by Ashlie Harper, Intern

The world is changing quite rapidly. It seems as though cell phones are as permanent as limbs to most people, computers are no longer for the technically inclined professionals but rather anyone who can click a mouse, and books seem to be vanishing into thin air because of the powerful technology of a Kindle or iPad. ebooks, the text stored in one of these reading devices, are rapidly taking the place of a home library. Instead of buying an expensive hardcover, lugging it around everywhere you go, and eventually losing it in the shuffle of life, technology has now given us an option to buy a book online and store it in a place we will never forget. But what does this mean for the future of books and bookstores? Are people really ready to say goodbye to the crisp smell of fresh paper and say hello to an LCD screen?

For me, there is a perfect recipe for a great book. Get a big bowl and stir together a cup of great writing, a dash of well-written one-liners, a tablespoon of a big comfy chair and a quarter cup of a unique personal experience. Now bake it in the oven for 20 minutes and voila! You have the perfect book. But if you add a computer screen to the mix, are you left with an impersonal read? It doesn’t sound like many people mind, says Ken Auletta in his article Publish or Perish. ebook sales have soared in the last twelve months, and while only taking three to five percent of book sales in the last year, “their sales increased a hundred and seventy-seven per cent in 2009, and it was projected that they would eventually account for between twenty-five and fifty per cent of all books sold.” It’s a convenient, simple, and nicely priced way to read and an increasing number of people are getting on board with the idea. Just like the future of newspapers, books are going to be more easily accessible on a computer, especially with the on the go lifestyle of most people nowadays. A good friend of mine once asked me if I thought hotel rooms would replace the standard drawer Bible with a flash drive version. Is that too extreme to think? You decide.

So I ask myself, if I can buy a book for a nice price in the comfort of my own home, and in less than a minute have it conveniently downloaded onto a device for my reading pleasure, why would I want anything else? I guess my answer is simple. I want to grasp the text in my hand and wait for the ink to fade onto my fingertips, hoping that the brilliancy of the writing can one day fade onto me. I need to have the smell linger in my nose hours after I have finished reading so when I go on with my day, I can pretend I’m still inside that world. And lastly, I want to see a room in my house filled with the great classics and favorite poems so I can pass those down to the people who share my passion. We are putting too much importance on effectiveness and innovation, and less on tradition. I don’t want books just to be read on a screen, but rather felt with the hands and heart.