What Is A Book?

A book is a window. Books offer the opportunity for the reader to look through a window into exciting, terrifying, sad and sometimes strange worlds. As readers we have the choice to either open the window to fully experience this world, or lock the window and close the blinds to shut out those worlds. Books have had the timeless power to engage, entertain, and move people for generations. There are even religions based of one letters written on a page which came about centuries ago.

In my mind books are no doubt important for a healthy and thriving culture but I’m not so sure that the medium in which they are presented is too important. When I read a book, at least, if the writing is good enough and I am captured by the story, I won’t really pay much attention that I’m reading on a Kindle or a hardback book. The second excerpt by Nancy I didn’t fully agree with. She said that if she hadn’t read real books with the “physicality”, the texture and the smell, reading would be a different experience. If she cares that much about the appearance and how the book is physically she’s missing the point of reading all together. She’s really not focusing on what the book is about, what the author wanted to convey and has become distracted by minute details. I kind of agree with the last guy Victor, who said some people hold real books as gold basically. He says that he finds the obsession with hardback and paperback books as an incredibly old fashioned way of thinking.

People freaking out about how no more physical books will be a tragedy are too dramatic but I think that is understandable. Any time there is a drastic change in society there are going to be those people who are hesitant and stubbornly hold to the old-fashion ways of looking at things. Even though I believe EBooks are taking over, traditional books will never completely go away.