When I was a child reading was an extremely tactile and visual experience for me. I loved the feel of the pages, the bright colors, the smell. As I got older, my reading materials got longer, and less about the pictures, but I still loved the feel of a book in my hands, flipping through the pages, smelling that new book smell... Now, I do most of my reading digitally. Kindle/Nook books provide me the freedom to do more leisure reading than ever before, because I can download it to my phone or iPad, and although I value the ability to read so frequently, I do lament the lost experience of reading a book and not a file. As such, recently I have begun reading more paper books again, and I have truly enjoyed it, it feels more like reading to me, for reasons I can't vocalize beyond that... but I am reading less again, unable to steal moments as I could with my very portable phone. I think that many people feel the way that I do. Many patrons who come into the library looking to learn more about e-books and how to download them comment that they don't choose that medium because they find it enjoyable in and of itself, but rather because it provides such convenience and flexibility. I have been pondering on this quite a bit as I plan a four day trip to Texas, and try to decide to load up my bag with books or my iPad with e-books. I know which would feel more relaxing to read...but I also know which would be easier to transport. What a luxury though, to be able to make that choice in an age when so many reading options are available to us.
Another thing that has changed are the types of books that I read. I fell in love with reading through fiction, and a well told story will always have a special place in my heart. However, I was choosy with my fiction, sticking mostly with best-selling, critically acclaimed novels. Since working in a library, and truthfully since beginning this course, I have really expanded my reading pallet, venturing into non-fiction, romance, fantasy, science fiction, young adult and more! It's been fascinating acclimating myself to the different styles and learning how and why others fall so in love with them!
Thinking about the future of reading, and the publishing industry is a fascinating exercise! I truly do not think that reading will ever cease to be a popular pastime, if anything, I think that the next twenty years will see a surge in reading, but the experience will continue to evolve. The ease of e-books will likely continue to encourage more and more readers, and as we have seen in books such as "Night Film" there will likely be an abundance of interactive elements, such as video snippets, sound bytes, linked articles, and more! I also think that we will continue to see large movie franchises built from books, which is it's own argument, but which does encourage people to read the book(s) before the movie hits theaters. I also think that the ease of find new reading material suggestions online as well as discussion groups will continue to encourage readers. However, I think sadly that we will continue to see print publishing shrink, and become more of a niche market than a predominant market, with the majority of books being consumed via the e-book format, as well as possibly the audio book format. Publishers will have to adapt to this, and possibly continue to work to make the e-book reading experience more pleasurable to continue to meet the needs of readers.
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