Despite the digitisation of books and the digitisation of writing many still believe the printed book is here to stay. James Gleick, American author, journalist and biographer recently eased anxiety among readers, writers and publishers at the Sydney Writers’ Festival with a presentation on the future of the book. “For some kinds of books the writing is on the wall, but the concept of the book itself will survive, adapting to new technologies in the delivery of words”.
Writing
last year in Slate, Michael Agresta also questioned what will become of the paper book? “I crave the smell of a
well-worn book, the weight of it in my hands,” he wrote, “all of my favourite
books I discovered through loans from a friend, that minor but
still-significant ritual of trust; I need to see it on my shelf after I've read
it (and I don’t mind if others see it too); and what is a classic if not a book
where I’m forced to rediscover my own embarrassing college-age marginalia?” He
then goes on to argue that the paper book will likewise survive, “but its place
in culture will change significantly. As it loses its traditional value as an
efficient vessel for text, the paper books other qualities – from its role in
literary history to its inimitable design possibilities to its potential for
physical beauty – will take on more importance.”
I'm glad you've included that quote from Agresta. It's not just the physical pleasures associated with reading paper books but also the social aspects with having them -- sharing books with friends, even the frustration of not getting them back (okay, maybe not THAT) or forgetting to whom you lent one -- which help explain why people love paper books. I'm assuming that you will still be editing your blogs this week -- you might just want to review the quote as it appears to have some minor errors. Otherwise, it's pretty good.
ReplyDeleteI love the Michael Agresta quote about the role of paper books in culture changing. I can kind of see paper books becoming the book version of the vinyl record. Vinyl records are cool and aesthetically pleasing, and some people will tell you that everything sounds better on vinyl. I can imagine that with time paper books with become "cool" and novel (pun intended) based on the tactile experience of reading a book and the aesthetic that comes with print.
ReplyDeleteAs Ana said, the quote about the social aspects of books is a great one too. I think books might become less popular - well, they are - but I don't think they'll ever die.
A couple of errors: you've said "He then goes on to argue that the paper book with likewise survive". I assume that "with" should say "will". Also, you need to change some punctuation around the beginning of the Michael Agresta quote. You've got "'...the weight of it in my hands' he wrote. 'all of my favourite books...'". To make this read better, you should add a comma after hands. You should also either change the 'a' in 'all' to a capital letter, or put a comma after 'wrote'.