Hubby and I debate the death of the book quite frequently.  I send him articles to read when I stumble across ones that predict the fate of the book to be the same as that of a dinosaur.  We don’t necessarily disagree on the eventual, at least partial extinction, but we do quibble over the timeline and depth of said extinction.   He needs to be up on such things because he works for a book and information distributing company.  Luckily, the company is investing in numerous strategies for the digital market,  just as the entire industry is trying to do.  The innovative will survive and thrive.   I believe his company will be one of those that thrives.  But still, I can’t help ribbing him by telling him he is working for the equivalent of RCA Records. Sometimes it is just fun to see him squirm.

Alright, my confession is that (I know he wears a smug smile as he reads this because he already knows) books are one of my favorite treasures.  In fact, I just spent a rainy Saturday morning moving all of my favorite or “need to read” books from all over the house into my office bookshelf….and it made me so happy.  It is warming to see all of that potential on one little shelf in a place I can reach out and easily touch.  There are so many of us that love the feel and experience that a book can give, can it really be yanked from us for good?  Let’s face it, there were not this many devotees longing to keep the cassette player or the wall phone.  But as much as we love the experience, we cannot deny that technology is gaining speed….and yes there are a few e-readers floating around my house as well.   I know that my children don’t love books as much as I do, and I cannot help but ponder if my grandchildren may wonder what books are.  I fear that one day I’ll be the one marching them out to the garage, showing them my box of extinct treasures that I couldn’t bear to depart with, knowing that this was a debate I didn’t really want to win.   Sigh.