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Paperback or E-Reader? Join the great debate to win £100 of books or e-books

500 replies

RachelMumsnet · 20/04/2015 15:06

Are paper books old news? These days there are more e-readers and literary apps than you can shake a USB stick at. We want to know if you've eschewed paper for digital, or if you reckon a well-thumbed paperback beats technology hands down. Join the discussion to let us know which medium you prefer and why, and you'll be entered into a draw to win £100 bundle of books OR £100 e-book bestsellers courtesy of Bloomsbury.

OP posts:
stayanotherday · 20/04/2015 21:33

It has to be ebooks as I live in a small flat and don't have room. I have thousands of books and have started buying ebooks. I do borrow books from the library t see if I like them before buying. I also find them lighter to read as books weigh a lot. It's much better, I wish the prices of ebooks were cheaper. One day I will have my own library!

shillwheeler · 20/04/2015 21:35

I seem to have deleted my post.
Another vote for both, with paper my favourite.

My kindle is convenient, not bad visually (I have the paper white), and I love being able to download a book on a whim, in the middle of the night if I want to! Lots of storage and easy to carry around. Love the way ebooks have opened up publishing too.

But....nothing beats that feel of curling up with paper, or the smell of new books and browsing in a bookshop.

Kindle has few downsides too. Annoyingly only kindle in kindle store, no ability to swap or lend books (and often the e versions aren't that much cheaper). I am also finding a lot more annoying typos with the e versions.

So, for me, it's the old fashioned version, with the e-book as a welcome addition!

meandjulio · 20/04/2015 21:39

As I really like reading in the bath, it'll be a long time before I really embrace the kindle. I was reading something the other day and really wanted to luxuriate and enjoy it in the evening, but it was on the damn Kindle and I wanted my bath more. So I started a different book and am stuck in the middle on my e-book.

I'll be honest, one time I was so desperate to keep reading the e-book that I had the bath anyway and just hung my arm over the edge to try and avoid disaster. Bear in mind that I am extremely clumsy and absent-minded, and you'll see why I've only done it once.

I do also find it a bit harder to really get swept away with an e-book. I don't feel quite as relaxed when I am reading on a screen.

FiveGoMadInDorset · 20/04/2015 21:42

Both, I go through phases, cheap and cheerful books I get on kindle, the ones that I may read once and that's it, I buy books that I want to keep and pass on to my children,

WheelbarrowWoman · 20/04/2015 21:43

I don't see them as an either/ or choice, but things that complement each other well... It's lovely to give and receive paperbacks, it's great to travel with a kindle. Snuggling in bed - book, waiting for the doctors - - ebook. I tend to impulse purchase ebook after reading reviews, but this doesn't replace browsing in a second hand bookshop of a Saturday afternoon. I love them both for different reasons.

LindseyandMatthew · 20/04/2015 21:49

I do have a kindle which I bought after years of not wanting one.

I don't really like reading on it, although I do use it, I much prefer a good paperback. There is nothing better than the smell of a new book, and I much prefer the feeling of a physical book in your hands.

If I could choose to have only one for the rest of my life, it would be paperbacks.

cambridgemumof4 · 20/04/2015 21:51

The library is fabulous -especially as we are spoilt and can request books for free. Still a paperback fan -hardbacks too heavy to hold in bed, and they hurt when I suddenly drop off to sleep......

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 20/04/2015 21:52

I use both but Kindle if I had to choose, because most of my reading is done at moments when either the lightness or the backlight is helpful - travelling, or under the covers after dh is asleep.

RustyBear · 20/04/2015 21:53

I have several thousand books, but I'm gradually rebuying a lot of them for my Kindle Paperwhite. DH thinks this means I'm going to get rid of my paper copies. Wink

I prefer the kindle for reading in bed; it's much easier to hold in one hand. With a lot of paperbacks, especially newer or thicker ones, the binding is so stiff it's difficult to keep it open. Or I can prop the Kindle against a cushion so I don't drop it if I fall asleep.

But I'm not so keen on the Kindle for books with maps or diagrams, like genealogical tables in history books - even with the magnifying function, they are rarely big enough to be properly readable, though it's a lot better on the kindle app on my iPad.

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 20/04/2015 21:54

Meandjulio - put kindle in a ziplock bag for reading in bath, or rain.

Popchik9 · 20/04/2015 21:54

I just love books. Haven't even been tempted by an e-reader and don't think I ever will. It's the whole sensory experience of buying a new book and then opening it for the first time that I can't imagine giving up. My house is full of dusty books though as I don't like getting rid of them. I will live to 150 so I can read them all again.

Shaler · 20/04/2015 21:57

I don't own a an e-reader - at least not yet! ;) My husband has a kindle and loves it. I don't think he ever picks up an actual book anymore. Me, I love the feel of books and still have a lot on my shelves I have yet to read so am going to read them all before I even think about getting a kindle! I have even banned myself from buying another book until I have done so although friends lend me books sometimes and I never say no to a good book! I also really enjoy browsing through books in bookshops and charity shops and sometimes I just can't help myself and buy one (despite the self-imposed ban)!

