Yesterday (1-27-10) I was listening to NPR while I put some dinner together and played with the parakeet, and I heard an All Things Considered clip in which an author complained about how he saw someone reading a Kindle, and she actually had his book among her 200 loaded on the device, and he was unhappy about it– he felt she and readers like her were likely to be distracted by all the other possibilities (news, magazines, games) and how much better it would be if she had a hard copy of his book and were reading that.
My gut reaction was, What is this guy whining about?
Yes, I have an image, a vision, of the Gentle reader in a mahogany and book lined study with French doors open to a greensward, sitting in a leather chair, reading a leather bound copy of my book– it’s beautiful, it’s elitist, and– it’s over.
Actually, it was myself I pictured there reading. I’ve always preferred the idea of a dog-eared copy of a book of mine in the hands of some kid on a subway pulling at their hair as they make a private space and read.
Paperbacks were a threat. E-readers are a big threat. But is the threat to writers or to corporate profits?