It was after realising that one of my shoulders was so damaged (calcium deposits) that I decided enough was enough and I would go over to the dark side-technology- the e reader. After a little research I purchased a Kindle which is an exclusive to Amazon product, nearly 2 years ago. It was a brilliant decision. Downloads for the Kindle in our area are cheap and anything out of copyright is free.

So now I have major poets, and Shakespeare on the Kindle as well as numerous classical novels. I even have a couple of speech anthologies. With a bit of hunting in the free download section of Amazon, I have found a treasure trove. I love books and have been loath to cull the increasing number of books on my shelves. However after loading up my Kindle, I gave away a good third of my dusty classical collection.

I was given a flip book to review recently. This is a paperback format that you can supposedly read one handed- the pages flip over the top. It is a strange animal that's for sure-evidently popular in Holland among train commuters. I didn't like it as much as my kindle,it being neither fish nor fowl. I guess its heart is in the right place.
 
There are alternatives to the Kindle of course such as the Sony e reader, and some people manage to download books onto ipads and iphones. The beauty of the Kindle for me is that it has the feel of a book especially if you put it in a cover. Not to mention the fact that you can increase the font size to one that is comfortable to the eye. It also has a text to speech function which is a bit mechanical at the moment but almost bearable. It also has internet access which comes free.

The disadvantages to e readers as far as I can see are that you can't have the author sign the book and you can't show a range of Bookerhardbacks for example on your shelves.

For me though, having a portable library has been useful for work although I must say the students I teach find it most curious!
Go on and try it, it is a useful addition to (not replacement for) your regular hard copies.