I’ve begun to drift away from dear friends that have been close to me ever since I was a kid. They were always there for me, quiet and knowledgeable, and usually available. They allowed me to meet people, see places, and experience things I’d never dreamed of. I’m talking about hardcover books of course. The personal and plain feeling of a physical book conveying a story is something I rarely enjoy anymore. The onset of TV, movies, and video games has taken their place, and I don’t have enough time or motivation to read anymore. Still, I can’t help but want to pick up a good book, and be reunited with the familiar pages of the past. Books have been a crucial part of who I am and what I will be, and I’m torn about the future of the hardcover book.

A book is a personal journey. Picking up a book and flipping through each page, following it’s story, is something gratifying in one of the deepest ways possible. You follow the protagonist through their struggle, page by page, piece by piece. Sometimes you can get lost in a story, and before you know it, a day has gone by. It’s a way of communication and recreation that has begun to dissipate over time due to its impracticality, and that makes me sad.

Technology, while much appreciated in every other aspect of my life, is partially responsible. Despite there being movies based on books, comics and other various forms of literature, it doesn’t actually help other people or myself pick up those stories and experience them on page. In fact, it discourages them to read the book, as they could probably just watch the movie or read the synopsis online.

It’s also generally easier and less taxing to just go and look at cat pictures for six hours and mindlessly browse the web than to read. The Kindle is something that was made to save books, a way for our ancient entertainers to keep up. A catalogue of countless books that can be accessed on one device? It sounds perfect. But in practice, a Kindle is not the same as a hardcover book. There’s no weight in your hands, no new book smell, and you can’t feel the pages. A Kindle, or anything else like it, should be superior to a book in every way. But similar to a vinyl record, there is a certain appeal to having a book in your hands, and being able to feel the pages, and by extension, the words on the pages. It’s perfect for the reader of the future, but I still find myself having trouble with making the jump from page to screen.

Books aren’t as popular as they once were, being overshadowed by more popular forms of media. My family prefers to binge watch Netflix as opposed to reading, and I’ll often end up the only one in the house not watching TV. Even then, I’m sucked into the world-wide web and can’t seem to get myself away from my computer screen.  Books haven’t gone though, they’ve just shifted into the background. Little bookstores and the common library are enough to reassure me that there’s an audience out there still devoted to books. Plenty of people I know also cherish a hardcover book just as much as I do. Go out and get a hardcover copy of a book. When you find a good one, it’s infinitely better than being trapped behind a screen.