Are Books Dead?

Thinking back to my childhood, I don’t remember a time where I did not have a book in tow. Whether it was a quick trip to the grocery store or family vacations to Savannah, my eyes were glued to the pages of a book, absorbing as much as I could possibly handle. There were more than a few times when I was told by my mother that I should pay more attention to the people in the real world than the people in the fantasy world painted by each book I read.

Star pupil, 82 years old, reading her lesson in adult class, Gee's Bend, Alabama, May 1939. Wolcott, Marion Post -- Photographer. May 1939

So much of my reading was a cover-up for my shyness and insecurities. I was teased as a kid, like most, being called fat, ugly, nerdy. My escape from the heartache I suffered was always reading, which was often paired with writing. Through my own personal growth I have found more avenues for expression, though my love of books has not wavered. Becoming a bookseller was a career path I anticipated being able to do in retirement, which often is the case for most bookstore owners, but the right opportunities aligned at the right time to make it happen now.  

The first time I held the Kindle in my hands, I knew that the game had changed. One of the most exciting parts of reading, besides getting new information, was being able to go to the library or the bookstore, browse through the titles, pick up a book, flip through the pages, feel the covers, even show off what you were reading to others. There was satisfaction after finishing a book, turning that last page. With the ebook devices, may of those things have been eliminated. You often don’t have to move anything other than your finger to buy and read a book. It can be carried with you everywhere you go, saving space, and being able to read in peace, no one asking you about your opinion on the book you are reading. You can carry an entire catalog of books with you, choosing a book to fit your mood or surroundings. 

Photo courtesy of Albert Boti. 

While I am extremely impressed with these devices, they are something I wished for as a kid, my love of physical books conflicts with my desire to still have books with me wherever I go. If  you were to take a peek into my car right now, you would find a few books on the front seat and plenty on the back. Some of them I have read, some I am anticipating reading, other I am using as teaching tools. I know that having them on one device would give me the appearance of being far more organized and functional than I actually am at the moment.

I currently use the Kindle, Nook, and Google Books on my android phone, but I still visit my local bookstore when I want to see what is available and often still purchase the physical book. I use these programs to revisit the classics or to check out the samples offered before making a purchase. As a writer, I know that more people will be able to read my work through this new method, but will I still have the same satisfaction that I would have if my work was published and bound like a traditional book?

Do you think physical books will become obsolete? Have you used this new technology, and if so, what do you think about it?

Storyteller Spotlight- Ferrol Sams

Dr. Ferrol Sams

Storytelling has long been a tradition in the South, and it shows no sign of going away. From stories passed down from elders, to urban legends shared among children,  the gift of folktales is like no other. The most impressive storyteller I have read recently is Ferrol Sams, who is the author of seven books, including The Whisper of the River (1986), The Widow's Mite (1989), Christmas Gift! (1991). 

His most recent book, Down Town (2007) is the panoramic story of the American South, as told by a man who has see it all. Through the experiences of the characters in this southern town, readers gain new perspectives on the historical events that shaped our country since 1865—
Reconstruction, the first World War, the Depression, World War II, racial integration, and economic boom.


Ferrol Sams is a physician, humorist storyteller, and best-selling novelist and is the author of seven books. Most notable is his trilogy of novels in which an eccentric and quixotic hero, Porter Osborne, Jr., mirrors Sam's own Georgia boyhood in Fayette County. All of his works are rooted in the oral traditions of Southern humor and folklore. (Author bio courtesy of Mercer University Press)

What We Are Reading

Testimonies

Who doesn't love a great love story? I certainly do, and it is as if each story, no matter where or who, always comes back to forming connections. We know that we can not exist without them.

Before the epic Aubrey-Maturin series, Patrick O'Brian wrote this sinister tale of love and death set in Wales, a dark and timeless story with echoes of Thomas Hardy and Mary Webb. Joseph Pugh, sick of Oxford and of teaching, decides to take some time off to live in a wild and beautiful Welsh farm valley. There he falls physically ill and is nursed back to health by Bronwen Vaughn, the wife of a neighboring farmer. Slowly, unwillingly, Bronwen and Pugh fall in love, and while that word is never spoken between them, their story is passionate and tragic.