Kindle Crush

I am not one of those librarians who has read every book in the library.  In fact, I am a pretty slow reader, and there have been periods in my life when I haven’t read at all.  But all that has changed—thanks to my Kindle.

Actually, it’s my husband’s Kindle.  He’s a Gadget Guy.  To his credit, he’s a really helpful Gadget Guy, so that when all of the copies of the book I’d ordered for our library discussion group had been snapped up and I needed to read it, he stepped in. 

“You can just download it onto my Kindle.  I don’t need it anymore now that I’ve got my IPad.” 

Here’s the deal:  my ears stop working when someone says “download.”  My comfort level with technology is in the same zone as clothespins and paperweights.  I have been called a hostile student by my husband, the most patient of teachers.  But I had a problem that could be solved through technology, so I allowed him to help me. 

The first book I read on the Kindle was “The Help” by Katherine Stockton, in November of last year.  Our library copy has been checked out for months, with multiple holds placed on it, and we had waited a long time for the discussion set to arrive from another library for our reading group.  It’s a popular book, and for good reason.  But it’s really long, and I don’t know about you , but when I’m faced with reading a really long book, I’m daunted. 

The Kindle only shows you one page at a time.  That way, you’re not constantly confronting all the pages you have yet to read.  My inner seventh grader balks at the idea of reading any book over two hundred pages long.  But if I can’t see ‘em, they don’t bother me.  At the bottom of the screen, the percentage of what you have read so far shows up.  Yay!  Twenty-two percent!  And the screen is little and cute—not like a computer screen.  Lightweight.  Fits in your pocketbook or messenger bag.   

I’ll show you mine if you come to the library.  There are lots of kinds of these electronic readers, and many of them are compatible with our electronic lending library online, which I can also show you.  You can download free books from our website.  I know—download.  We’d better get used to it.  If I can do it, so can you.