The E-book: From Academia to Leisure

By: Kelli Wilhelm, 336. 001

Ten years ago, if someone had said that one day everyone would be able to carry a library around in their pocket, most people would have laughed. However, over the past two decades the world has made extensive gains in technology. From iPads to Facebook, technology has changed the way people live their lives. While many changes have been wholly beneficial, such as using a word processing program rather than a typewriter, other new technologies spark controversy. Whereas word processing programs were widely adopted by those in and outside of the education system, there is less agreement upon the electronic books, or e-books, among students, readers and educators.
When Amazon released the First Generation Kindle in 2007, it was sold out in five and a half hours and launched a new technological craze. Not to be outdone, Barnes & Noble released the Nook two years later. In 2011, Amazon came out with the Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble with the Nook Simple Touch. These two remain the most competitive e-reader brands as they continue to release new models.

It is natural when talking about technology to turn to those who grew up in the world of technology. The New Library World journal article, "E-Book Readers and College Students," refers to this generation’s college students as “digital natives.” At Frostburg State University, it is not unusual to see an e-reader in the classroom, but they are not common either. FSU student Samantha Wagner owns an e-reader but claims not to use it much. She finds that the comparable prices are not as different as she expected. After previously trying one in lieu of a physical textbook she says that, “I’d rather just use a book. It’s easier to take notes and flip through.”

This seems to be a common conclusion. Professors who allow e-readers in the classroom have noticed the same hindrances to their students. English professor Dr. Amy Branam says she does not “like them as a professor, because finding pages during class can be difficult.” In fact, she goes on to say that despite having e-books as options for textbooks in class, students often decide not to use them, because this aspect of the e-reader can make it too hard to follow along.
Another criticism of e-books is, as Dr. Branam puts it, “you lose the whole physicality aspect.” She looks upon this loss as more than merely a reader’s nostalgia, but as a disadvantage to certain types of learners. Describing herself as both a visual and kinesthetic learner, she views the inability to take notes within a text and have the substantial object of a text as a deterrent to learning.

Mass Communication professor Dr. Melissa Boehm agrees that the loss of physicality is a drawback, and motions to the overflowing bookshelf standing at the back of her small office to highlight her opinion. She especially emphasizes the loss of note-taking among college students. She states “I firmly believe in writing things down.” In order to emphasize this learning skill, she explains that she no longer uses PowerPoint but writes her notes on the board with the students. Such instances beg the question whether the influx of technology in the classroom, whether laptop or e-book, is altogether beneficial?


Whatever the answer, Dr. Boehm concedes “I recognize the value of having things available electronically.” In fact, the Introduction to Mass Communication courses, like many introductory courses at FSU, are taught using an online component in conjunction with the textbook as offered by the publisher. Since e-books are an option for students, a question of whether this technology would change how classes are taught arises. Dr. Boehm claims that classes in a computer lab are automatically taught differently due to the different setting. Dr. Branam, however, says that if e-readers were to become common in the college classroom she would likely assign more reading to students, because with e-books the length of reading or size of a novel is “not immediately obvious.” Additionally, publishers offer e-book versions of texts. Dr. Boehm estimated the price differences between the two formats for her Introduction to Mass Communication course to be around $20. This is less than some might anticipate, but still at a lesser cost than the traditional text.


Another price advantage is that classic novels are available at no charge in electronic format. The e-reader allows a wide range of reading material to be available at the reader’s fingertips. The most alluring aspect of the e-reader prompts Dr. Branam’s assertion, “In the end, if people read it, go for it…it is almost set up for higher literature.”


