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/lit/ - Literature

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2782076 No.2782076[DELETED]  [Reply] [Original]

What books are worth having the physical form of? So much today, people are on their Nooks, and on their computers reading .pdf's. There's just something about holding an actual book in your hand... I want to get back into reading, but I don't know where to start. I can read just about anything, and enjoy it.

>> No.2782080

Any book worth having is worth having in dead tree form. As much as I love the convenience of Kindle and audiobooks, there's still nothing comparable to the texture and smell of a good old paperback.

>> No.2782089

Nobody touched you before
That I can smell
One look and i am begging for more
You are dead but yet so fresh i can tell
God how i love new books

My first poem. Its about a new book but you think its about a girl. How did i do?

>> No.2782109

>pictures on a page
>pictures on a e-ink screen
>either way holding something the same same that takes up about the same space.
>one is a single book, the other is a library of thousands.
>either way the text and therefore the aritsts content is identical.

"Theres just something about holding a book"... good lord.

>> No.2782129

>>2782109

you can watch a movie on your hd-tv with blu-ray, but it's never going to be as good as a theater with a projector

>> No.2782135

Try actually reading a full novel on an e-reader, OP. It really is quite pleasant.

>> No.2782171

Am I the only one who has a book fetish?
I just want to read all the books in world and put them on my shelf, owning a book is as important as reading it to me, this is why I hate lending/borrowing books, I only do it with my bf.
Most of the books I read lately were choosen because their covers were pretty.
It probably is a consequence of happy books-related childhood memories.

>> No.2782176

>>2782171

I have the same fetish. There's just something about walls full of books. All that information, all those dreams, all that intellectual decadence. FuckmeIdobelieveI'vejustturnedmyselfon.

>> No.2782217

>>2782171
>>2782176

I'm all too aware of these feels.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sjl11bWVJhw

>you will never have all your walls, tables, drawers and shelves over-flowing with old classics

>> No.2782239
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2782239

>>2782171

>Most of the books I read lately were choosen because their covers were pretty.

Just get the fuck off this board already. You're a joke.

>> No.2782250

>>2782239
So, tell me how do you judge a book you're going to buy without reading?
No amount of reviews will tell you if you'll like a book, Also, I still haven't bought a book that I didn't like.

>> No.2782266

>>2782250
I will only buy a book if it has the following on the front:

"Amazing"
-Guardian

"*****"
-Daily mail

"A real Tour de force"
-Independent

>> No.2782286

>>2782266
I'm talikng about enjoying books, not buying books that will increase my self-esteem.

>> No.2782289

>>2782239
I don't choose a book by it's cover, but I do prefer covers to others and I choose which edition based on the covers. It's not like they don't matter. They contribute to the overall aesthetic enjoyment of the book. You can knock it all you want, but if you don't at least consider it, you're not fully appreciating everything a physical book has to offer.

>> No.2782295

>>2782217
Aw, Benny, we get along so well. It's unfortunate there's no way to reach you without you revealing yourself to everyone. C'est la, and all that.

>> No.2782308

>>2782289
I've got to agree. It's why I usually choose Vintage over Penguin or Collins.
On the other hand, Collins has a handy "ye olden tymes" [sic?] lexicon at the back of their books, as well as a hell of a lot more background context and such than does Penguin.

If you're entirely buying a book for the knowledge, buy Collins Classics. If the extra knowledge isn't that important to you, get Vintage for the prettiness.

>> No.2782310
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2782310

>>2782266

>> No.2782312

>>2782295

Yeah, bummer.

Maybe someday I'll say something stupid and a raging autist will dox my shit, who knows. We'll see.

>> No.2782340

>>2782286

>I'm talikng about enjoying books, not buying books that will increase my self-esteem.

That is EXACTLY what you're doing. You're buying books based purely on aesthetics for your little collection.

Get a clue.

>> No.2782359

>>2782340

Not that fellow, but finding pleasure in something shouldn't necessarily equate to it bettering your opinion of yourself.

>> No.2782360

>>2782312
Surely if one were to watch every episode of both shows you mentioned in the other thread, and screencapped every extra for comparison, one could find you pretty easily.

hmmm, just two episodes of each a day and you could be found in a month.

>> No.2782373

>>2782340

You can't separate words from their context. That context includes the form in which you receive them. If you're receiving them from a physical book, that physical object matters. Not as much as do the words themselves, or the words' historical/linguistic/sociopolitical/geopolitical/whatever background, etc., but it does still matter.

>covers matter

Deal with it.

>> No.2782380
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2782380

>>2782360

It'd probably take less time than that.

I'll have to watch myself and not piss off any anons too badly.

>> No.2782384

>>2782360
Yeah, I was about to type just that. However, I'm not a stalker, so that would be totally inappropriate, and I totally would never do it.

(^ Not irony.)

