Technology
Why Are Books Nice?
A nice article by Stephen Marche in the WSJ kind of responds to Nicholson Baker’s complaints about the Kindle. Marche provides an aside about a 15th-c scholar named Trithemius who wrote “In Praise of Scribes” and argued against the newfangled printed book. Trithemius thought that
[p]rinted books could never match the beauty and uniqueness of a copied text; copying produced a state of contemplation which was spiritually beneficial; and copying was a way of reducing error, which indeed it was at first. His central claim was that hand-produced books were inherently holy. His leading anecdote is the story of a scribe who died after decades of copying texts. When they disinterred him, the three fingers of his right hand, his writing hand, had not decomposed. Anyone who has held a handmade medieval missal—or even a handwritten letter—knows what Trithemius is talking about: the sense that someone is communicating something to you personally.
Obviously Trithemius lost the battle against print, and so too now will books be printed less and less and downloaded increasingly. But I think Trithemius is still instructive. Defending an old thing, and arguing against a new thing, requires a clarification of values. This idea about the state of contemplation produced by transcription particularly ignited me, and encourages me to do the thing more where I copy out other people’s sentences and lines.
Now let us praise the printed book, or try to. Marche somewhat cattily says that Baker’s argument “boils down to how much he likes the feel of paper.” Maybe so, but in any case I think it could be useful to think more about what we like about printed books. As e-readers like the Kindle proliferate, what do we want to preserve? Lots of complaints about Kindle boil down to weaknesses in the technology. Like, eventually e-readers will be much easier to flip through, and write in, use the index of; and the quality of photos and art will be like on computers soon enough. For my part, I’m holding out until I can take it in the bathtub, where I do 40% of my reading at least.
But what are the things that are nice about books that the technology could never accommodate? Is it just the feel of paper and the weight of the book? Or how you feel proud when you look at the bookshelf and see all that you’ve read? Marche writes, “Why are so many writers so afraid of this staggeringly wonderful possibility?” I wouldn’t say I’m afraid, but I still want to write books that are printed, and I still want to read books by other people that are printed. Marche’s article has prompted me to try to figure out why. Any ideas?
Tags: book technology, stephen marche
I love the way books smell and feel. When I was a kid, there was this huge Hans Christian Anderson volume in the library that I used to check out over and over again, and the first thing I would do when I got it home was just inhale the smell of it for like a minute. My mom used to yell at me–look at how dusty it is…remember your allergies!–but I just loved that old book smell. Still do. Plus the way certain book covers feel–I’ve bought more than one book based at least 25% on the way the cover feels.
I love the way books smell and feel. When I was a kid, there was this huge Hans Christian Anderson volume in the library that I used to check out over and over again, and the first thing I would do when I got it home was just inhale the smell of it for like a minute. My mom used to yell at me–look at how dusty it is…remember your allergies!–but I just loved that old book smell. Still do. Plus the way certain book covers feel–I’ve bought more than one book based at least 25% on the way the cover feels.
My Kindle broke on Friday and I was shit out of luck for the books on it I wanted to read. I got my replacement yesterday so that was nice, but books never break and while I’m all for technological advances, I spent my weekend reading traditional books because technology failed.
My Kindle broke on Friday and I was shit out of luck for the books on it I wanted to read. I got my replacement yesterday so that was nice, but books never break and while I’m all for technological advances, I spent my weekend reading traditional books because technology failed.
As an avid reader–technology issues aside–how do you like the experience of reading on the Kindle?
As an avid reader–technology issues aside–how do you like the experience of reading on the Kindle?
maybe book-as-object, like the way that I cherish my heavy-stock Penguin Classics Deluxe edition of Gravity’s Rainbow (http://www.jonathanrosenbaum.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/gravitys-rainbow-penguin.jpg) far more than their tepid 1995 printing.
Also, margins to write in.
also, the way that a new book’s spine is stiff and its pages flat and clean and you push your way through it and the word ‘supple’ applies, something about ‘breaking it in’ or ‘conquering’ it. like you can look at each crease in the spine and think, “i remember reading that, what that was like”.
maybe book-as-object, like the way that I cherish my heavy-stock Penguin Classics Deluxe edition of Gravity’s Rainbow (http://www.jonathanrosenbaum.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/gravitys-rainbow-penguin.jpg) far more than their tepid 1995 printing.
