I’m a voracious reader, of analog books, magazines and hypermedia. When I want to focus on a particular topic and shut out the world, there’s nothing like a long form paper book: no links, no ads, no comments, no feeling that I’m missing better content somewhere else, no quick check of Twitter or to see what the weather will be tomorrow. I have exactly no desire to get an e-book reader and mess with this balance – the gravitational pull of hypermedia is too strong for me.
My aversion to e-books aside, I’ve recently added a digital element to my reading. I’m nearly through Gettysburg – A Testing of Courage, and during the course of reading it have constructed a full mental image of the battle. The landscape and geography in and around Gettysburg, of course, is a major character in the narrative. After reading about Culp’s and Cemetery Hills, Big and Little Round Top, I just had to see them. Some searching, viewing of maps and in particular a browsing around of the flickr tag “gettysburg” and I had some amazing ‘real’ images to supplement those of my mind’s eye.
Have you been supplementing your reading, particularly of non-fiction, with the web? I’m not sure why it took me so long to bring these two [favorite] activities together, perhaps it’s been my strong separation of analog and digital reading. I think I’ll soften that stance a bit.
Note: the above image is of Little Round Top, one of the most important places in America’s history. Thanks to Candice for giving me permission to use this image.
Jen Said:
Yes, I totally agree- there’s a way that technology can complement reading and it’s such a relief to recognize that it’s not always trying to threaten my attention span or steal the tradition of paper out from under me.
As I read more fiction than not, I find myself turning towards the Internet to find info about the authors I’m reading (not really the content). If I’m reading something new and I like it a lot, I try to see if authors will be in my area to do a reading in the near future. This is something I could see as a cool application for Amazon; some app tracks the books you buy (or it would be GREAT if it integrated with your library books too) and scours the Internet for local events related to that author.
Someone build it! :)
Joel P Said:
I’ve been voraciously reading (in paper form), “Here Comes Everybody” by Clay Shirky, and I (thanks to him) would argue that the web is so integrated into our lives now that you should no more think of the web enhancing your reading than you would think of furniture or oxygen doing the same.
I mean, yeah, reading is better when you can sit down, or breathe, or do additional research online, but you’re not bringing two activities together. You’re just living in a connected society.
Plus, $5 says you bought those books online in the first place!
Tim Said:
ha! Interesting point, but I had never incorporated the Web into my book reading experience until now, but do regularly breathe!
And, I swear, I bought Gettysburg from a BN real-world store, saw it on the shelf and couldn’t resist. Perhaps a technicality, since I do buy 80%+ of my books online.
Josh Diehl Said:
I understand your misgivings about reading content on the web via a computer, but doesn’t something like an e-book on the Kindle address all your concerns? Single task device, no hypermedia, no distractions? At that point the argument turns to tactile and functional differences. Maybe you should give Kindle a try for 3 months and then make a call on your feelings toward e-books.
Tim Said:
A paper book comes with no distractions, ever. Any e-book device will naturally start adding them, if they don’t already have them (I’m not sure, I’ve never used it). Can’t you imagine an icon in the top right to “see similar books” or “check the current news” or “search Google”?