle anywhere. It even fits in my purse! And I can have 100s of books right at my fingertips with me anywhere. Also, I no longer have to make a trip to the bookstore to look for a print book that is never in stock anyways. I can just one click and begin reading. Of course, I love useless trips to the book store, (how else would I have found some of my favorite titles???) and one click can get hard on my credit card. One thing that I do not like about e-books is it is almost like I do not really own the books. I mean, if I purchase an e-book and then want to loan it to a friend, I really can’t. I don’t think that is right. I mean, if I purchase the book, do I own it or not?
I think in this digital era, I read books to actually stay away from screens so eBook is not my preference at all. I love annotations and highlighting so I just love paper books. And whenever, I read blogs like https://dharapaper.com/blog/top-reasons-paper-books-are-still-more-popular-than-e-books/ I feel so relived that paper books are still in fashion.
I’m a fashion blogger so showing up fashionably late is what I do. Happy belated birthday 🙂 I have an ipad with a kindle app so I would have to say that if I’m indoors, I like the ipad however for those days at the beach when I want to curl up with a good book, the glare is not fun. So I too have a preference for both for different reasons but I do like that my entire collection can travel with me on one device as long as I have battery power so airplane rides are more pleasant because I don’t have to decide which book to take with me, I can take them all.
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Thanks 🙂
Yea, I definitely support having a preference depending on the different uses.
Well, I’m torn like many of you. Print for the shelf and the loaning, but ebook for being a mom with young kids and babies so I never have two hands free to hold a book and turn pages anymore! Being able to read with one hand is one of the things I’m most grateful for! We also live in Malaysia and travel internationally a lot so the weight factor is huge! All that said, for picture books for kids, print books are an absolute must in my opinion! I just cannot figure out how to share a picture book on the couch in ebook format – it changes the whole dynamic!
Fun discussion as always! Thanks for sharing this at Booknificent Thursday!
Tina
Tina at Mommynificent recently posted…Booknificent Thursday Link Up Party #41
picture books have to be print. Not digital. On that we totally agree!
Happy Birthday, Julie!
And for me? Real books ALL THE WAY! I don’t even own an e-reader. I have the Kindle app on my iphone, but I read super fast and I am doing a lot of finger swiping when I read anything on there. That said, it is kind of convenient for ebooks that I can download for free and skim through (usually, short ones that are teaching me something).
I can never own enough books, and I love buying them. Paperback or hardback…I’ll take them however they come!
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I used to be like that, too. But I love my Kindle paperwhite now, too.
I love my Kindle, my hubby said he thought I’d be more distraught if something happened to my Kindle than my smartphone..he’s a smart man! It’s easier for me to hold the Kindle because of my arthritic hands and I can read into the wee hours of the night when hubby is asleep. Win, win!
Thanks for sharing with #smallvictoriessunday!
Tanya @ Mom’s Small Victories recently posted…Throwback Thursday Linkup {7} – Updating My Around the World in 80 Books Reading Challenge
Tanya, I am currently re reading The Bronze Horseman hard back edition and I can totally relate to what you mean about kindles being easier to read. This huge heavy hard back makes my hands hurt!
Happy belated birthday Julie!
I love both for different reasons. But something I realized recently is I read print books faster. I don’t know what it is about them, but they are apparently easier for me to read. I was really surprised by this fact when I realized it. There a point for ebooks. But don’t get me wrong, you’d have to pry my kindle from my cold dead hands to get it away from me.
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That is interesting! I tend to read ebook faster for some reason. Perhaps it is because with my kindle app on my phone, I always have my books available with me. So if I find myself standing in a long line at lunchtime or whatever, I can just click on my phone and read away!
Happy birthday Julie!!!
As for the topic, I prefer paperbacks, but lately more ebooks cause less trees get cut. You know trees = paper and such. I’d be ok with it if we plant a tree for every tree that gets cut, but we don’t. It’s sad :/
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sad face. sniffle. I like trees. Can we just print books from recycled material??? How about that!?
Happy birthday Julie!
I thought I was going to be the interloper here but instead I find like minds! Yay! I love my Kindle. For all the reasons everyone has listed (tons of books, access to new books without leaving the house, goes anywhere) but also because I use the Paperwhite and I can read at night without the use of a cumbersome reading light or a lamp that will bother the husband person, that is a GIANT thing for me because he goes to sleep and I read into all hours of the night.
That’s no to say there’s no place for physical books. I collect signed first editions for authors and books that I like, and of course I buy the book when I go to an author event – that being said I don’t READ those books. They are for the shelf decoration. I also have a sizable collection of the B&N leather bound classics and new classics, again they’re gorgeous books to look at (and relatively inexpensive), finally I buy rare and (too often) expensive books when I can find them. I have a GORGEOUS four volume set of the complete works of Shakespeare printed in 1836, leather binding, marble edged pages. I have a leather bound limited edition of the complete works of Oscar Wilde printed in 1907, but it’s starting to crumble, and a two volume edition of Walden that was printed in 1897. (Confession: I’ve never even read Walden 🙂 )
Thanks for linking up!
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Wow, you have print copies that you don’t read? That’s so interesting. Well, I guess I’ve done that where I’ve already read the ebook or the audio book and then get the print for a signing. Then I’ll have print copies that I haven’t read. But usually if I have a print copy, I’ll read it. Do you have photos of this amazing collection of rare books?