Also, margins to write in.
also, the way that a new book’s spine is stiff and its pages flat and clean and you push your way through it and the word ‘supple’ applies, something about ‘breaking it in’ or ‘conquering’ it. like you can look at each crease in the spine and think, “i remember reading that, what that was like”.
I think it’s the bookshelf. A library should occupy a substantial portion of physical space. Look at what has happened with music- the transition to digital format has meant an exponential increase in volume-size of the catalog, but the catalog itself becomes basically invisible to anyone not seated in front of the terminal. Books should catch eyes from across rooms. They should help make a room what it is.
I think it’s the bookshelf. A library should occupy a substantial portion of physical space. Look at what has happened with music- the transition to digital format has meant an exponential increase in volume-size of the catalog, but the catalog itself becomes basically invisible to anyone not seated in front of the terminal. Books should catch eyes from across rooms. They should help make a room what it is.
This, yes. My whole apartment is basically “decorated” with nothing but books…and I feel very happy surrounded by them. I keep buying more bookshelves and that makes me happy, too. It would be incredibly depressing if they were all just suddenly gone.
This, yes. My whole apartment is basically “decorated” with nothing but books…and I feel very happy surrounded by them. I keep buying more bookshelves and that makes me happy, too. It would be incredibly depressing if they were all just suddenly gone.
I love it. I was very very skeptical at first but there are a few things I love about the Kindle. It is very light. When you use it with a case it does feel like you’re reading a book. The annotation feature is wonderful for taking notes for the book reviews I write as well as for collating excerpts. I love being able to have so many books with me without having so many books with me. I love that I can send PDFs, particularly of things like online published works to the Kindle for future reading. I love taking it to the gym. It sits perfectly on the treadmill and is easy to read while walking briskly.
I am really looking forward to Apple’s tablet. I think its going to do the things that the Kindle cannot- and have some really important features like a color screen and back lighting so I can read in bed at night without the Kindle night light accessory I had to buy.
I happily recommend the Kindle to anyone. For me, it has been the one real surprise in the last year.
I love it. I was very very skeptical at first but there are a few things I love about the Kindle. It is very light. When you use it with a case it does feel like you’re reading a book. The annotation feature is wonderful for taking notes for the book reviews I write as well as for collating excerpts. I love being able to have so many books with me without having so many books with me. I love that I can send PDFs, particularly of things like online published works to the Kindle for future reading. I love taking it to the gym. It sits perfectly on the treadmill and is easy to read while walking briskly.
I am really looking forward to Apple’s tablet. I think its going to do the things that the Kindle cannot- and have some really important features like a color screen and back lighting so I can read in bed at night without the Kindle night light accessory I had to buy.
I happily recommend the Kindle to anyone. For me, it has been the one real surprise in the last year.
i can’t impress ‘babes’ with my huge amount of poetry books if they’re all stored on the kindle.
i like books because they get me chicks!
i can’t impress ‘babes’ with my huge amount of poetry books if they’re all stored on the kindle.
i like books because they get me chicks!
yeah! if i can’t tell how many poetry books guys have, i have no way of knowing which ones to sleep with!
yeah! if i can’t tell how many poetry books guys have, i have no way of knowing which ones to sleep with!
Yeah, I was thinking I’d wait to see what the Tablet’s like–it sounds like it will be a nice improvement on the Kindle, and since I’m already addicted to all things Apple…it would just be one more way Steve Jobs and his empire can hold me in thrall.
The online published works to PDF thing on the Kindle sounds kind of superb. I didn’t realize you could do that. And I would love to be able to read on the treadmill.
“Obviously Trithemius lost the battle against print, and so too now will books be printed less and less and downloaded increasingly”
I’m not sure I believe this.
The fact is that the printed book has functions that the electronic book does not (UNLIKE CD or tape versus an MP3… or for that matter, unlike a scroll versus a book). As such, I think it is likely there will always be a place for them… at least for the foreseeable future.
Yeah, I was thinking I’d wait to see what the Tablet’s like–it sounds like it will be a nice improvement on the Kindle, and since I’m already addicted to all things Apple…it would just be one more way Steve Jobs and his empire can hold me in thrall.
The online published works to PDF thing on the Kindle sounds kind of superb. I didn’t realize you could do that. And I would love to be able to read on the treadmill.
