E.S. Raye

I’ll start by saying, I do not care how someone else receives their stories. I think there are nuanced differences, sure, but I also think that as long as you are consuming stories–and more importantly, understanding them–then how they make their way into your brain is irrelevant. The story is the important part

For me, however, there is only one preferred answer:

Physical hardcovers are my go-to way to read.

I feel like I may be in the minority with that opinion, and it’s certainly not one I would thrust upon anyone else, but I’m in a somewhat unique reading situation.

I work from home, and thus have no commute for which an audiobook or more portable for of reading, be it ebook or paperback, are necessary. Plus, I find listening to anything other than instrumental music distracting while I work.

That leaves me with the privilege of having every option available at my reading disposal. And while I have and do occasionally read ebooks on my tablet, I do not enjoy the experience nearly as much as I do when reading a physical book (I have friends that insist a dedicated e-reader brings the experience closer, but I’ve never owned one to compare).

So, with my preference narrowed down to physical books, it all comes back to the old argument of paperback or hardcover. I have many of both in my library, and there are pros and cons to each.

Paperbacks are, of course, easier to handle, especially when travelling. I, however, travel very rarely, and do 99.99% of my reading at home, and usually in my own bed. Add to that the simple fact that, because I like to revisit my old favorites, I am not a book spine cracker. I actually do my absolute best to keep paperback spines damage-free for as long as possible (unlike my wife Jessie, who also dog-ears pages!), including holding an open paperback in such a way as to not put any stress on the binding.

With all of those factors compiled, the choice becomes obvious!

I love the durability of a hardcover–I can open it wide and not worry about the spine. I love the heft of a hardcover–and I have several enormous Stephen King hardcovers, so when I say heft, I mean heft. I even love taking the dust jacket off and setting it aside–it’s like unwrapping a gift every time I sit down to read.

And I love hardcover cover art. I don’t know if it’s because they tend to be more expensive, the glossy finish most dust jackets have, or if it’s the larger canvas cover artists have to work with, but I love a good hardcover cover.

But…

This is how I read, and I know I’m privileged to get to choose how and when I make time to do it. My only problem is finding the time to make it a bigger priority.

How do you prefer to read?