Funny you ask! I’m queuing up posts on it. I did a post on my Chuck Palahnuik books last week. My rare books will probably be the end of the series… but I decided to take some pictures for Instagram 🙂
http://instagram.com/steadfastreader
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Though I always get the Shakespeare dates wrong, 1887 – those were the first rare books I bought. 🙂
April @ The Steadfast Reader recently posted…Marvelous Monday: Fangirl
Now out of curiosity, how much more do the rare books cost than if you were to buy a “regular” print of Shakespeare’s works? Rose and I visited the rare book room at a really super awesome bookstore in Portland, Oregon and dang those prices made me cringe.
The set of 4 Shakespeare’s were $450 – but I bought them overseas. I got the 9 volumes of the Oscar Wilde’s for $500 – but as I said, they’re crumbling (but I opened them today and found they are a limited edition print!) … I honestly don’t remember what I paid for the Waldens.
Real collectors like to seek out antique stores and garage sales and find awesome deals. I don’t know enough to do that – I can go to rare bookstores and tell that I’m not getting totally ripped off, but that’s about it. 🙂
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Happy (belated) birthday, JULIE! I think you’re awesomely great 😉
As for ebooks vs print, I like both. I love going out of town (like I did this weekend) and not having to scrutinize my bookshelves trying to figure out which books (yes, BOOKS plural) to take with me. I just grab my kindle, and I’m set. I also like the anonymity ebooks provide. I’m not ashamed of anything I chose to read, BUT it’s nice to be able to avoid snarky comments from my brother-in-law (or whoever) if the book I’m reading happens to be a PNR with a bodice-ripper cover, you know? Nobody needs that kind of hassle. That being said, I absolutely MUST have print copies of my favorite books/series–if I get the print version, I have a wishlist for the ebook version, so a lot of times I wind up with BOTH versions . . .
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Thanks hehe 🙂
Yea I definitely can see getting both ebook and print copies of my favorite books/series. My favorites just *have* to be on the shelf.
Happy birthday, Julie!! I hope you’ve had a fabulous day!
I think there are advantages to both. I am one of the people who love the smell and feel of books. I like to tag pages and flip through a book again long after I’ve read it. However, I love the convenience of an ereader – especially that built-in book light. 🙂 And an ereader makes traveling so much easier – I no longer have to haul a totebag of books. (my hubby loves this, too) I actually own 3 ereaders but I know I’ll never stop buying physical books as well.
Love this chat, girls!
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Thanks 🙂
Yea I enjoy the feel of books too. The smooth shiny covers and the feel of the pages when you turn them.
First! I love the little cartoon thingy!!! It’s hilarious (even if it’s not grammatically sound), and it’s adorable.
Next……HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!! I know I already said this on twitter but BIRTHDAYS!!!
Finally! I went through a year long stent where all I would buy were Nook/Kindle books. They were (usually) cheaper, I could take them everywhere at once and I loved that instant gratification of buying something while still in my pj’s. But I admit, I’m more of a fan of physical books now. Mass paperback, hardback, paperback. Doesn’t matter to me as long as all the ones in the series are of like kind. The thing I love most about physical books is that they feel right. And I don’t mean literally. It’s like, after a super crappy day of work I can come in see those beautiful spines and just know that a crazy cool world awaits me. I know that may be a tad corny and a lot creepy but that’s my reasoning. 🙂
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Yay for mentioning the cartoon. I thought it was cute when I saw it so I saved the pic to use in a post someday heh.
And thank you 🙂
And YES books feel right, because they feel like books! Because touching books is awesome.
I love both for various reasons.
Ebook: you can take it anywhere, can easily share quotes and highlight it plus it’s convenient. You can read books via your ereader or smartphone. But I hate the glare, I really think my kindle is responsible for my worsening eyesight! My nearsightedness is getting worse and worse every year. Plus it’s easier to store, or hide, doesn’t gather dust or take much room. The best part are the freebies!
Physical book: Yes hardbacks are heavy but it’s more durable than paperbacks. Either ways I like it because you can get it signed and I’ve noticed that I can manage my time better with a physical book than with an ereader. Again I think it has something to do with glare. I’ve observed that I can read physical books faster than ebooks.
Either way, books are books, I love them all!
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I think I’m the same way – that I read print books faster. My Kindle is the old kind with no glare so that helps too, but I can’t read on a tablet for example. Makes my eyes hurt.
Stopping by from Steadfast Reader–I agree with much of what both of you have said here! Julie, I am completely with you on not being able to remember what I’ve read on my kindle–and, for me, I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I don’t see the cover of an ebook every time I read it. And Rose, I totally agree that I don’t feel as though I OWN a book until I have a physical copy of it on my shelf. If I read a book that I like via my kindle, I’ll go ahead and purchase a “real” copy.
Nice post!
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I’m so often tempted to buy a print copy of an ebook or audiobook that I just LOVED but… then I’m just really blowing my book budget getting duplicates. So I try to be picky, or find it used 🙂
Happy birthday Julie! I love print books. I don’t hate ebooks, I have a lot, but I hate it when I love an ebook but can’t find it in print. Especially if it’s an big publishing house. And don’t get me started on the ebook first then paperback release. That’s just cruel!
Thank you 🙂
Yea a lot of big publishers do ebook only novellas, so you can’t ever get those in print. I’m ok with that now that I’ve become an e-Reader as well, but before I had a kindle I felt left out.