I have been giving this a thought for quite a while. Brandishing my Kindle eBook reader to everyone I see, was a sure way to get some feedback on a major topic I have been considering. Shall I keep buying traditional, paper books or just focus on the digitalized version?

Ever since I was a child, my favorite gift was a book, illustrated or not, I had a love for reading and watching those inked pages tell stories, show me wonders and ultimately help me expand my mind in ways no other means of information could. I did long to have more remote-controlled cars, gadgets and toys as advertised on television during holiday seasons; but my mind would always escape reality and the bitterness that sensitivity brought about through stories of superpowers, courage, love, magic (my favorite) and worlds beyond anybody’s understanding.

I grew up falling for every book that gave me access to other dimensions and sought to find way of getting and reading as many books as I could, until piles upon piles of publications took over the empty spaces, leaving me no room for other hobbies, such as music production, which in turn requires some room for all the equipment and gadgets it requires.

I have had my Kindle for about a year now, and with it, my room that was once suffering from the excess of paper-based works of art, was suddenly tidier and must more relaxing. Not that I have disposed of any of my beloved books; but managed to sort and compile them on neat shelves; nothing magical about it, although I would have loved to wave a magic wand and expand my tiny room.

I’ve spent days and nights reading on the paper-looking screen and buying the books from the Kindle store. I’ve kept a log of terms and expressions that I have discovered while reading every genre and every piece that caught my eye; however, something deep inside urged me to lay my eyes on paper once more. Thinking that I was imagining my longing for paper books, I decided to put the matter to rest, so I grabbed a Ken Follett’s 25th anniversary edition of Pillars of the Earth and started reading. Despite my love for technology and my excitement upon receiving my Kindle (not to mention the discovery of its various functionalities), my eyes could suddenly imagine the scenes better, my mind grasped the words, syntax, punctuation and layout, the paper felt good as I brushed my fingertips along the edges. Yes! I am a huge bookworm and I do love paper.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my Kindle and I carry it around wherever I go, and I have gotten a taste of the great service Amazon has provided me with. I love the built-in dictionary, the matt screen, bookmarks and most importantly the ability to highlight specific expressions. But I could always use the company of a real book and I would always pine for a stroll among bookshelves, among booklovers, among pages, stories, characters printed on yellowish paper, stitched binding and beautifully designed covers.

My opinion is mostly subjective and I only seek to divulge my experience spanning years avidly reading books and my recent use of eBooks. I love technology, and I certainly love my eBook reader, but I will always be loyal to books in their traditional format.