For The Love Of Paperbacks!
‘There’s no friend as loyal as a book’ - Ernest Hemingway
My book shelf…Planning to add more books soon!
In the tech and internet savvy world of today, many people have started to question the importance of having traditional books in our lives. Many of my friends have replaced paperback books with their e-books and are quite satisfied with it. I wonder if I am the only one who freaks at this growing fondness with e-books.
There is no doubt that technology is an intrinsic part of everyone’s life today. Internet is undoubtedly the lifeline of our lives now. The benefits of going online are tremendous but today I want to write about paper books vs E-books. I read an article last week which spoke of a possible decrease in the popularity of the hard copy of books as a result of the growing demand for e-books worldwide. How is it possible?
For me, paper books will never lose its appeal. The joy of smelling the pages of a new book or assuming the age of old books, these things one can never get in e-books. Every night reading books by various writers and then some days sleeping with the book by my side and seeing it the first thing in the morning essentially constitutes the simple joys of life. Good books are the fodder for the developing mind.
During my days of pursuing Masters in English, many of my friends preferred to never buy any of the numerous numbers of books that were part of our course. But for me, I preferred to keep a paper version of not only the novels but every other form of writing like poems, short stories, drama, etc. They are like my prized possessions. My scribbled thoughts here and there in them are like the witness of my hard work for achieving my degree.
Kolkata Book Fair! A book lovers paradise…
Growing up in the city of intellectuals, Kolkata, and enjoying my long dates with books at the college street book stores or at the Kolkata Book Fair perhaps has imbibed within me the pleasure of enjoying myself with a book which the e-book can never claim. I never feel alone when I have a book with me. I doubt if imagining a favourite character would be as enjoyable in an e-book as in paperback
Can anyone debate the fact that studying from the book before the day of an examination is certainly more effective than an e-book? What about glancing at the last moment, before entering the exam hall. The younger generation will have plenty to debate in my opinion but can a library really survive without the paperbacks. Or someday the whole concept of the library will become obsolete? Newspapers are slowly losing their popularity. We should definitely protest against this. If books go fully online then I guess kids will be the biggest losers. The happiness that we found in the colourful books when we were kids can never be compared with e-books. These days many schools have made the use of Tabs compulsory. I mean is it truly needed? Small children with expensive tabs in their hands? Simple living and finding excitement in small things like a coloring book is slowly getting lost among kids and a lot of it is due to our over-dependence on technology and the internet. Till today I cherish reading Enid Blyton’s ‘Secret Seven’ series, in paperbacks!
One of my parents’s book shelves in Kolkata. Look how it has been decorated beautifully with artistic postcards that adds to the beauty of the books.
Coming from a Bengali household, I have seen how my parents have always treasured good books. Book shelves are a must in every Bengali household. We tend to believe that one can judge the character of a person or a family from the book shelf that they have! My parents also have few well-decked up book shelves at home. They love all their books dearly. I got my love for paper backs from them only!
For me Paperbacks are love!
A rainy day with my favourite author’s paperback along with a cup of hot coffee is certainly more romantic and enjoyable than with an E-book.
The fact is that the world has become more accessible to all, thanks to the internet but at the same time it is also getting equally complicated.
Also, the harmful rays from the electronic devices while reading the e-book will definitely do more harm to our eyes in the long run than my preferred paperbacks.
I could go on and on about the benefits of books when compared with e-books but for now, this is enough. So all of you who are planning to discard paperbacks for e-books, please think once more. E-books can never take you back to your memories that an old paperback will surely do.