obituary for the book?

Yesterday I found myself in a conversation about books. I always enjoy a good book talk. They tend to involve "book dropping" (i.e. discussion about new authors, new books, cool book nooks). But yesterday’s book talk turned deadly.

It led down the path of the technological, savvy, e-book. Or as I like to call it, death to books as we know them. 

 Image courtesy of clker.com  

Books “have to change", she told me. And I agree. Let’s start by making them (a lot) cheaper. Knowledge is for the limited few. Those who can buy it, can own it. 

Hence why I fancy used book stores and used book sales. Isn’t it amazing what you can find at these remarkable end of the line, last stop, book markets? Books that have been discarded for one reason or another. A landfill of good books. Many that have been discarded because they didn't win the Pulitzer prize, the Governor General's Literary Award or the Oprah Book Club. A lot of books are fabulous. Only a limited few are selected to win awards. 

Call me a book snob, but I personally like a physical, tangible, hardcopy version of a book. Not to mention, e-readers cost $$ plus, e-books cost $ plus, and on top of that, e-readers only allow you to “select” from a limited list of e-books (i.e., best sellers). 

We have to remember, not all change is socially good and not all change is socially bad. But, at the same time, simply accepting change because it has to happen isn't good either. In the case of e-readers and e-books: Is change happening because it benefits the book lover, the knowledge economy? Buying knowledge is big business, and according to me, e-books tapped into this market by making knowledge a lot more expensive, and a lot less accessible. Not to mention, what happens when the e-reader is no longer the "in" thing or, like other technologies, stops working? Does the environment have to suffer for "fashionable technology"? 

Whatever happened to curling up with a good book anyway? Curling up with a good e-reader doesn't have the same ring to it. All in all, I suggest we rebel. Let's swarm the library stacks. I'll meet you there. We'll talk books.