“Obviously Trithemius lost the battle against print, and so too now will books be printed less and less and downloaded increasingly”
I’m not sure I believe this.
The fact is that the printed book has functions that the electronic book does not (UNLIKE CD or tape versus an MP3… or for that matter, unlike a scroll versus a book). As such, I think it is likely there will always be a place for them… at least for the foreseeable future.
the note-taking thing is interesting to me.
“But what are the things that are nice about books that the technology could never accommodate?”
I would say one thing is durability/cheapness. By which I mean, the Kindle or any e-reader is a sensitive and large piece of a electronic equipment. You have to be careful with it. I used to buy cheap paperbacks that fit in my jacket pocket to read on the subways when I didnt’ want to carry a bag around. Not gonna do that with a kindle.
the note-taking thing is interesting to me.
“But what are the things that are nice about books that the technology could never accommodate?”
I would say one thing is durability/cheapness. By which I mean, the Kindle or any e-reader is a sensitive and large piece of a electronic equipment. You have to be careful with it. I used to buy cheap paperbacks that fit in my jacket pocket to read on the subways when I didnt’ want to carry a bag around. Not gonna do that with a kindle.
I love that Penguin edition of Gravity’s Rainbow, although mine got caught in a rainstorm and the cover ripped off and the spine is bent in ten places.
I love that Penguin edition of Gravity’s Rainbow, although mine got caught in a rainstorm and the cover ripped off and the spine is bent in ten places.
Did y’all see that picture that was circulating for a while from the woman who organizes her books by color, in gradients? It was really pretty.
Did y’all see that picture that was circulating for a while from the woman who organizes her books by color, in gradients? It was really pretty.
Amy, I like the way you framed this question. It’s a lot more interesting than the way most people frame it.
Amy, I like the way you framed this question. It’s a lot more interesting than the way most people frame it.
Am I the only one who finds it weird this WSJ article describes the Baker piece as a “diatribe” and a “polemic”? I didn’t read it that way at all…
Am I the only one who finds it weird this WSJ article describes the Baker piece as a “diatribe” and a “polemic”? I didn’t read it that way at all…
My problem with most e-readers: They strip a book of its design. (variable font sizes, lack of native PDF support in the Kindle, lack of color, etc. etc. etc.)
Books are my nice things, my coveted things. I’d rather covet books than anything else.
My problem with most e-readers: They strip a book of its design. (variable font sizes, lack of native PDF support in the Kindle, lack of color, etc. etc. etc.)
Books are my nice things, my coveted things. I’d rather covet books than anything else.
Yes the one-size-fits-all style is totally bland and sad. I assume they will fix that to some degree as technology progresses, but they wont’ be able to totally fix it since the e-reader will always be a standard size (a too-small one, screen-wise) and books can change their size.
Yes the one-size-fits-all style is totally bland and sad. I assume they will fix that to some degree as technology progresses, but they wont’ be able to totally fix it since the e-reader will always be a standard size (a too-small one, screen-wise) and books can change their size.
I’ll echo the sentiments expressed here.
I like to hold a book, paperback or hardcover. I’m kind of a hardcover whore. I love the tactile sensation as well, be it leather or irregular binding materials. And the art. So many beautiful books from Featherproof and Tin House and McSweeney, even Hobart. I love the covers. I’ve bought foreign variations of books I love simply for the art. And the library. I agree about being able to SEE my “friends” these worlds, these minds. I also collect limited editions. My collection is probably worth about $15,000 and includes some rare and hard to find books and editions, some signed, some not. Can’t sign a Kindle. But collecting is a whole other issue.
It’s not that I think the Kindle is a replacement, but an appendage, and extension of the printed word. There are benefits – all of the links and tech gadgetry that comes with it, the PDF feature, notes, etc. The ability to carry a library with you.
I’m also a bit of a mail slut. I love getting mail, I love buying books from authors, on ebay, from bookstores, getting ARCs, all of that. So, there’s that aspect too.
I have some issues, no doubt.
I’ll echo the sentiments expressed here.
