ebooks

@Roger,
Thanks for the very helpful information. I was thinking of buying an ebook but am not sure about it just yet. I do love the feel of holding a paper back book though.l

Love my Kindle, especially the other day sitting in A and E for 3 hours, but I agree with the comments about costs. I still buy books when the price difference makes it worthwhile. They need to sort it out so I don't have to choose not to pay £9+ for a Kindle version of Val McDemid when I can get a brand new paperback version.for £3.75.

T here is just nothing to beat the smell and feel of a book in your hands.I have not been tempted to buy a Kindle, it would just not be the same to me, call me old-fashioned, but I treat my books like friends and cherish them.

Hello

I'm new to these forums so I'm delighted to find such a busy book section. I too borrow audio books from the library which I listen to either on my CD player in the kitchen or my personal CD player which I use in bed. I have also joined the digital library service which lets me borrow up to 14 audio books each month for free and is available nearly all over the UK now, it's a fantastic service.

I've recently bought an MP3 player which enables me to download from the library site onto my PC then onto the MP3 but the MP3 doesn't have any bookmarking so it's proving a bit of a faff.

I can hear the smug purring from the Amazon fat cats!! Please please stop referring to ereader users as Kindle users as it's not a generic term..they are ereaders and come in all different shapes, brands and colours.
Sony are the chic Harvey Nics of the ebook world with Kindle your M&S, bebook perhaps the co-op and the rest fall under Tesco and Argos.
Rant over

Have just read the comments on the preferences between an ebook and a conventional hardback/paperback. I love technology, computers mobile phones etc, but the idea of sitting with a Kindle in my hand does not appeal to me at all. I like nothing better than sitting at night with a book, a glass of white wine, and a few squares of chocolate (bad for the figure I know). To me that is heaven. On saying all of the above, the world would be a sad place if everyone likes the same thing so to all you Kindle users enjoy, I will carry on with my weekly visits to Waterstones.

I cannot imagine my life without holding an actual 'book'...the feeling of the book in my hands...the smell of new book...I wax lyrical because books are such a bit part of my life ..of me..as a child they comforted me, befriended me, enertained me, taught me...they go on doing so...I am on gransnet, facebook, I use a computer, IPhone you name it I love technology...BUT..a real live hardback or paperback book...that's the choice for me...that's my personal preference but the important thing we must remember of course is CHOICE...thank goodness..we are all individuals ..there is no right or wrong....best way wrong way...just different points of view....I might add here as a postscript...am I the only one not to have mentioned grandchildren....I joined this networking site because I thought it was about us as people...not being defined by our grand kids...sorry just my thoughts!!

Agree about the price difference. I have just ordered a paperback version of Benny and Shrimp from Amazon as the Kindle download was far more expensive.Having said that I love my Kindle and really appreciated its conveniences when on holiday recently...and it doesn't matter if the grandchildren splash it at the pool! It doesn't go soggy and its cover protects it from the sunscreen lotion too.
Put it on your Birthday/Christmas list!

I downloaded the kindle to my android phone and it is easy to read a book while sitting on a bus, in a cafe etc. I still prefer paper backs for reading in bed.

Nanafrancis you could always pay for one suitcase in the hold for all the things you want to take home; my suitcase is often loaded with various things that are either difficult or expensive to buy here and things that the children ask for from here!

I too prefer 'real' books but have got a Blackberry to which I have downloaded some free eBooks - it's great for travelling. I wouldn't buy eBooks to put on it though - nothing beats a 'real' book!

But, we dont have bookshops now that Borders have gone,neither do we have knitting shops, so everything has to be done on line and its not the same.We do have a really good oxfam book shop tho,But I do miss that new book smell and touch and the sort of "crack" when you open a new one.

Have you tried project Gutenberg? Its great,,all classics, lots of them i have never heard of, and I didnt realsie you get a one chapter from Amazon as a try out..But I still love a "real" book.

Still like the real thing although I can see that Kindles are useful.
Love books,the smell and feel of new books is great.

But don't you kindle fans find it difficult going back in the book when you need to refresh your memory or sort a point out? That's my biggest bugbear with it.

I love my Kindle for novels or non-fiction with no illustrations as it's so light but if you need to follow diagrams and look at photos then a printed version is best.

Another Kindle fan here! I am an avid reader and cannot recommend it highly enough. When we went on a three week holiday in January I had six new books downloaded ready to read.

Sadly, I left my lovely brand new Kindly in the airport at Siem Reap, much to DH's annoyance. However, the insurance company paid up (minus the excess) and I immediately replaced my lost one. What amazed me was that when I fired up the replacement Kindle, I was asked if I would like to download all the books from my old lost one, which I did, for free. This is because the books you buy from Amazon are registered to your e-mail account and can be shared between any number of Kindles registered to that account.

The ability to increase font size and the reading light (I have the red leather cover with integral light - lovely) is wonderful for reading in bed when DH is snoring or on long haul flights when everyone else is sleeping.

I have kindle for iphone and enjoy reading wherever I am, not when driving I hasten to add!! On the bus, supermarket queue a waiting room. Books are reasonable and of course no p&p.

I LOVE my Kindle! It's wonderful to be able to increase the font size of all the books to 'enormous'. If I fall asleep whilst reading, then it will turn itself off, and the last page I was reading comes up first when I next turn it on....

GillieB you are not the only Granny who loves Science Fiction and I treated myself to a Kindle, its great can now clear shelves of old tattered favourites as they can be downloaded from Amazon and I can read them any time and any where, Love it

OxfordOwl

This is a great site:
http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/

Free ebooks for kids. Marvellous!

I agree, there is nothing like the feel and smell of a book, esp new ones, and I could spend hours browsing in a book shop, lifting different books down from the shelves and having a good old browse!! Our first granddchild is due in October, and the one thing I am looking forward to most is when they are older, holding him or her on my knee, their lttle body warm and snuggly and " reading " a book together,

Having said that I can see the advantages of a kindle or e reader when travelling, esp now with so many luggage restrictions. I listen to a lot of audio books on my ipod, though one of the problems is I tend to listen in bed then fall asleep after about 5 mins, so totally loose my place, at least with a book you just go back a few pages until something looks familiar.

I think if they were cheaper I would consider one for holiday use, but couldn't justify it at the current price.

To me there are few greater pleasures than going into a proper Bookshop and browsing. I like to handle the books, to read the reviews, to open and read a bit in the middle to see if I am comfortable with the writing and I love the smell of a new book. We have a lot of Charity shops here and many a bargain there as well.
Basically I am a Luddite. I want to feel that real thought and work has gone into what I am reading and that it is not just some electronic miracle..

Not interested in a kindle at all. I love the feel and smell of a new book. A friend of mine was in the middle of reading on her kindle when it went down and she couldn't get it back again for ages. They are expensive and what if you lose it or it's stolen. Losing a book isn't nearly as expensive - I know you can insure it - but what a nuisance. We're in danger of losing libraries as it is, this could be the death knell of ones local branch. Not all books are on kindle either. So sorry I'll stick to paperbacks. Can one get photos on kindle - I'm reading non fiction with enclosed photos which all add on to the interest of the subject.