Wildcat
Books Keep Spirit of Reading AliveWednesday, April 25, 2012 By Sandra Gehring and Vivian Garcia
Books are the foundation of education and the source of knowledge to both young and old minds. This era, however, has changed reading from opening a paper filled book to turning on an electronic device. Even though this new way of absorbing literature may be faster and more efficient, it still takes away from the magical feeling of opening a new book and smelling the freshly printed ink on the pages. This generation has adopted new ways of reading, using devices such as iPads, iPhones, and Kindles. These cool new gadgets have changed the way people read novels because now they do not get that unique feeling of reading a real book. Not only does the text on the inside tell a story, but also the book itself is a story. Classic works, such as Pride and Prejudice, Hamlet, and Huckleberry Finn, need to be read just as the author meant for them to be read—in an adorned, hardcover book. Kindles and other devices may not always work, while books do not malfunction at all. When a technological device is dropped, it may break and stops working. The book is more reliable because it’s a lot more durable. There are no batteries or passwords required to read a book; all you have to do is open it with your bare hands, and the text is all there. Books are magical; they are a way to escape from your average life as they transport you to places you’ve never known before. If you are reading the classic Frankenstein on your Smartphone, you can easily get distracted as you slowly get into the story because you might receive a text from your friend. This will not only disturb you for a moment, it will also ruin your train of thought and make it harder to get back into the novel. This “old-fashioned” way of reading is so powerful that it often makes us cry, makes us laugh, makes us think, makes us happy, and makes us understand the message that the author was trying to get across. The act of buying a new book and turning to the first page needs to be kept alive for as long as possible. In our modern world, electronics and cool gadgets are taking over, but we must not let them replace something as precious as the experience of reading a book. |