The Indian cookbooks in my bookcase are as vibrant, fragrant and dog-eared as India itself. So why would I want to trade even one of them for an electronic version?
A few weeks ago every other passenger on the flight from Dallas to La Guardia had a iPad--or a Nook or a Kindle.
There they were, sitting upright in cramped seats, index fingers gliding over glowing screens, mesmerized by The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest or some other Stieg Larsson—in black type on a gray screen.
And there I was, wrapped in my gray pashmina, slouched next to a chilly window, leafing my way, page by page, through Robyn Davis’ loony antics in Tracks, a Woman’s Solo Trek Across 1,700 Miles of Australian Outback. By camel, I might add.
Every now and then I’d turn down the corner of a page, take a crumbling bite of Aurora’s sugary bunuelos, and gaze at the caravan traipsing across the vibrant orange and red cover of the book. Then I’d get lost in the clouds outside, daydreaming of my own camel adventure on a Moroccan beach.
This, in a nutshell, is the story. Hard-to-find book, alluring cover, the delights of turning the pages, of dipping in and out of the tale, of letting the mind wander…it’s about pleasure, I think, versus….efficiency?
Real books—remember paper and ink?—keep tumbling into our house, and occasionally I feel as if we’re singlehandedly breathing life into a dying breed. E-readers now account for 9 to 10 percent of all book sales and revenue from digital books is predicted to double by the end of 2011. Well, count me out.
Call me a technophobe, or maybe a luddite, but I will never, (probably) ever, get an iPad. Here's why:
1. The sensation of running my fingers over the pages of a book. Smooth and glossy or roughly textured, paper feels good to the touch. Just feel the textured, but elegant stock in Jim Thompson: The Thai Silk Sketchbook--a perfect medium for the pale watercolors of the silk maven's Bangkok house. The slipcover, incidentally, is made of nubby gold and terracotta Thai silk—touching it is an experience you won’t be having anytime soon on your Nook.
2. It’s been said before, but I can’t imagine cosying up to an e-reader in bed late at night. I like the physical weight of a book on my knees, turning the pages as my eyelids droop. And I like nestling under the covers with a stack of unread cookbooks by my side. Some nights B and I have a book island between us—you can hear them thud onto the floor when we wriggle in our sleep.
3. Physical books are keepers of the flame. Especially cookbooks with splotched and splattered well-loved recipes.
You cannot get, on Kindle, the 1896 edition of Fannie Farmer's The Boston Cooking School Cookbook, though there is a junior version for “young readers.” But even if I could download the real thing, would I want it?
I think not. For one thing, it wouldn’t have my grandmother Patricia’s Old Southern Recipe for Soft Gingerbread written in her spidery, but elegant hand inside the back cover. The thin pages are brown and crumbling, but I can’t open this book without smiling about the orange meringue pies that lured my father into marriage with my mother.
4. Some fabulous books will never, ever be available digitally. A leather bound “catalogue” of Ashes and Snow is a case in point. The ability to linger over Gregory Kolbert's luminous sepia-toned pictures of young Buddhist monks with ancient elephants, printed on creamy, deckle-edged stock, cannot be replicated on an e-reader. Every time I open the book it takes me back to the Nomadic Museum at New York’s Pier 54, when half the crowd was in tears, myself included, at the sheer heart-breaking beauty of what they were seeing on the walls.
5. Loving a book for its cover: This must explain my passion for Creole, a gorgeous, but never once used Caribbean cookbook by Paris chef Babette Rozieres. Yes, I love poring over recipes like Conch Ravioli with Crab and Lemongrass Sauce, but the dancing red chiles and shrimp on the colorful plaid "oilcloth" cover make me really, really happy.
Will someone please turn this into wallpaper?
