Instead of preferring one format of book over another, I read all three formats of books for different kinds of literature:
Print Books: I read print books most of the time. I use them for research because I like being able to flip through the pages, but most of all, I love owning classic literature as well as books I’d like to analyze and read in-depth in print format.
eBooks: these are only useful for me if I’m not overly interested in a book or I’d like a collection of writings by one author, but don’t feel like paying a ton of money or having a huge print book around. Needless to say, I have very few eBooks.
Audio Books: I borrow audio books from my local library when I don’t feel that a book is worth all the time it takes me to read it in print. This applies mostly to light or comedic books, but every once in a while, I find a real literary gem. That’s how I found The Quickening Maze by Adam Foulds, an outstanding book in writing style, character development, and psychology. So althought I don’t listen to them often, I can’t knock audio books too much.
Do you have a preference between these three book formats, or do you also use each format for a different type of reading?
raisingdaisy
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All of the above!
First and foremost, I enjoy the ritual of reading a print book. Turning the pages leisurely, adjusting the position of the spine in my fingers for one-handed reading, changing positions as my reading period extends–from sitting to lying down–and maybe back up again :-). I find it relaxing and therapeutic.
E-books I tend to buy as impulse purchases. When I want/need the book now–usually a cookbook or some type of self-help book that applies to an immediate problem or situation. I find the e-reader’s portability useful in that it holds so many books for its small size (more than the armload I would want to carry with me on a trip for instance).
The act of using the reader is efficient to be sure, but disconnected. I don’t get that same feeling of relaxed communion that I do with a print book. I feel like it’s an electronic device doing the work for me and I am just watching. Kind of weird, really.
I enjoy audio books for the convenience of listening while I am doing other things. I do a lot of driving for work and recorded books are my favorite traveling companions. I spend several hours at a time working alone in the kitchen as a personal chef. This is also a great opportunity to listen to the books I don’t have time to read. It’s fun being read to. A good narrator can really add dimension to the subject.
Another great topic. Thanks!
Melanie