Now, I want one.
When my wife and I went to see Neil Gaiman on his The Graveyard Book tour, the Q & A session included my question: Do you think that reading--and the printed book--will suffer as more and more people do their reading on the Internet? His answer was wonderful (I'm quickly learning that Gaiman is part author, part guru). He quoted Douglas Adams (probably the coolest thing he could have done to answer my question): There is nothing else in the world like a shark; in thousands of years there have always been sharks and there will always be sharks; and because only hsarks do what sharks do they will never be replaced by anything. He also reminded me (and everyone in the auditorium) that the Kindle and printed books are not mutually exclusive; he said that he likes printed books, and he likes his Kindle, and he does not fear the end of literature on paper.
And that was enough for me. I've not only calmed down, I've started to consider what books I would feel ok about reading on the Kindle 2 and what books I would want to read from the printed copy. This is irrational, I know: I'm trying to figure out how to fit the Kindle into my life before I even start setting aside the money for one.
It's still an "if" for me, but I'm not afraid anymore. Thank you, Mr. Gaiman.
