shusband Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444868204578064483923017090.html Follow up questions: 1. Why do you read? 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shusband Posted October 20, 2012 Author Share Posted October 20, 2012 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444868204578064483923017090.html Follow up questions: 1. Why do you read? Because I spend so much of my time with children, reading, especially reading challenging books, makes me feel like I'm a still a part of a grown up and intellectual world. Also, I just like it. I think I have associated it, from a very young age, with shirking chores. 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? I have one person I trust absolutely and a few others who can be trusted in certain genres. 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? I'm too old. I need a physical book in my hands, at least for the really good books to which I will become emotionally attached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 1. I read as a hobby for the most part. Some books I read to learn new things but mostly I read to just relax. 2. I have several friends that make book suggestions (and I get some here). Sometimes I like the books, sometimes I don't. 3. I thought I would HATE a kindle and fought it for quite a while but now I LOVE it. I don't want over 1000 books in my house---either meaning I paid for them or a paid a lot in gas money driving to and from the library for them. Right now I am reading almost exclusively FREE kindle books from the Amazon top 100 free list http://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers-Kindle-Store/zgbs/digital-text/ref=zg_bs_fvp_p_f_digital-text?_encoding=UTF8&tf=1 I have 165+ books on my kindle right now and I have paid for ONE of them---finally broke down and bought book 4 in a series (for $3.99) as our library didn't have it. I have found so many new authors and even genres that I might never have found at the library. If I get a book I find offensive or one I just don't like it is easy to just hit delete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 That's a great article! Thanks for sharing. Lots of great sentences. 1. Why do you read? That's like asking me why I breathe air. Because I have to! What else would I do? :001_smile: 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? My mom and I are so similar in our tastes that I usually covet about 80% of whatever she's reading. 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? While I certainly prefer real books, e-books have their uses! By far my main use of e-books is to read older books that I could not possibly get any other way. (Unless I were rich and had a book dealer for a brother.) The other use is if I want to read a book I can't get at the library, and Amazon is selling the Kindle version so cheaply that even I feel justified in buying it, while I would not spend the $20 to get a real copy. This usually works with non-fiction that has been out for a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganCupcake Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 1. Why do you read? Because I love to learn new things and see new perspectives. Reading is one of the best ways to do that. 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? NPR is my most trusted book recommender. :lol: My sister is a close second. 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? I love them. I stay away from self-published books, generally, though--if a publishing house wouldn't pay to publish it, I'm skeptical. Our library system has a lot of great ebooks and digital audio books. Also, Project Gutenberg is great for classics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amira Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 1. Sometimes to learn about something new, sometimes just for fun, but usually because it's just what I do. 2. I have a few online friends who generally have good recommendations. I've also found a lot of good suggestions here. I like NPR too. But there is no one whose recommendations I always trust. And there are many people whose recommendations automatically go on my do-not-read list. 3. Love them. So much. They've saved me since we move so often and don't always live in places where there are libraries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444868204578064483923017090.html Follow up questions: 1. Why do you read? Reading to me is as necessary as breathing. 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? Before I started blogging, I didn't trust anyone to make book recommendations. Once I discovered book bloggers, discovered a whole new world of books I would never have considered reading before. 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? Love them now. Prior to breaking down and buying a nook back in 2009, didn't think I would ever read an ebook. Bought it for traveling to save my back and pocketbook. Now 50% of the books I read are in ebook format. Interesting article - love this statement: My obliviousness to this fact has an obvious explanation: I am of Irish descent, and to the Irish, books are as natural and inevitable a feature of the landscape as sand is to Tuaregs or sand traps are to the frat boys at Myrtle Beach. I'm irish so guess that explains it. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 1. Mostly for pleasure/entertainment, but also to learn new things and expose myself to different viewpoints. 2. On the strength of a recommendation alone? No. There are a handful of people whose recommendation might get me to take a look at a book, but it wouldn't be an automatic purchase. 3. What's not to like? I can get almost any book I want in a minute. And no clutter. And there are so many really good free books available (and I'm definitely not just talking about public domain books). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kubiac Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Great article. Thank you for the link! I used to save all my books, but over a period of years, I decided that they were becoming burdensome possessions and I've set most of them free. I keep what I need from them in my head, and I can always reacquire and reread as needed. I do miss some that I've let go, but then I get the fun of tracking them down again! That said, I do plan to store most of my kids' books for their kids. My parents saved our childrens' books--we just found the last missing box!--and those are invaluable memory treasures that I want to make sure can be passed along as the true inheritance of future generations! Money is good; books are better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire in NM Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Follow up questions: 1. Why do you read? Reading teaches me about myself, people, and the world, and reading teaches me how to relate to the world around me. 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? Rarely...The only time I trusted an unsolicited recommendation of a book was from Ted, my best friend in college. I do solicit book recommendations from high school literature teachers. I once asked a high school literature teacher to recommend a book that was an absolute must-read. Treasure Island. It was a good read. 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? Mixed feelings...I was lent a Kindle fire to read a book. It was different, with all the bells and whistles. It was a novel experience, no pun intended. However, there is just something special about holding a physical book. I like the weight of the book sitting on my chest as I read in bed. I like the delayed gratification that results from the turning of pages. And, as the WSJ journal noted, finding all those stray pieces of whatever that served as impromptu bookmarks. Claire in NM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 What a great article! I am printing this to mail to one of my elderly friends who uses no electronics but is known to cook with a novel in one hand, spoon in the other. I read because I am. Like many, I read to learn, to grow, to be entertained, to escape. Reading can be pure pleasure. Several friends understand my taste so I trust their recommendations but I have found that other friends have tastes so different than mine. I smile politely but rarely read the books they suggest. I prefer real books. My husband works long, irregular hours every spring. I used a Kindle to reread free Wodehouse novels last spring. It was great to get my hands on some obscure ones via free Kindle downloads, but I still prefer paper. Oh yes--when I was reading Balzac on the Kindle, I liked being able to look things up on the Internet by touch. Convenient, yes, but I am am still keeping my massive dictionary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giraffe Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Follow up questions: 1. Why do you read? Why would I NOT read?! I read to escape, to learn, to experience other worlds and other times. 2. Do you have anyone you trust to make book recommendations? I will take recommendations from here, but generally I prefer to find my own books. I have a "to read" list so long I don't think anyone who knows me well would dare try to add to it. They miss me enough already!! :lol: 3. What are your thoughts on e-books? I love "real" books. I really do. I love the feel of them, the ability to quickly flip through the pages to look ahead or behind. You can't do that (easily) on a Kindle. That being said, my Kindle is my lifeline as I'm living far away from the US and there are few English language books for sale here and no library (certainly not an English language one!). I still prefer my reference books to be hardcopy, but right now my hardcopy WTM is in Dallas and I am not. Once again, Kindle to the rescue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 Bumping for the evening crowd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 What a great article. I see it's actually an excerpt from the author's book of the same title -- One for the Books, and I've put in a purchase suggestion at my library. Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 I loved that, thank you! To answer your questions, well, he pretty much summed it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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