>> No.2782396

I don't judge books by their cover, but I'm certainly more attracted to nice ones.

>> No.2782401

>>2782359

Yeah, because retail therapy has nothing to do with boosting self-esteem. Good call, champ.

Buying books for your collection just because the covers are "pretty" is retail therapy. That you'd buy books for such a superficial reason then imply that you are "enjoying books" while others aren't is comedy gold.

>>2782373

>historical/linguistic/sociopolitical/geopolitical/

Why did you even bother going on this tangent?

>> No.2782415

>>2782401
I already mentioned that my attachment to books dates back to my childhood, you haven't really said anything new

>> No.2782448

>>2782380
>>2782384

I have two and a half months before I go back to uni, but I have 4grams of speed and the internet; I reckon I can get the job done in a few days.

>> No.2782475

>>2782396
You shouldn't be so quick to dismiss covers, either. Nowadays, book covers directly pander a certain demographic. If you fit into the demographic, you can pick out a book you like, almost without reading the synopsis.

>> No.2782486

>>2782448

You should wait 'till I fuck up in a major and glorious way.

>> No.2782511

>>2782448
What's the show called? I wasn't in the earlier thread and I'd be happy to dox Benny, even though he's a lovable bastard.

>> No.2782519
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2782519

>>2782486
Don't you worry your pretty lil head. I won't reveal your ID on here, I have something else planned.

>> No.2782544

>>2782519

If you show up at my door, you get a copy of IJ, a cup of coffee, and a torrent of plebeian chat, all on the house. I may even take you book-shopping.

>> No.2782608

>>2782511
Dammit, Benny, I cross-referenced the two series on imdb, and you're not in Awkward's credits. Why did you have to make this difficult?

>> No.2782616

>>2782608

>implying extras aren't the minimum-wage whores of the industry

Why would they give us credits?

>> No.2782644

>>2782616
how much do you get paid for doing extras work? do they just pick your head-shot off a pile or something?

>> No.2782647

>>2782644

Eight bucks an hour. And yes, essentially that's how it works.

>> No.2782652

I really couldn't imagine reading Infinite Jest on a Kindle/Nook. A lot of people would probably disagree with me, but I think it's better to have the book form of it.

>> No.2782665

>>2782647

That's incredibly fucking cheap. Hell. Extras in my country get paid ~$25 per hour.

>> No.2782666

>>2782652
I haven't tried, but with footnotes I have a blue link that I tap and it takes me straight there. I can imagine that would be easier than the two bookmarks and constant wading to the back.

>> No.2782676

>>2782665

If I was in a union, it'd be a different story, and somewhere around the wage you mentioned. The union's somewhat expensive to join, though, and you potentially don't get as much work, so I never bothered.

>> No.2782675

>>2782616
Explain to me what the scenes in which you were involved on Awkward were about, so I know where to look.

>> No.2782682

>>2782676
Do you have a minimum wage in the US?

>> No.2782691

>>2782675

Why would I do such a thing?

>>2782682

Yes, we do.

>> No.2782715

>>2782171

I am much the same way, I simply don't enjoy a book as much if I don't have a physical copy. When I read a digital book, I go out and buy a copy if I enjoyed it, and delete the file if not. There's just nothing quite like the feeling of wondering what to read and going and looking through shelves of hundreds of books to decide. Just looking at a list of titles on a ereader isn't the same.

There is so much more to a physical book. The cover art, the size of the pages, the thickness and texture of the paper, the smell of the book… digital books just can't compare. If you reduce a book to merely the story it contains, you're losing something.

>> No.2782727
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2782727

Tristram Shandy has to be read in book form as e-readers either don't include or fuck up the black page and marbled page

>> No.2782743

>>2782727

What's so important about those pages that you must see them in the form in which they appear in a physical book?

>> No.2782753

Any book that's not A5.
Pop-up books.
Braille books.
Books with large illustrations.
Choose-your-own-adventure books.


Fuck it. I had an e-reader when they first came out and I prefer reading real books. Fuck you all.

>> No.2782756

>>2782753
>Books with large illustrations.

But I just got the hardcover illustrated version of Life of Pi, and the bookstore owner was so happy it was going to a good home ... :/

>> No.2782764

>>2782756
I wouldn't want to read my illustrated Paradise Lost on an ebook reader, or the Codex Seraphinianus, or the Voynich Manuscript, or Expedition (WD Barlowe) or Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You or whatever. They're all stunning things to own and look at, and having them just on this tiny screen would be fake and gay.

>> No.2782766

Reading on an ereader is actually really nice, eventually you get to the stage were you forget you are holding something and get lost in the ebook you're reading just like a real book. I was skeptical when I tried one but id say that it is an even better reading tool than a real book.

There are some advantages to real books. Ereaders don't cope with special formatting, color pictures, textures, (when resizing the type) pages and many other things. But then also you don't have the size and wieght problems of books, ebooks can't be damaged or lost (unless you loose your computer).

