What is your favourite way of reading books?

Ross_Alumni

National Reading Day

Today, January 23rd 2021, is National Reading Day, which is an annual event that aims to encourage people to read more, obviously. 

The ways in which we consume books

These days, having a physical print copy of a book is almost seen as the traditional way to read, due to the emergence of new and interesting ways to consume books. While to many there is nothing quite like having the physical copy to add to your collection, to others the opportunities brought by e-books and audiobooks have made reading much more accessible. 

Audiobooks

My personal favourite way to read books, which I imagine will also be the case for quite a few of you who have a visual impairment. Of course the most popular choice here is Audible because it has almost any book you can think of at a relatively decent monthly subscription, but there are alternatives out there:

• If you are a podcast listener, you might want to browse the categories section of your podcast app, or search for "audiobooks" because there are an increasing number of them being made available on podcast platforms for free.
• Your local library may offer a selection of audiobooks which will be accessed through either CD, memory stick or via a mobile application. It's definitely worth finding your nearest library and querying if they have audiobooks.
• For those of you who do have sight loss, RNIB Reading Services is a fantastic scheme that enables you to access thousands of high quality audiobooks for free. Once signed up, the platform allows you to browse a library of audiobooks, any of which you can download to your phone.

E-books

These are almost the perfect option for those who love the feeling of owning a book and reading it themselves, but don't quite have the storage space to keep numerous physical books. While audiobooks aren't always guaranteed to be available for any given title, with an e-book you can almost always find one for any book you think of. 

By far the best option for consuming e-books is Amazon Kindle, which is a platform that hosts electronic versions of books, and when paired with a Kindle device it makes reading a breeze. Kindle books have numerous accessibility options that allow you to customise your reading experience. Again however, like with audiobooks, it is always worth checking with your local library, as many do offer e-book lending services.

Your current reading recommendations

It's been a while since we heard about what you're currently reading, so feel free to tell us:

• What are you reading right now?
• What is your preferred way of consuming books? 
• What will you be reading next?

Lisatho11987777

I have a few Catherine Cookson and crime books on my Alex through amazon and I have true stories in hard copy st the moment I am reading how did Marilyn munroe resly die 

Its very interesting read 

Andy58

I used to be an avid book reader and had hundreds of paperbooks, nowadays I read on my laptop through amazon kindle cloud linked to my amazon account. I've a couple of true life storys on the go at the moment. I'm thinking of trying audible books and also podcasts.

vikingqueen

   I have a kindle but I much prefer a "real" book. The kindle is usually reserved for going on holiday.

[Deleted User]

I have an Audible account, and have a library of audiobooks on it which I sometimes listen to.. I used to go to the central Library in Town a lot and get actual books but it closed a couple of years ago, and when I was a kid I was always in the local Library, I used to read Doctor Who books, a bit older than I was supposed to at 8 but at school they did say I had a reading age of 11 plus back then.

66Mustang

Sadly my concentration won’t let me sit down to relax and read a book so I only really consume books in the form of audiobooks. However if I was to read visually I would always choose a physical book

janer1967

I used to love reading but any type now puts too much strain on my one eye I can see through 

I may have to give audible a try but to me it wouldn't feel the same but may be worth a try 

66Mustang

@janer1967 I was suspicious of audio books as well but they are actually really good. I have listened to a lot of non fiction books in audiobook format and learned a lot from them. You can put it on while doing other things and even if you absorb 50% of it it’s worth listening to.

deb74

I always read books. If I look at a screen for too long I get a head ache! I don't read as much as I used to but when I do read it is either a horror or thriller. 

cartha

I prefer to read from a book. I find it easiest to use, to pick up and put down, hold, etc. Nothing to charge, nor buttons to think of. Things happening and losing my place if I wipe something off the screen! I'm just about to work my way through Chris Bonnello's Underdogs series, "A near-future war novel, where teenagers who escaped an attack on their special school become the last hope of freeing the British people."

I can't remember my last book, it was some time ago. I usually go for non fiction, science type books. I've tried audio books but not got on with them. I seem to blank out and miss large chunks, then have to go back to find where I last remember.

leeCal

I like a hard copy, an actual book, but only if the print isn’t too small. If it is too small I prefer to use a kindle copy or kobo books as you can enlarge the print substantially. Sometimes if I like an ebook I’ll buy a book version to treasure in my collection.

