Paper Books vs. E-Books

As an avid reader and nerdy bookworm, I probably read about 10 books a month. Which, I know sounds crazy, but reading keeps me sane. It allows me to escape from the stresses of real life and jump into someone else’s for a while. I’m notorious for finishing books in one sitting, completely ignoring everyone and everything around me. I get addicted to the stories way too easily. Even if it’s not a relatively enjoyable book, I still need to find out what happens.
When E-Readers and E-Books first came out 7 or 8 years ago, I was all about them. I remember getting the original Nook for my 17th birthday and being absolutely elated. At the time, I thought E-Books were SO much better than “regular” books. They were so much more inexpensive than actual books. I had the ability to purchase any book I wanted in mere seconds. For someone who devoured every book that fell into her hands, I was on cloud 9. Then, e-books started getting more and more expensive, rivaling the prices of the physical copies of books. I was even noticing that some books were actually cheaper to purchase physical copies of than on an e-reader.

Around this time, I went back to purchasing and reading “real” books, setting aside my Nook for the time being. I forgot how much I loved the smell of the pages of a new book. How it felt to be able to physically flip to the next page. How amazing the covers looked in actual color! I pretty much only read physical copies of books for the next few years, very rarely picking up my Nook. Now, though, I would say that I am 50/50. I have found that some books are ONLY available on an e-reader or the release for an ebook copy is earlier than a physical copy. While I still love filling my bookshelves with beautiful books, I certainly appreciate the convenience of an e-reader. I’ve found it to be much easier to tote along my Nook on vacation than 5 different hardbacks. It fits so easily in all of my purses. But, an e-reader is just not the same as being able to hold a copy of your favorite novel in your hands, and while I read ebooks just as much as regular books now, I will always say that I prefer a nice paperback.