I recently bought a Kindle.

I enjoy reading books, though I’ll be the first to admit I’ve not read as much in recent years as I want to (and should).

I do think that I have a complicated relationship with books. I like books, I enjoy good stories. But as a Literature major who had to do A LOT of book-reading for school, there is probably also a little part of me that equates reading to ‘work’, and that takes away the inherent joy of it slightly.

But I do want to get back into reading more, and so I bought a Kindle.

Some may tout the Kindles portability and ability to store tons of books, others might say it’s more eco-conscious. Those things may or may not be true. To be transparent, the primary and arguably only reason I decided to get a Kindle is very simple – I don’t have any more space to store books in my room.

I like books. I like the act of flipping pages. I like the tactile heft of a book (I do like a hardcover). But space is a finite resource.

Reading, I think, is important.

In an age where we’re so exposed to visual media, reading has perhaps become slightly neglected. And as someone who works in the media business, I don’t for a minute have any illusions about this – people are just not reading as much as they used to, even as my colleagues and I continue to write articles.

The appeal of visual content is obvious – besides the fact that it’s ‘pretty’, I do believe that it’s an easier medium to consume. You can see, and therefore you don’t really have to think.

Reading is inherently more effortful. Besides just the obvious need to consume information in the form of words, you also have to make the second effort to then translate those words into visual images in your head (at least that’s what I think is being done). You have… to imagine.

But therein lies what’s appealing to me. I do think that the inherent effort that’s required is precisely what’s so important about reading. It is something you must do actively, as opposed to a video where you can consume it relatively passively. Whether it’s a book or an e-reader, whether a magazine, newspaper, or even an online article, you still have to set aside time and effort to read, and to think.

And I believe that matters. The act of reading impels you to partake in the story being told, and I think that makes use better thinkers, and hence better individuals. It certainly also benefits me professionally in trying to be a better storyteller.

You don’t have to read Shakespeare, or lengthy 800-page biographies. Even if it’s just 20 minutes at a time, a few times a week, that is at least an effortful decision. That’s how I convince myself that the Kindle was worth it.

If nothing else, if you’ve at least read all of the words that preceded this sentence, I commend your effort, and hope that you continue to read.

~ Desmond

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