When I was really young, my dad came home with one of those Sharper Image electronic name and address books. I remember thinking, “I can’t wait for the time I’ll be able to read and write on one of those things.”
Even in elementary school, privacy was a *big* issue for me. I got judged by my family for reading anything — no matter what the title was, someone had something to say about it. I was always reading books far in advance of most people my age, which always seemed to encourage conversation.
I still to have a private, almost secretive, personality, and I still can’t stand it when someone comments on something I’m reading. For one thing, it’s rude, no matter what. If I’m sitting on a park bench with a copy of some popular or provocative book, people think it’s an invitation to have a conversation. But when I get out my ancient internet tablet, put a pair of headphones on (with no music, just for looks), people don’t bother me because I’m shut off from their world. Score!
But best of all, I can read my fair share of “trashy books,” as some smart bitches put it, in peace. My first portable reading device, bought it 2005 (the Nokia 770) changed my reading life. I could read whatever I wanted with no one commenting on the “lurid covers” or “brain candy.” I indulged in all kinds of genre fiction that I would never have brought home as a teen, including a lot of romance and erotica.
BUT!
Every rose has its thorn. As the magic of my love affair with erotica and erotic romance wore off, I started to realize something. It wasn’t my imagination; the quality of the writing and storytelling was often disappointing, compared to the good science fiction and romance classics I’d been reading at the same time. Even if I enjoyed a book at the time, I always felt empty when it was done. Unenriched.
Granted, this was a time when digital publishers were new and putting out anything they could to develop a catalog, but things are still much the same today. I still read erotic romance and erotica, but in general, I see way too much quantity, and not enough quality. I’m actually going back to the older romances of the 80s and 90s because the fiction is just better.
I don’t think I’m wrong to compare erotic romance to science fiction; I don’t believe that romance = automatically lower standards and throwaway paperbacks. Yes, it’s entertainment, but can’t it still be great and fulfilling?
- Kat M
PS – Can anyone recommend me some good books?
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I love the kindle! I have only owned it for 2 weeks, but have already finished 4 rather large books on it.
Here is what I have noticed so far:
– I always used to loose my place when reading a real book, but the kindle makes it very hard for this to happen, it even
syncs the last page read between devices (if you find yourself reading a part of a book on an iphone for instance)
– I can read through books much faster than I used to be able to (since I have been working I have only read at most a book a month — never would I dream 2 books a week!) I attribute a lot of this to the ability to increase the font size (with my bad eyes I found my self squinting reading normal books)
– I learn more about what I’m reading. I used to come across words I didn’t know, and just try to figure out the meaning from the surrounding text. Nothing beats being able to quickly get a dictionary definition, wikipedia entry, or google search result on an unfamiliar word.
– Can read without interruption when its windy outside!
– Can carry huge 1000 page books that most people would feel silly hauling around.
– Great for reading through large work documents (with the ability to quickly search, highlight and add notes)
– Can send and receive email from anywhere in the United States (via gmail on the built-in browser)!
And all this from something that cost the same price as one high quality book shelf (which would never hold 1500 books).
I have a Nokia 770 that reads PDFs, and it’s great (still alive and kicking, despite being 4 years old.) The Kindle would be great if I just wanted to read, but I really REALLY want a tablet — something I can make notes on while I do critiques and editing. It’ll probably be a few years yet, though.