BrettW

I still have a physical book collection but nowadays find it difficult to read a physical book due to me not being able to sit comfortably for long periods. I now have a big collection of books on my Amazon Audible account (close to 100 now I think). 

The great thing about this method is I can simply ask Alexa to read my current book to me and when I go to bed I have my phone on a wifi charger next to my bed and the phone carries on reading my book to me directly where Alexa left off so it's a perfect soloution

OverlyAnxious

I prefer to wait until they're turned into a film or documentary instead... 

I never have liked reading books.  Though I find it hard to concentrate and create the 'picture' in my mind so maybe that's why.  I can spend all day reading forums on and off!

BrettW

@OverlyAnxious I like films but its always a two edged sword with films adapted from books. I like to make sure I've read the book first before watching a film because sometimes it helps explain why certain things occur in a film that maybe are not explained very well

Problem is a lot of the time they change parts of the story to make it more entertaining from a visual point of view and this is not always a good thing

Marie88

I like reading physical books.. I love the smell and feel of them! I do have an iPad with kindle app but I’ve never used it. I may try sometime though as certain kindle versions of books seem to be cheaper on amazon.

I only recently tried an audiobook which I found quite strange at first, but once I got used to it I enjoyed it so will probably listen to more of them.

I’m currently reading ‘Never Let Me Go’ by Kazuo Ishiguro.

Not sure what I’ll read next, I have so many books on my bookshelf! Possibly ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ by Anthony Doerr.

[Deleted User]

I think this month's credit on Audible comes in today, as it's the 26th, but I haven't had an email yet.. What should I use it on? I like sci-fi, comedy and educational books.

BrettW

Mine was due yesterday @MrAllen1976 but didn't actually appear on my account till this morning. They might be delayed a little

I spent mine on the second book in 'The Wheel of Time' series of fantasy books because I'm just about to finish the first one.

Have a look through the books you have already listened to and see if any new ones have appeared on Audible if it is part of a series. Otherwise just look through the categories of books you like and pick one that catches your eye

(edited for grammar error)

[Deleted User]

Mine came in half an hour ago, not wasting it on something random though, I'll spend it on something I actually want.

chiarieds

For me too it has to be an actual book, preferably a hard back. We had a secondhand bookshop for nearly 25 years, so I was spoilt for choice. Our bookshop is mentioned in one of Peter Robinson's books, not one of the Inspector Banks series, but a standalone novel 'Before The Poison.' He used to come into our shop to check out other crime fiction writers (!), & used to sign all of his books that we had in stock at the time.

Both my son & I are book collectors, yet my daughter isn't remotely interested in books.....

cartha

chiarieds said:

For me too it has to be an actual book, preferably a hard back. We had a secondhand bookshop for nearly 25 years, so I was spoilt for choice. Our bookshop is mentioned in one of Peter Robinson's books, not one of the Inspector Banks series, but a standalone novel 'Before The Poison.' He used to come into our shop to check out other crime fiction writers (!), & used to sign all of his books that we had in stock at the time.

Both my son & I are book collectors, yet my daughter isn't remotely interested in books.....

I suppose that makes you a genuine bookworm ;-) I remember our local bookshop growing up. It used to cost hardly anything to swap a book over for another one. I was heavily into Secret Seven, Famous Five, The Hardy Brothers, and Biggles in those days. My daughter got into Famous Five for a few months but is more into fantasy type stories involving fairies, mermaids, etc. At the moment she's making her own Anime comics. She's amazing at drawing the characters.

chiarieds

Oh definitely @cartha - we also used to do a paperback exchange, so if books were brought back in good condition a customer got half their money back, sometimes in cash, but most just wanted more books. One of the biggest delights was seeing children so interested in books, & yes, we had Enid Blyton, The Hardy Boys (F.W. Dixon), & of course Biggles (many of which I've read), Beano, Dandy & Eagle annuals + more! Once heard a parent say walking past our shop to their son who wanted to come in, 'what do you want another book for, you've already got one'.....how awful. The saddest moment was when a 10 year old girl, who used to come in once a fortnight with her Dad & younger brother, just came across & gave me a hug with tears in her eyes, when I said we were closing, saying 'please don't close.'

I do really appreciate how other ways of seeing & hearing other books has helped both disabled & able bodied people, but they were part of the beginning of the end for secondhand bookshops. We used to get customers saying we were a dying breed several years ago. Sadly our son closed the bookshop down just over 2 years ago.