Luckily for you, my book addiction has an upside. SpiceLines’ Third Annual Cookbook Giveaway is coming soon. Keep reading…
Comments (8)
Never say never! I was just like you, until my last trip to Italy when I ran out of books to read on trains and planes, and sat watching my friends with their Kindle's full of more books. I have both a Nook (I won it) and an iPad (coolest technology ever) now and am a convert. I still buy paper books for any books I want to keep - food writing, travel books, cookbooks, etc. - but for novels I just want to read and be done with, you can't beat these e-readers...not to mention all of the other cool food and travel apps that I now have on my iPad!
Posted by Cooking with Michele | January 8, 2011 7:15 AM
Posted on January 8, 2011 07:15
Oh, Michele, you're so far ahead of me--but you'll notice that I gave myself an out ("probably"). As I was writing, I was actually thinking that travel would be less burdensome if I had an e-reader. I certainly lugged a suitcase of books through London and Istanbul last fall--and then, of course, I bought many more and paid exorbitantly to have them shipped home. I think it does come down to the choice of pleasure vs. efficiency--and I'm all for efficiency on the road. Here at home, though, our library is bursting with favorite novels in editions with eyecatching covers, tons of art books and of course, cookbooks! And gardening....for me, there's nothing quite so delightful as spending Saturday morning in bed with a stack of books and these days, a cup of genmaicha (green tea with toasted brown rice) watching snowflakes flutter through the sunshine. The technology debate continues... Thank you for your thoughts!
Posted by courtenay | January 8, 2011 9:13 AM
Posted on January 8, 2011 09:13
This is a wonderful essay on the subject. I too have resisted purchasing any devices to read digital books on. If I was still traveling all the time, I'm sure I would have one for fiction to read on long trips and to wind down after a hectic day in a hotel room. But for non-fiction books, I can't ever see the time where I would want them in any other format than a printed book. I love everything about books. Your descriptions of some of your favorites, makes the case beautifully on why a digital copy just isn't close to being as satisfying.
Posted by Nancy | January 8, 2011 6:10 PM
Posted on January 8, 2011 18:10
Thank you, Nancy. There's certainly a reasonable case for using a digital reader while traveling, but the rest of the time, I'm in your court. The satisfactions of reading real books are simply too many to give them up!
Posted by courtenay | January 9, 2011 9:12 AM
Posted on January 9, 2011 09:12
I agree with everything you have said about books, papers, ink and jackets...but the thought of being to go on vacation with one hundred books is rather enticing to me. I must confess while I do not own one-I said no to e-readers until the I Pad came out.
Posted by Esme | January 10, 2011 9:14 PM
Posted on January 10, 2011 21:14
Yes, the notion of traveling with an e-reader is becoming more enticing, even to me. Going with a suitcase--or trunk--full of books would be a throwback to genuine slow travel, 19th century Grand Tour style. Though I must say, that idea is appealing too!
Posted by courtenay | January 11, 2011 7:56 AM
Posted on January 11, 2011 07:56
I once carried an entire Rollaboard suitcase full of books home from a trip. It sure was hard getting it in the overhead compartment alone. I had found a fantastic used bookstore that had many out of print books on a subject a friend was researching, so I loaded up on them. This was before the days of getting carry on luggage weighed at check-in; now it wouldn't be possible. I was so happy to have found those books I didn't mind struggling with all the weight. I'd be happy to take a trunk full with me, but would really need some help with that!
Posted by Nancy | January 14, 2011 7:04 AM
Posted on January 14, 2011 07:04
Yes, it's tough. I try not to carry on anything really heavy. And remember railroad porters? My favorite "Thin Man" movies have Nick and Nora traveling cross country by train, and always with trunks and trunks of clothes.
But I must say that people with more muscles than I have are usually pretty helpful. The last time I took the train, a soccer player engrossed in his iPod was quite pleasant about lifting my (book-laden)suitcase out of the overhead rack. He did wince, ever so slightly, however.
Posted by courtenay | January 17, 2011 8:43 AM
Posted on January 17, 2011 08:43