I like to hold a book, paperback or hardcover. I’m kind of a hardcover whore. I love the tactile sensation as well, be it leather or irregular binding materials. And the art. So many beautiful books from Featherproof and Tin House and McSweeney, even Hobart. I love the covers. I’ve bought foreign variations of books I love simply for the art. And the library. I agree about being able to SEE my “friends” these worlds, these minds. I also collect limited editions. My collection is probably worth about $15,000 and includes some rare and hard to find books and editions, some signed, some not. Can’t sign a Kindle. But collecting is a whole other issue.
It’s not that I think the Kindle is a replacement, but an appendage, and extension of the printed word. There are benefits – all of the links and tech gadgetry that comes with it, the PDF feature, notes, etc. The ability to carry a library with you.
I’m also a bit of a mail slut. I love getting mail, I love buying books from authors, on ebay, from bookstores, getting ARCs, all of that. So, there’s that aspect too.
I have some issues, no doubt.
I’ll get one when you can read comics on it–page by page, not panel by panel.
I’ll get one when you can read comics on it–page by page, not panel by panel.
There was an element of luddite enjoyment, I think. But perhaps it was just the wishful reading of (printed) book lovers.
There was an element of luddite enjoyment, I think. But perhaps it was just the wishful reading of (printed) book lovers.
I agree that there will be a place for them, but I do think they will be printed less than they are now, just as people send each other letters by mail now but not as much
I agree that there will be a place for them, but I do think they will be printed less than they are now, just as people send each other letters by mail now but not as much
I think they will undoubtedly be printed less. The question is how much. Will books be the music equivalent of vinyl records, only collected by nerds? or more like a common occurrence in every house, but just not as many as before?
I think they will undoubtedly be printed less. The question is how much. Will books be the music equivalent of vinyl records, only collected by nerds? or more like a common occurrence in every house, but just not as many as before?
It’s also that reading is by definition an abstract, non-material activity, so the (printed) book is not just a medium the way a CD is, it’s rather an integral counterpart of the experience. It’s a reassuring “blanket”, one feels lost in the abstraction without the paper. But this is not say that it’s altogether impossible to recreate that reassuring feeling on an electronic reader.
It’s also that reading is by definition an abstract, non-material activity, so the (printed) book is not just a medium the way a CD is, it’s rather an integral counterpart of the experience. It’s a reassuring “blanket”, one feels lost in the abstraction without the paper. But this is not say that it’s altogether impossible to recreate that reassuring feeling on an electronic reader.
yeah, the experiential aspect will be interesting. sure the kindle could take ‘hypertext’ reading in a new direction, but i’m also interested to see how something like House of Leaves is read on the Kindle, or even something more standard i.e. linear with heavy footnotes. it changes the way the information is processed which then changes the way its read & understood.
yeah, the experiential aspect will be interesting. sure the kindle could take ‘hypertext’ reading in a new direction, but i’m also interested to see how something like House of Leaves is read on the Kindle, or even something more standard i.e. linear with heavy footnotes. it changes the way the information is processed which then changes the way its read & understood.
I like this…integral counterpart…I want to think more about that. It does feel like a reassuring blanket, but deceptively, because of course while books feel like the material thing that we’re missing in the imaginative world of our reading, the book itself, as an object, bears no resemblance to, and indeed has no life in, the dream world that reading takes us to. but we still cling to it.
I like this…integral counterpart…I want to think more about that. It does feel like a reassuring blanket, but deceptively, because of course while books feel like the material thing that we’re missing in the imaginative world of our reading, the book itself, as an object, bears no resemblance to, and indeed has no life in, the dream world that reading takes us to. but we still cling to it.
it’s interesting that everyone has commented as readers, and nobody has spoken about wanting to feeling in their hands their own book that they wrote. also, i’m not surprised by it, but i’m kind of fascinated by the continued comparisons to music. what about the comparison to writing by hand, writing by typewriter, and writing on a computer? anything instructive there?
it’s interesting that everyone has commented as readers, and nobody has spoken about wanting to feeling in their hands their own book that they wrote. also, i’m not surprised by it, but i’m kind of fascinated by the continued comparisons to music. what about the comparison to writing by hand, writing by typewriter, and writing on a computer? anything instructive there?
But isn’t precisely that abstract, dull even, white surface that allows for the imaginative leap? Perhaps if the book resembled more those dream worlds it would be an impediment for our imagination.
Great work, I found out about this website literally three days ago and I keep coming back.
