So on http://calitreview.com/category/blog  I would this entry…

     Kindle Joins a Literary Ritual: Authors Can Autograph It: A recent reading in Manhattan at the Strand bookstore by David Sedaris, whose most recent book is “When You Are Engulfed in Flames,” may have offered a glimpse of the future. A man named Marty who had waited in the book-signing line presented his Kindle, on the back of which Mr. Sedaris, in mock horror, wrote, “This bespells doom.”

     Personally I can see both good and bad things about the Kindle.

     I think for the newspaper and magazine feature it would be awesome.  Obviously the cost if you were not doing much wouldn’t add up but if you were traveling or had a job that required lots of media work, this would be so conventiant.  Not only that but it is much more eco friendly then getting a daily paper.  Hey, maybe someone should think about a cheaper version that only does newspapers and magazines.  I would buy that.

     Also I like that you can subscribe to blogs from them.  Let’s face it, we are in an age where blogs are a huge form of comunication.  Lots of phones have applications similar to this but the Kindle is obviously a better format.

     The Read To Me feature would be very helpful in many cases.  Think of the elderly who have trouble seeing books.  Going and getting books on tape is a little inconvenient.  Plus there really is not that many books on tapes that are easy to find.  This makes basically any book available to have read out loud.  I don’t think it would work in the case of someone that is blind because how would they navigate the menu but somewhere who is just hard of seeing this would also be amazing.  Maybe you have a reading disability.  I’m sure there is lots of other examples I’m not thinking of.  This could open a whole new world of books to people that before were limited.

     Something that I think would be nice is if college text were available.  I looked over Amazon a little bit before writing this and it doesn’t look like many (if any) are available.  This is very unfortunate because text books are extremely expensive.  I don’t even want to think about how much I spent over the course of getting my degrees.  I know when I was getting my AA I spent probably close to an average of 500-600 a semester.  With my BA, I was an English major so a lot of my books where available at regular books stores (and thanks to Powells I was able to find many used) so it was more like 100-2oo.  So let’s just say on the conservative side for 500 for eight semesters (4000) and 100 for the last eight (800) which means about 4800.   It looks like most Kindle downloads are about 25% off.  That would have saved me 1200.  The Kindle run about 400 right?  That is still saving 800. That is huge for a college student.  That would have meant that my last semmester of school wouldn’t have had to gone on my credit card.  That would have been so helpful.  I hope someday text are available on the Kindle because of how much it would save students.

     Alright now to switch to the negative.  This would be a hit in profit for authors and publishers.  That would end up hurting the book industry.  That would be so awful.

     Also it is a peice of technology.  This means it will have problems.  It will wear out. I have worked in electronics for over five years now.  I know how frustrating they can be.  If it stops working you would not only be out the price of the device but all the books that you have brought.

     Personally, I have no intention of getting a Kindle because I love books so much.  I love holding a book in my hand.  I love the smell of a new book.  My apartment is actually sort of decorated with books.  I have the Harry Potter series in hardback on one bookshelf.  My fireplace mantle has most the Nicholas Sparks books on hardback (working on getting all).  I have a book/dvd case that has all Stephanie Meyers, Mindy Klasky, Kyra Davis, Caprice Crane, and most Neil Gaiman books.  Then I have a big bookcase in my bedroom full of all different books.  I love the book of books being all over my apartment.  My dream has always been to have a house with a libary.  Obviously if my books were electronic none of this would be possible.  I am a physical book buyer through and through.

     So what do you think about the Kindle.  Would you/ have you bought one? What do you think about David Sedaris writing that?