Having said all of that, I will probably get a kindle one day as it is so much easier for trips and we do a lot of train journeys. I read very quickly and so often find I need to take more than one book away with me even for a weekend trip! With the family's luggage and the kids books as well, it really adds to the weight. Another thing I like about the idea of owning a kindle is reducing the clutter in the house - not that books really count as clutter but space is limited and the shelves are already groaning! These days I only keep a book if I am absolutely sure I will want to read it again, it has sentimental value or I want to pass it on to my children. Other books get taken to the charity shop - which is going to miss out if I do get an e-reader! ;)

TypinginGloves · 20/04/2015 21:58

I'm firmly a paperback reader, and interestingly, so is my DD (15). She may be solidly in the digital age, but she gets even more excited than me about the feel of a book, the type of paper, the font, even the dust-jackets on old second-hand ones. I think for me e-readers make a book feel more like work - maybe because I write fiction myself and work on a computer - and take away the individual character of it, whereas a book has the marks of time and each one is different. I feel affection for them and would find it hard to feel the same for a book which is purely words on a screen - it puts a layer of detachment between me and those words. I have books from my childhood, the oldest nearly half a century old, and every age since, and I like to see them on my shelves - each one a little link to a time and place. I do see how convenient a Kindle is and maybe if I still commuted I might be persuaded by that. But for now I can indulge myself with a paperback and yes, the library, the Oxfam bookshop - all prevent you from shelves toppling under the weight of past reading.

Mrsfluff · 20/04/2015 22:00

I never thought I would give up actual books, but I love my Kindle Fire (I'm on it now). The best thing for me is that I can instantly access a variety of books and often for very little money.

The only downside, for me, is that you can't easily flick back through the book, if I want to go back and check anything.

SunshineAndShadows · 20/04/2015 22:01

I love books - the smell as I walk into a library, the cracking open of a new book from the shop, the pure luxury of a hardback in a dust jacket.... But...

I travel loads and I'm a voracious reader - my kindle is one of my most precious items and I rarely leave the house without it. My kindle has transformed long haul flights, delayed train journeys and missed connections in a way that paper books cannot (there's only so much I can carry!)

Real books will always be important to me and textbooks or old favourites are lovingly stored in hardback on my shelf, but purely for convenience, variety and accessibility, I think my faithful kindle wins.

Wow! 5 years ago I never would have thought I'd say that!

Waswondering · 20/04/2015 22:03

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

IreadthereforeIam · 20/04/2015 22:03

I will read happily from a paperback, hardback or an ereader (I do love my kindle!). My ereader is invaluable when I go away camping in my camper van - space is at a premium, and there's no way that I'd be able to stash 5+ books anywhere in my van! However I do love trawling through book shops or the library. I have a rather huge book habit though - disguised very well by my kindle!!

kateandme · 20/04/2015 22:06

Pages I need real pages to turn!!books all the way for me.though for travel etc I can very much see the benefits of ebook,kindled etc

auntielaraine · 20/04/2015 22:07

Both of course - how else can u take lots of books on a trip - weighing nothing & buy a new one any time of day or night---
but where is the excitement of turning the pages on a brand new book & knowing the title of what u are reading without thinking about it
Both !!!

YonicScrewdriver · 20/04/2015 22:14

Kindle. I need more books than I have space.

I read it in the bath without a waterproof cover too.

RustyBear · 20/04/2015 22:19

Which Kindle do you have waswondering? On my Paperwhite I can show reading progress by percent read, location, page or time left.

HopefulHamster · 20/04/2015 22:29

I love both but prefer ebooks, as less dusty, lighter, easy to always have with you etc.

Real books are great for flicking back and forth, for young children, for sniffing the spines :)

I used to work in books so had bazillions of them stacked around the house, and they ARE great. But my house is small and I have children so I got rid of most of the books I'd read and now only buy on my Kindle.

I used to read when I had time AND my book was nearby. Now I always have my phone, if not my Kindle itself, so I can always read whatever book I'm currently reading. ebooks are fab!

Roobix04 · 20/04/2015 22:35

I love my kindle and it's so convenient to be able to carry so many books. But I do still buy hard copies. If it's a book I love I usually get a digital copy and a real copy. If I'd given up bookshops all together I would have missed discovering a new and signed copy of The Slow Regard Of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss!

ShadowSteam · 20/04/2015 22:38

I prefer paperbacks.

I have a kindle, and it's useful if I'm away for a week or two - no need to take a bag of books around. Useful for when I only have one hand free. Nice to be able to get a book immediately if it's one I really want now.

But I keep going back to paperbacks. I find them easier to read, easier to flip back if I want to re-read an earlier part of the book, and they somehow feel more compelling than e-books.

Lent1l · 20/04/2015 22:43

I have only recently tried a kindle. It's good and makes reading on the go easier as it slips in my handbag and can while away those minutes in a waiting room. But for me there is still something just magical and satisfying about holding a real book and working through its pages. A tap of a screen is not as satisfying as a turn of the page.