Amazon Kindle

For Christmas, my Mother in Law generously gifted me a new Amazon Kindle electronic reading device. I wanted one with all my heart! After six months of reading, here are my thoughts on the Kindle.

The negatives: I still love books. I love the feel of them in my hand. I love the process of turning the page. I love to look at the author's photo and imagine her writing the book. I miss hearing that first crack as the spine opens. I even love the smell of a new book! The Kindle is not a great option for the beach. Even though I have a cover, I'm worried about getting sand and water into the electronics. So, I still tuck a paperback into my bag.

Now for the positives - and the Kindle has many! It will download a book in under 10 seconds and can hold over 100 books at a time. The archive feature keeps them on the Amazon website and I can shuffle them back and forth to the device. I'm no longer carrying a tote bag full of books when I travel. The Kindle is slim enough to fit in my purse. With it's mega-capacity, it's like taking your entire library with you. Font sizes can be changed and the voice option will allow the Kindle to read to you while you drive.

The Kindle has been hailed as the end of the publishing industry as we know it...but I'm not so sure. I believe that both electronic and paper books have their place. Until they can design the Kindle to smell good...