The Book Format Battle: E-books or Paper Books?

When I begin to read a book at my library, I fall into a totally different world. The boy next to me is also immersed into his book. But, it’s not any book he’s reading. He’s reading an e-book.

That’s when I wondered: are e-books better than regular books?

(After, I also spent five minutes trying to search up how to spell e-book. Was it spelled with a dash? Was the e capitalized? Or was the b supposed to? Well, after a long mission, I found out how to spell e-book, as you can see.)

This is Hibba, your weekly debating blogger, and as you might have guessed, this week’s topic is: E-books or books?

And, to say straight out, I LOVE PAPER BOOKS!!!

I’ve read an e-book on an e-reader before. I know what it’s like. Swiping page after page, adjusting the text size, and downloading fifty different samples of books just because you don’t want to pay for anything. I know.

But I just can’t compare it to lying in bed, and reading The House At Pooh Corner. I can’t.

I don’t know how to explain it, but flipping page after page… it feels so much better than just swiping. Putting in a bookmark is just SO much more satisfying than just pressing the back button. And, it the excitement of getting a new book, for me, is much better than downloading an e-book on your Kindle.

Logically, let’s think: you want to get these twenty books. Each books costes about $15 dollars in retail price each. If you buy them in person, you can go run around, looking for the best price, because most stores don’t even sell them for retail price. If you’re lucky, you get them for $10 each. Sweet! So, if you played your cards right, you’d be paying $200, plus tax.

What if you want to get them as an e-book? Well, for starters, you’re going to need a Kindle, or some kind of device for it. To be safe, I’m going to say we’ve already got to pay $100. Then, you go online and you buy your desired books. I’m not really sure if online bookstores have sales, but for all I know, there’s a 90% chance you are paying  $15, retail price. So…. $15 times 20 books equals $300. So in total, you’d be paying $400, with the Kindle. Or even more, if you’re reading on an iPhone or iPad.

And I honestly think it’d be better to clear out some space in your room to save yourself $200. But that was just an example. I could be wrong. You might get cheaper prices online than in store, but I’m just thinking with my brain. Not yours.

But it’s beyond cost, too. Many small studies suggest that reading on traditional books boosts memory retention and focus. The Guardian actually reported on an experiment done in Norway. In this little test, people were given a short story, and the choice to read it on a Kindle, or regularly. They were then tested on it, and those who read it on paper were more likely to remember plot points in the accurate order.

It is also shown that high levels of screen time from any electronic device can  build up to visual fatigue, a condition where you get  tired, itching, burning eyes. Kind of the feeling after watching 3 hours of Youtube at the 4 AM in the dark. Your eyes are just blech.

In a 2014 study recorded in the journal PNAS, found that reading an e-book before going to sleep, actually causes a reduction in melatonin production. Melatonin is a hormone produced in your body, that helps prepare your body to enter the land of slumber. It was also shown that e-books weaken your sense of alertness for the next day.

And as a victim of a terrible insomnia, that hit me last summer, I noticed something interesting, that I’ve kept in my mind. Any use of technology I had used a little before bedtime, made it harder to fall asleep, even after my insomnia would usually wear off. So say, I’m reading an e-book. After, I would have heck lot of trouble trying to fall asleep. As you can see, e-books wouldn’t allow you to fall into the world of your dreams.

When I had finished all my screen-time about an hour before going to sleep, and I read a paper book, my insomnia did not persist for as long as usual. I seemed to just fall asleep, dreaming about what might just happen next in the story. Every now and then, when I am MAD tired, and I can’t seem to fall asleep, I just pick up whatever’s on my little table next to my bed. Maybe it’s Valkyrie, or I Am Princess X that I end up reading. One day I could be reading a book about robots taking over the world, and tomorrow about serious world issues. But they all have one thing in common: they set me to sleep.

Some people argue that e-books can help the visually impaired, but I differ. Go online, or to your local library and you will find many regular books that will suit your needs. I know my library has large print books and Braille, too. It might take awhile, but honestly, I think it’s worth the wait, to get in large prints, on paper.

But in the end, it doesn’t matter. It’s just the book-reading that counts. Every time you open a book, you begin to  fall into the world where you’re riding unicorns, or boarding a spaceship to Planet X. Maybe your in Nauru, exploring Buada Lagoon, or in NYC at the United Nations, reporting the world’s top leaders' solutions to stop world hunger. Kindle or traditional, it’s the story that counts.

I really do think paper books are the best. But what do you think? Do you agree? Why or why not?  What’s the best for bookworms? Which kind is better for reluctant readers? And, hey, why not submit a suggestion for a chance to get a shoutout?

Happy reading, fellow readers!

Truly Yours-Hibba