While e-readers are only beginning to progress into the world of academia, they first gained popularity with pleasure readers. The Ruth Enlow Library of Grantsville is a picturesque building that sits facing a narrow body of water decorated with fountains. Since the building speaks of all things new and attractive, it is not surprising to walk inside and find children playing a Wii. This surge of popularity in electronics, particularly the e-reader, is most visible to library staff. Since the e-readers have come out, every year, the holidays bring a change in library patronage. A Ruth Enlow librarian, Lisa Rounds, comments “some completely stop coming around the holidays…We’ve lost patrons, regulars.” Rounds, from her familiar place behind the circulation desk, has also noticed that it is mostly older adults who are gravitating toward these devices. She notes that they seem to enjoy the light weight. The e-readers are generally received as Christmas gifts and then begin to be used regularly.


To compensate for this technological change in reading, both the Allegany County and Ruth Enlow library systems have incorporated downloadable e-books into their online catalogs through the Maryland eLibrary Consortium. These downloads work the same way as lending a physical book from the library. The e-book will remain on one’s e-reader for 2-3 weeks, depending on the book, and will be automatically removed on the due date. The downloadable e-books are now compatible with Nooks, Kindles, and iPads.


Rounds views the perceived decrease in patronage at the library as detrimental to the library itself. She also claims not to care for the e-books in general, because “I like the book in my hands. I found it cold and impersonal…I can remember a book by its cover, and a brand new book has a smell that’s wonderful.” She concludes simply “An actual book is the best way to go.”


While Rounds’ co-worker Rachel Elliott, a newer member to the staff, agrees with this personal stance on the e-book, she does not believe that the devices have been detrimental to the library. “If anything,” she says, “it has improved our circulation, because people can check out e-books too.” The library system, if not necessarily the librarians, appears to be embracing the new technology that is besieging the culture at large. Multiple digital downloads are available on the library’s website, and Elliott describes situations in which some desired books are only available electronically. The library staff even received training for the e-readers, and the Allegany County Library System offers e-reader workshops for its patrons.


Rounds commented that despite her resistance to the e-readers, she would prefer the Nook to the Kindle, due to its “versatility and ease of use.” However, retired elementary school teacher and self-proclaimed bibliophile Lucy Sorenson owns a Kindle Keyboard device. This device can be seen sitting among the other books of fiction and poetry that are scattered throughout her home. Sorenson has owned this e-reader for almost a year, since Christmas of 2010, and loves it: “Generally, I’ve read it every day.” She says that she prefers this brand because of the wide selection of books that Amazon offers. Additionally, she enjoys having the Amazon account for gifts.


But how does a book-lover accept this technology in lieu of the physical book that professors and library staff have trouble giving up? Sorenson answers the question rather simply: “My book is my best friend—this extends that.” Now she carries 20 of her best friends with her on the Kindle, but she can carry thousands. Also, her biggest reason for wanting an e-reader was so that she could take her time reading. Often when readers borrow or order books at the library, they end up with multiple books at once. Some books are only allowed to ne checked out for 14 days and cannot be renewed. In a situation with three 14-day books checked out at once, they have to either be rushed through or returned unread.


Tired of this routine, Sorenson decided that an e-reader “would be a good way to control my reading.” This does not mean that she has ceased to go to the library. Sorenson says she still goes to her local library, the Ruth Enlow Library of Grantsville, often. In fact she states that she would prefer to borrow a physical book rather than an e-book.


Additionally, she claims that her children encouraged the device, because there were so many books in her home. Sorenson does admit the space-saving advantage of the e-reader. The Kindle was a gift from her son, who set up the Amazon account and taught her to use the device. Owning no iPad, iPod, or additional popular electronic device, she claims that the e-reader “Makes me feel like I’m in the 21st century.”


The reality of the e-book is expanding people’s exposure to reading material of all kinds. Yet, there is still a very real nostalgia for tangible books and physical libraries. The day is coming, if it has not already arrived, in which a future bibliophile will read his/her first book on an e-reader. Whether this is a loss or a gain to the world is something each person must decide for himself. However, books, whether paper or electronic, will never lose their wonder for those who love them. As far as learning, it does not appear that e-readers will permeate the classroom tomorrow; too much ambivalence still exists among students and educators.