I have spent considerable time the last few months ordering books from Amazon (not schocking, if you know me, but maybe we could keep that a secret from Andre) trying to find the perfect books for my trip.
Many of my friends have suggested (sometimes forcefully) that I need a Kindle, especially for a trip like this. Books are heavy and awkward compared to the thin little guy with endless books in the palm of your hand, I get it. I'm not sure why I'm so resistant. Perhaps it's because I enjoy the game I play with people around me, hiding the cover of my book so the nosy neighbors can't judge me for reading Clive Cussler. If you like Clive Cussler, don't be offended. So do I, at least some of his stuff. But I'm a high school English teacher. If I'm reading Safeway's weekly paperback special instead of the Booker List Award Winner then obviously I am not fit to teach reading skills to teens -- or walk upright in the local library.
The perfect travel book for me is fiction, with a plot that will suck me in quickly and character development that can be totally unrealistic as long as there is not a lot of romance. I burned out on fake love after reading my mom's Harlequin Romances in the seventh grade (talk about having to hide the cover of your book -- Ms. Becker never knew the sexual education I was receiving during free reading time). I have to admit, I am a little more snobby about books than the latter paragraph would lead you to believe. I rarely read genre or formula books -- but, I'm tellin' ya', Clive Cussler is perfect for the airplane. He incorporates a little history in a current outlandish plot to destroy the world. The pages keep me engaged while the grammar doesn't make me want to barf. Most importantly, I am not sooo involved that when Auggie starts flicking spit wads over our seat I won't notice. Oh, I'll notice. Depending on the guy in front of me, I might even do something about it. But if I was reading a wonderful, beautiful, book (The Corrections) . . . well, I would be pissed every time I had to look up. I'm guessing that at some point on the 20 hour trip, Auggie will want to talk or play. It's inevitable. Stupid kids who love their parents and want their attention. So, in order to pretend I am a good mother, I have bought books that are mildly enjoyable but can easily be put aside.
I am taking one risk with a book. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. My book group (also known as my drinking group) chose this book for the last meeting. Once I got the book, I realized it looked so good, it was worth holding onto it for the plane ride instead of reading it right away. That also meant I had to skip the last book meeting if I didn't want to spoil the end. (Man, drunk book group members can really be clever while harrassing you on Face Book. Seriously, guys, I'm sorry!)
As of today, I'm down to two books in my carry-on bag and two in my check-in. I really need one of those luggage weighing-thinga-majigies. If my luggage is overweight, I'm going to have to make some serious decisions. What can go? Shampoo? Snorkle? Not the books.
By the way, I guarantee Andre has not pondered reading material. I don't know how he would have time; he's repacked his surf boards and kite gear mentally at least three thousand times. Auggie? He's plotting how he will secretly stow away 230 Hot Wheels. We all have our obsessions.
As a fellow English teacher, I understand the urge to not do the kindle. However, I will share with you a story of a woman who wanted desperately to read Mocking Jay, but couldn't because she was trapped in her house with a sick kid. That woman put out a plea to her friends on facebook, and a woman named Ginger came to her aide, and loaned her a e-copy from her kindle...(switching voice) I didn't know what to do...Electronic books..What about the paper, the smell, the cover. But I was hungry for the next book in the Hunger Games trilogy, so I down loaded an app for my I-phone, and installed the borrowed book...I LOVED IT! I actually was given the book when I was part of the way through the e-version, and I still kept reading it on the phone instead. I loved that I could read in bed without a lamp, and I loved that I could carry it in my pocket. I loved that Ginger could share the book with me, even when she was far away, and I was trapped in my house. So...Give it a shot. You might like it, especially when you zip through your four books and wish you had room for 12 more (which you would if you had the Kindle).
ReplyDeleteAt this point, I think I would give and get the Kindle if I could justify the cost. Must ponder. But if I buy a Kindle right now that is one less monkey statue or sarong that I can buy. Must ponder.
ReplyDeleteIf it were me, I would actually skip the Kindle and do the I-Pad, which could also serve as a TV for a 5 year old on a 20 hour plane ride. But then again, I'm a mac girl.
ReplyDeleteAt least I am not on a plane...but I did break down and got a Kindle. However, as I pack my car to head up to the Olympics...I did pack a half of a Powell's bag of hardbound books..(old habits die hard). So far so good....I've got 6 books on the Kindle....Aristotle, Some Plato, a book on Environmental Racism post Hurricane Katrina and a book of writings by Muslim-American women :) I'm stoked.....I'll keep ya posted on how it works...I do love the feel of a good book!
ReplyDeleteI just finished my prototype Kindle cozy and would gladly let you take it - soo ugly that no one would steal it.
ReplyDeletei can send you a ton of E books that you can read on your macbook, theres a kindle program for it. i know that doesnt really help for pool side reading, but it'd help in the evenings reading in bed. let me know if you want em!
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