A book or a Nook?

There is a lot of conversation around whether paper books will go the way of the 8-track or 33 LP record.  As we get used to the convenience and utility of our technology devices, why would we care to be burdened and encumbered by a tome? As I reach out to our community in my work with BookEnds, it has now become a regular question I ask as I seek to understand a small aspect of the earthquake-sized ever-fluid impact of technology in our lives.

My small scientific survey results comes from as admittedly biased group of engaged readers, but the sampling includes kids, young professionals as well as sage executives. Surprisingly, I have found great consensus.  People love the convenience and ease of their Kindles and Nooks especially when they travel.  They use their computers throughout the day to stay abreast of the latest articles and news in their fields of interest. But even then if an article is lengthy people frequently print a copy of it to read. They confirm the research studies that our brains are better suited to retain detailed information from a printed page. And at the end of the day when they seek the universal joy, escape and entertainment of reading, their preference is to curl up with that ‘old-fashioned’ hard cover book. One man remarked, “you know, I have never fallen asleep with my laptop on my pillow.”

Robin Keefe,
BookEnds President