>> No.2782821

>>2782766
>Reading on an ereader is actually really nice
>is actually really nice
>really nice

Exactly. An e-reader is "really nice". But it's not a physical book. You can't hold it in your hands and turn the pages, prop it up, smell the paper, crinkle the spine ...

>> No.2782823

>>2782821
And you can't concentrate. Piss off.

>> No.2782825

>>2782608
You could go through the series, watch all the extras and pick "hypotheticals". Then just match those hypotheticals with everyone who has liked Infinite Jest on facebook.

>> No.2782831

>>2782821
Dude. Duuuuuuude.

None of that shit fucking matters. Its the content that matters. I do not need to sniff fucking trees to appreciate writing. You fucking people.

>> No.2782851

>>2782821
>You can't hold it in your hands and turn the pages, prop it up, smell the paper, crinkle the spine

Thats just wierd mate, I don't ever get turned on by the smell of a book, they either smell new and plasticy or old and dusty.
Also with an ereader you don't have to prop open a book or hold it up when it is heavy or have them take up loads of space. Except for a few cases, ereaders are definitely the way to go, especially if you read fiction and/or classics.

>> No.2782855
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2782855

A physical book is a symbol that has planted itself firmly in the minds of many people. It isn't just about posturing with your books. It's about feeling them; seeing that you are making tangible, physical progress, knowing that the book will forever bear the scars of use, etchings that inspire nostalgia every time you crack it open and smell the pages as they gently fan fragrant air across your face. The collection, too, is important. It is exquisitely gratifying to walk into a room that smells of old books and see them all collected and ordered on shelves like old friends reminding you of the time that you lived with them. It's much like how many older people feel about their records, for though they understand the value of digital music, they cannot help but feel nostalgic upon examining their old collection. With digital books you absorb content. With physical books you live the experience.

>> No.2782860

>>2782855
Nah, you're absorbing content with both.

>> No.2782871

>>2782860

Well of course, but the physical form is undoubtedly the more substantial experience.

>> No.2782875

>>2782871

wait, the physical form of the book is more substantial than it's content?

>> No.2782879

>>2782875

No. You know what I meant.

>> No.2782887
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2782887

>>2782871
How'd you figure that? The text has not changed. The experience, has, at its fundamentals, not changed. And yet it's different? The physical book is no more a symbol for me than words on a screen are, same goes for most people in my generation. Ultimately, that's just a prissy way of saying nostalgia though, and nostalgia is not proof of anything. In fact, if one feels nostalgia, one must automatically become suspicious of the experience. This experience of looking at the books? Pic related is your answer. The final sentence of your previous post is almost meaningless by the way.
>Live the experience
Seriously, piss off you troglodyte.

>> No.2782897

>>2782851
>I don't ever get turned on by the smell of a book

Oh, good, my writing was evocative enough to get that point across.

Using an e-reader makes the experience feel incredibly plastic, much more so than a new book does.

>> No.2782899

>>2782887
>The experience, has, at its fundamentals, not changed.

Of course it has. Your interaction with the book has changed. The subtle nuances in the absorbtion of the text has changed, meaning you perception and interpretation of the text has changed.

>> No.2782904

>>2782887
>I'm dense.

Here you go:

>>2782373
>You can't separate words from their context. That context includes the form in which you receive them. If you're receiving them from a physical book, that physical object matters.

When you read a digital book, you're altering the way you experience that book and its contents.

>> No.2782908

>>2782887

I have used a Kindle reader before, and I liked it. I just happen to enjoy reading physical books more. I challenge you therefore to buy physical copies of your next three books, and give priority to reading through all of them before you return to your digitals. Then tell me that you are not more fond of the physical books.

>> No.2782915

>>2782904
>>2782899
>ye're dense
He said it was worse. I said it was not. I did not say it was the same, I said that it had not changed at its fundamentals; i.e. the text has not changed. That does not mean nothing has changed, clearly.

>> No.2782932

>>2782899
This post reminds me of these horrible rebound books - "Everbind," I think - which we used for required reading in High School. Christ, how I resented those. They would never stay open; you'd often have to contort the book to read text running into the binding; etc. I ended up resenting brilliant classics solely because of what a labor it was to read them.

Obviously, this has nothing to do with eReading, but I agree with your post entirely and felt I may as well cite an example.

>> No.2782941

>>2782897
Nah I dunno. I only buy books which would be very compromised or impossible to get on a ereader. "The 48 laws of power" is a book were the formatting and size of the pages makes it very difficult to get on a small ereader and I have no desire to get a large one.
I honestly don't see the difference. I understand having an object thier as a reminder of a certain experiance ect, but books are just unwieldy. I used to have draws and draws and shelves of books, I sold 80% of them when I got my ereader don't regret it at all. Maybe I'[m just not sentimental enough.