When the world went into lockdown, I rejoiced. I always thought that working from home would allow me to fulfill some of my goals like exercising more, eating healthier and reading more books. Fast forward a year later I was ordering takeout more, watching more Netflix and scrolling social media more often. I always knew that books would be a way for me to open my mind to thinking broader so that I can find ways to navigate my life.
The problem was I had no access. I found a limited number of books in my area (in the Philippines) and ordering online seemed to be too much of a waste of money and a waste of space. My filing cabinet of an apartment is squeezed tightly by boxes of books I inherited from my younger years and by books that I bought out of impulse (which are still unread). I wanted to have access to any book I want anytime without the hassle of having it shipped or worse scouring the limited number of bookstores in my area.
At first, I resolved in reading through my phone. But it would always give me migraines no matter how good the dark mode is.
With much research, enter the kindle. It had a bigger screen and a gorgeous e-ink display. I no longer had an excuse not to read.
How the kindle helped me read more
1. Convenience
Since I could just pull out any book from my Kindle I no longer had to dust of the boxes where my books where stored. This reduced the friction I had when I was reading a physical book.
2. Access
Downloading e-books made it so convenient to find any title I wanted. The Kindle store had so many books at a discounted price cheaper than its printed counterpart. Plus, other free sources like project Gutenberg or Z-library had a monster selection of free e-books that I got to download. I also subscribed to Kindle unlimited, which gave me the chance to borrow at 10 books per month. All these choices had me drooling to read and build my online library.
3. Ergonomics
The bigger and more readable screen had me reading for hours. In fact, I would lose sleep reading books for hours. With the Kindle's paper-like display, I no longer have to suffer through migraines when. Reading is such a pleasure with my Kindle.
Who is the Kindle for?
For those who still prefer to read physical books, I have no quarrel with you. If I had all the money, all the space, and all the time, I would buy hardbound books in my home library. Problem is, I don't. "But I like the smell of ink on parchment, the way I could turn the pages physically or the beautiful covers...". That's nice but you have to ask yourself: why are you reading?
If you are reading for the purpose of romanticizing the act of reading, then buy a physical book. Its the same thing for those who have the money, access and the patience to wait for their books.
If you are reading solely for the contents of the book, and the convenience that comes having an all-in-one device for your mobile library then buy a kindle now.