eBook Schizophrenia

I have very mixed feelings about the world moving toward eBooks. I know it’s going to happen. I’ve known it for years―ever since Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation carried around what was probably the device that gave the inventor of the PDA his revolutionary idea.

As a pleasure reader of novels, I think eBooks are great. Not having to lug around a clunky paper book would be wonderful. I used to buy hardcover books exclusively, even when I started commuting. At first it wasn’t a problem. I had a large pocketbook and I just stuffed the book inside. But then pocketbooks got smaller, and the means of my commute changed from my car to a Long Island Rail Road train and two subways, and I switched to paperbacks. Paperbacks are smaller, but they’re also flimsier. In addition, as a publishing professional, I felt tremendously guilty over not properly supporting the authors whose books I enjoyed so much.

Paper books also necessitate picking out just one book to take along. I carry around a decent-sized pocketbook once again, thanks both to fashion and to my reaching an age where I don’t slavishly follow Vogue anymore. But even with a larger bag, it’s difficult to dig out my wallet or cell phone when it's buried under a book. If I had to struggle with two or more books, I’d probably just skip hitting Starbucks when away from home and resign myself to being yelled at by my family for not answering their phone calls.

With an eBook reader, you can carry around a number of books and read whatever strikes your fancy at the moment. The unit is solid, not composed of pages that can part and gobble up the other contents of your bag. And it’s smaller than even a paperback, so takes up less space. This allows you to hear and answer your cell phone, buy lunch when hungry, and run through Penn Station without ending up all black-and-blue from your heavy pocketbook or carryall banging against your hip or thigh.

But that’s not all. Think of all the trees that fall victim to the publishing industry today. All the landfills that run out of room much quicker than they need to. All the chemicals that are dumped into the air and water as byproducts of the manufacture of paper, ink, and glue. Of course, the flip side is that many of the people who work in these support industries would lose their jobs. And libraries would become obsolete, with many torn down, displacing untold numbers of innocent pigeon and seagull families.

As a writer and editor, the thought of going to eBooks and away from paper books saddens me. There’s something about sitting at my desk surrounded by stacks of books that helps me to work. I use the Internet, too, but when it comes to dictionaries and style guides and reference books on the various subjects touched on in the manuscripts I edit or the book I’m writing, nothing beats being able to flip through a paper book, moving slowly toward my destination, skimming the pages leading up to it, savoring the nuggets of new or forgotten facts that lure my eyes. There’s also something about spatial memory. Looking at a reference book from the side, I so often remember exactly where to open the book. With an eBook, I usually end up scrolling and scrolling, passing what I need because it flies by in a blur. I also can’t imagine working in a room that doesn’t have bookcases filled to the brim with all types of books.

And what if a book ignites strong feelings? If we hate it, we can’t throw the eBook reader against the wall. It’ll break into a million little plastic pieces and computer chips and wires, and we’ll have to shell out some serious bucks to replace it. If a book inspires us, we can’t hug it against our heart (at least, not in the same way), display it on the coffee table, or buy a gift-quality copy, top it with a bow, and lovingly present it to our children. Yes, we can buy another copy of the download and forward the link, but it’s just not the same thing.

And where will we scribble notes? What will students underline and highlight? And the authors. Think of the authors! What will they sign? The printed-out download confirmation? Somehow, a download confirmation signing just isn’t what I’ve been picturing doing all these years when my first novel is finally published.