E-Readers

"Hey, I just finished reading this fantastic book! It's about blah-blah-blah. I'd loan it to you, but, uhmmm, it's in (on?) my Kindle...."

I was brushing my teeth last night, thinking about the conversation I'd had with my neighbor earlier in the day. Her Kindle came! She was so excited, she sounded like a kid with a new toy. I'm excited for her because she's excited, but I'm still sitting the fence regarding e-readers and e-books.

When I read a really good book, the first thing I want to do is share it. When my friends and I discuss books, the first question, invariably, out of anyone's mouth is "Can I borrow it?" Up until last night - the taste of minty freshness on my tongue - I hadn't quite narrowed down why I've been dragging my feet about e-books.

I realized sharing a fantastic book won't be nearly as easy in an e-format. I'll have to "hard sell" my opinion to persuade a friend to read the book I loved. I'll, in effect, be responsible if my friend buys the book and then considers it a waste of their hard earned money.

Another thing came to mind, as well. What about libraries? When a new book is released by my favorite author, I put in a request at my local library. My name is put on a waiting list and they call me when the book becomes available. I'm assuming I'll never be able to pull up my library's website, choose any title I'm interested in and download it to my e-reader of choice. If I could, writers will literally starve.

Time will tell, I suppose, how the future of books turns out. But, for now, I think I'll continue to buy, trade and borrow books, if only so I can continue to foster reading among the people I know.