But isn’t precisely that abstract, dull even, white surface that allows for the imaginative leap? Perhaps if the book resembled more those dream worlds it would be an impediment for our imagination.
Great work, I found out about this website literally three days ago and I keep coming back.
I second Ken’s point about design – design has far more impact i think than many people realise on not only the reading experience but the meaning we take from text than many poeple realise. As, with poetry at least, the physical/mechanical action of turning the page. Imagine reading Myung Mi Kim, Susan Howe et al without that. This pysicality is important.
I also like what Beniamino said about being “lost in abstraction without paper”. but this ties in directly to the Idea of experimentation in the e-medium, which there hasn’t been a lot of yet (I believe that, to echo the Oulipo, experimentation in a medium should reflect the medium (cf the restraint) – and I haven;t seen a lot of that (not that it’s not happening). How can that sense of beig lost be untilised?
One thing that I find encouraging though is, as I’ve said elsewhere, when something becomes obsolete it becomes the domain of the artist – as with moveable type and the hand press at the dawn of offset printing, which gave rise to much of indie publishing and the wonderful distribution networks we have today. Hopefully we can make something of this.
I second Ken’s point about design – design has far more impact i think than many people realise on not only the reading experience but the meaning we take from text than many poeple realise. As, with poetry at least, the physical/mechanical action of turning the page. Imagine reading Myung Mi Kim, Susan Howe et al without that. This pysicality is important.
I also like what Beniamino said about being “lost in abstraction without paper”. but this ties in directly to the Idea of experimentation in the e-medium, which there hasn’t been a lot of yet (I believe that, to echo the Oulipo, experimentation in a medium should reflect the medium (cf the restraint) – and I haven;t seen a lot of that (not that it’s not happening). How can that sense of beig lost be untilised?
One thing that I find encouraging though is, as I’ve said elsewhere, when something becomes obsolete it becomes the domain of the artist – as with moveable type and the hand press at the dawn of offset printing, which gave rise to much of indie publishing and the wonderful distribution networks we have today. Hopefully we can make something of this.
I’ve done that. It’s not nearly as well-done as hers, but it still looks good to me.
I’ve done that. It’s not nearly as well-done as hers, but it still looks good to me.
No one will know how cool you are lugging around Infinite Jest.
No one will know how cool you are lugging around Infinite Jest.
It seems to keep coming back to that, doesn’t it? (or Gravity’s Rainbow, Finnigans Wake, or in my case The Cantos or Zukofsky’s ‘A’)
It seems to keep coming back to that, doesn’t it? (or Gravity’s Rainbow, Finnigans Wake, or in my case The Cantos or Zukofsky’s ‘A’)
i have an idea for one of those new yorker sketches. a kid opening his presents on christmas day holds in his hands an unwrapped kindle. he eyes the thing with perplexity. the caption reads “this is the worst gameboy ever.”
i have an idea for one of those new yorker sketches. a kid opening his presents on christmas day holds in his hands an unwrapped kindle. he eyes the thing with perplexity. the caption reads “this is the worst gameboy ever.”
not that i have a full-length volume, but if i did, i’d rather it be read on a kindle than not read it in a book
i think books are on the way out, maybe not in my lifetime, but someday, maybe in a thousand years
when technology changes how does poetic form change to answer the call
i think a lot about how to capitalize on the answer to that — which is itself a thought that is perhaps a result of the shift
one day, people aren’t going to care about books — if we knew that for a fact, how would it change our behavior
i like the idea of figuring out whatever’s going to be new next, then pushing all the old stuff off the cliff or into traffic, getting rid of it, get out of here, etc – so you can be famous when the new way arrives
by famous i mean having “a deeper understanding of form”
not that i have a full-length volume, but if i did, i’d rather it be read on a kindle than not read it in a book
i think books are on the way out, maybe not in my lifetime, but someday, maybe in a thousand years
when technology changes how does poetic form change to answer the call
i think a lot about how to capitalize on the answer to that — which is itself a thought that is perhaps a result of the shift
one day, people aren’t going to care about books — if we knew that for a fact, how would it change our behavior
i like the idea of figuring out whatever’s going to be new next, then pushing all the old stuff off the cliff or into traffic, getting rid of it, get out of here, etc – so you can be famous when the new way arrives
by famous i mean having “a deeper understanding of form”