Hello there dear reader-friend. Welcome to my first blog post of 2020, I hope the first 25 days of the year have treated you well and you have been treating yourself with kindness. I think kindness is very important this time of the year. Everyone walks into the New Year with a list of things they’d like to accomplish and that is when the world tends to be a bit delicate for us to navigate because we are all walking around with an immense amount of pressure on our shoulders trying to become a better version of who we are. Since I am as basic as can be I also came into 2020 with a pocket full of resolutions and wide eyes filled with hope. One of these resolutions is to definitely put in less screen time and more reading time. 

 

 

Less screen is taking some time to dial down but the more reading time is definitely increasing at an exponential rate and that is because of my new best buddy the Kindle. 

I received a kindle as a Christmas present and the excitement around the kindle is still heavy in me so that is going a long way in helping me keep on track with my resolution. I find myself reading constantly and I am having time of my life reading. One month down the line here is my very biased review on the kindle. I really think that if you’d like to get into reading and you can afford to spend some money upfront to simplify the act of reading you definitely should invest in this wonderful tiny reading device, here’s why –  

 

I get to read anywhere and everywhere: 

I read while waiting in lines, I read while traveling (I have been lucky enough to be carpooling to work so I have had plenty of reading time) and I squeeze in reading during lunch and right before bed which used to be hard for me. I used to struggle reading in bed because I could never figure out the correct angle for me to hold a book, the light was also a problem because I would struggle to fall asleep after and I feel like all of that is resolved now. While I do miss the beauty that came with touching and feeling a book I do enjoy the convenience of not being afraid to bend the book out of shape to fit my reading needs. Now that that is all resolved and I getting into reading with a bit less preciousness attached to reading – I am reading because I enjoy it and not because books are beautiful keepsakes to protect and display, it’s taken the strain out of reading. 

The size of the kindle is also very portable and convenient so it fits in my work back pack, in my lunch bag (where I actually keep it) and in my smallest (favourite) “handbag”. It isn’t bulky so I feel less conscious about dragging it out or carrying it in my hand since it is about the size of two cell phones.

 

 

I always have more than one book: 

When I think of reading one of the things I think back to was Rory’s character on Gilmore Girls and how Rory carried a book with her everywhere she went. Whilst I am a bit older now and I realise that maybe that was a tad false and unrealistic I have always wanted to be able to do the same. I have tried it in the past where I made sure that I had a book in my work bag at all times however this was unsustainable for me because I am what I call a moody reader which means thatI read according to how I feel. Sometimes I feel like my life needs some structure and that’s when I turn to serious, non-fiction books and sometimes I feel like being thrilled and/or distracted so I need fiction to transport me to a new world. The kindle works perfectly for this because it’s a few books in my pocket and I can read whatever feeds my mood when I am in that mood.

 

 

 

Better Book for your Buck:

I am not sure if there have been any actual savings on my kindle due to paying less for books. Since the books are all in USD and I am South African I wonder whether it will actually translate in Rands to any actual savings. For example, my current read is Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone is currently R271 (hardcover) on loot.co.za and I purchased it for R173 meaning I am paying at least R100 less and this is before taking shipping into account. So in some respects it does look like I will be able to break even on the initial cost at some point?

 

Does it compare to reading on other devices:

I have wondered whether this gift is an unnecessary indulgence. Whether I actually need it and whether I could not just outsource all my other devices to doing what my kindle does.

As someone who has challenged myself to consume less. This is driven by the realisation that 1) things don’t really bring everlasting joy and that they shouldn’t and 2) the more I consume the more resources needed to produce and the planet does not need that. So I have wondered why couldn’t use my phone or my tablet to fill the gap and make reading more convenient for myself. I realise that this is a “nice to have” but then again at this point in my life most things are and that’s something I need to be honest about. I acknowledge that most things will not move the needle for me in terms of the basic needs of Marslow’s Hierarchy of needs but maybe they will move me towards the higher end of the pyramid to those “luxury” needs that so few of us get to experience, and at this point in my life that makes this tiny device completely worth it. 

 

 

So in conclusion you should buy the kindle if you’d like to read more because it’s useful and convenient. If you are okay with never touching real book, not having a full home library that you can occasionally stare at or if you maybe want to have an alternative to the books you already have, especially those you want to make notes on.

 

 

Thank you for reading, until next time – may 2020 treat you with kindness. 🙂