Technically speaking

I try to stay up on the latest technologies and newest gadgets. Partly because I want to impress my husband (who is an IT genius), but also because I'm really intrigued by the advancements in modern technology. Ok, I'm not really "intrigued," but I do like to keep up with new STUFF so I sound smarter than I really am.

The Kindle, for example. Great idea. Load in a bunch of books and you can access them anytime, anywhere. What a concept! A slim, lightweight, handheld that takes the place of books like the 720-page The Historian, which cost me $$ in overweight baggage charges.

But, can such an unattractive (cold) device take the place of a novel? Would it feel the same to click and navigate to the next chapter while snuggled in my bed at night? What about the way a book feels in your hands? Will I feel the story come to life without being able to caress the pages one by one?

New books or old, I am a lover of books. I just had an entire wall of my house dedicated to them. Books surround me when I'm at my desk, writing. Writing a book. A book that I hope will end up in the hands of someone who carries it with her from place to place, and then tucks it under her pillow at night after reading just one more chapter.

As much as I'm excited about the portability and features of this cool new device, I'm not completely sold on the experience. Salsa-stained pages and dog-eared corners are more my style I think. Besides, the poor little Kindle would never survive my reading routines. Many a books have met their demise in my whirlpool tub --