Touch or turn?

Using this image again 🙂

Ever since I can remember, if there’s one thing that’s lifted my spirits, it is reading. A very important part of the reading experience was visiting a bookstore and wandering around through the aisles and getting lost like there exists no world outside of this. When I was just a little girl, my parents used to take me to this rustic little bookstore after my exams and there was no other time that I would look forward to other than this visit.

Here I met wonderful characters who became my friends (no, I did not have any imaginary friends !! 🙂 ) not in the real sense but I would relate to them, live their joys and sorrows, pranks and laughter, mistakes and achievements. I still remember the very first book I read. It was called “The three brownies“. I remember everything about this beautiful creation by Enid Blyton. The three brownies and their amazing quest through the wonderful world of fantasies left me hungry for more.

My next encounter was with the very dynamic Darrell Rivers from the boarding school at Malory Towers. She is a multifaceted girl brimming with enthusiasm. Her quirks make her play tricks on her teachers and at the same time win them lacrosse matches. I loved her and truly I was a little like her when I was in school and wanted to be more n more like her.

Then in my teenage came a very typical phase of Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys. However I didn’t linger on these series for long, I quickly switched to Agatha Christie and Jeffery Archer. Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot and Jeffery Archer’s Kane and Abel were few of the many very astounding characters I have come across. After this I have read series of books on the roll, Shantaram, Dan Brown books, classics, Millennium series, Harry Potter, Twilight series. This list can just go on, so let me stop here.

Recently my crazy life has limited me to buying books online (Flipkart you are a lifesaver). But I really miss the excitement pulsing through me every time I enter a bookstore. I miss the feel of the book and the longing to own it. I miss opening the books, reading the freshly printed words and the anxiety to know more about them. I miss scolding myself for going way overboard, buying too many books, resolving every time to buy lesser books the next time and failing every time!

And now in addition to that I saw this bright shining gadget which is the envy of every voracious reader’s eye – KINDLE! I can almost picture every reader caressing the kindle, whispering “My precious“. I long for it too. But I am scared someday it will render the paper books obsolete. I cannot let that happen, cannot bear the agony of books going out of fashion. At the same time kindle is one of the most convenient gadgets and definitely has its advantages! So to touch and go to the next page or to turn and unveil the unexplored world is the dilemma. To touch or to turn?