I’ve written about it before — there’s no denying that e-books are on the rise.
I’ve also written about why I believe there will always be books.
Here’s why…
Meet John Picacio
I have a friend who illustrates book covers. While he’s concerned about the trend of some publishers not going all out for many e-book covers, things change. Already, we’ve made the leap from the black and white screen of the Kindle to slick color on the iPad. I can only imagine e-book technology will keep getting better and that there will still be a need for great covers like John paints. (Check out a glimpse of John’s process, here.)
I know I’m not the only one who doesn’t mind paying a little bit more for something that feels like the whole package. Even if it’s an e-book, I like a professional cover.
John’s done covers for special editions of books at Subterannean Press and other publishers. I believe publishers that think like Subterannean will always publish books — because the books they publish are a lot more than your typical book.
Publishers know there will always be that big handful of die-hard book lovers who are willing to pay a lot of money for a special book — whether it’s a first printing or a limited edition.
Cory Doctorow’s With a Little Help
This evening, I read a blog entry by a die-hard fan of many different things named Hal Stern.
Look at the entry and tell me that there aren’t people who will always love books and I’ll call you a fool.
To say the author, the printer, and the collector are all fixated on the little things that make a book special is an understatement.
While the book may not be your kind of thing, look at all the little details in the way the book was wrapped and boxed for shipping.
That’s a labor of love from every angle.
That kind of love for a physical book will never die…
The Crystal Ball
While paperbacks may go the way of the dinosaurs one day, books will always be there; they will continue being special things some people are willing to work many hours to afford and add to their collections.
I have books I’d fight for. Seriously, if somebody tried taking them from me, they’d be in a world of hurt!
What about you — do you have books you can’t imagine ever giving up? What are they?
And the big question: will you always buy books?
I know I will, and I’m not the only one…
They’re not fiction books, but… my costuming/historical clothing books. I’d be lost without them. I haven’t bought a pattern for a while and loooove using them to make my own.
While I do have things on my computer (Internet, saved files, etc) that I use, there’s something about using an actual book I prefer instead of dragging around a computer and worrying about scratching the monitor while figuring out measurements.
That’s the first thing that came to mind for me. In fact, I hope to add more to my little library in the future 🙂
obviously, i’m a fan of books, but also i love anything that carries some sort of tactile memory. old coins, paper money, game-used sports memorabilia — they all tell a story, perhaps one that you know personally (hence my purchase of a piece of an all-star jersey worn by our favorite player), or one that you can only guess (who last held the biblical era coin that i have, from the area of the temple in jerusalem? why and how did they lose it?)
well-made books are made for the long haul, and will tell other stories over time.
Thank you for the reply, Hal. I hope the mention on BoingBoing.net gets people checking your blog out!
My wife and I have some sports memorabilia that means a lot to us (a game used goalie stick, my Denis Savard rookie cards, even though they aren’t worth much (he was a favorite player), and other things). We have books and comic books that we’d probably risk rescuing from a fire.
My wife and I live in a smaller place than we once did — and we’ve thought about selling some of those old things that mean something to us because they’re packed away, or taking up space. But like you said: they tell stories.
The story of the coin you mentioned…wondering about things like that make something worth so much more. You’ve got me wondering about the coin, now.
Well-made books really are something to cherish. The books that are dearest to me are surrounded in stories of how I stumbled upon them, who got them for me, and so much more.
Each page says much more than what’s printed on them.
Thank you for sharing the unboxing of Doctorow’s With a Little Help, and take care!
– Christopher
Cynthia,
That’s a very good point about non-fiction. There are certain writing books that I rely on at home and work that I prefer printed. While I’m a huge fan of online help, for certain things — it’s all books for me!
Other non-fiction [for me] is a toss up whether I prefer a printed book or an e-book. I’ve listened to quite a few audio books (all non-fiction) while working out this past year. And most non-fiction I’ve read this past year has been in the form of an e-book.
But there are certain reference books that I definitely prefer in print!