I've tried to go e-book, but for some reason struggle to read it with as much earnestness as I do printed books. Not sure why this is the case, as arguably it is easier to read due to the ability to customize your reading preferences with text size and screen brightness. Plus, I love to add the book to the shelf when I'm done, and occasionally return to my shelf just to take a stroll down reading memory lane, pulling out books to feel their covers, smell that glorious old smell (many of my books are for 5 for $1 old Goodwill finds). I'm notorious for adding those slender post-it notes to the passages I love most. Sometimes I just pull them out and read them.
An example of one of my old notes in Don DeLillo's White Noise:
"Don't think I wouldn't appreciate a dramatic visit between two and three in the morning," he told her, "from an intelligent woman in spike heels and a slit skirt, with high-impact accessories."
Love that quote. E-books will never capture this experience for me. Additionally, with all the DRM related problems that continue to get worse, I often wonder if I truly "own" the e-books I've purchased. One little change in software and maybe I won't be able to access books I've paid for. I imagine soon that I'll need a kindle to read certain books, an iPad for those books, etc. 50 different apps and/or electronics, what a nightmare!
I actually prefer paperbacks to hardcovers. They are usually smaller and easier to hold, and the covers often have an amazing texture. The books I'm bringing as options for our 3rd project are examples of this awesome texture.
