Are Physical Books Being Replaced by Technology?
With more people buying e-readers, listening to audio books, ordering books through prime next day delivery, are we losing the enjoyment of going out to a bookstore and feeling the pages under our fingers? Or can the two live side by side.
We saw the same thing happen with Blockbuster and DVD’s when streaming platforms became more popular, are bookstores and physical copies being pushed out?
According to the National Literacy Trust, while levels of digital reading have remained stable since 2017, print reading has declined by over 10%. However, print reading continues to dominate.
Owner of independent bookstore, Books, Beans and Ice cream, Elaine Silverwood says: “If you look at some of the statistics with the Booksellers Association, there’s more and more bookshops opening annually.”
(Credit: Elaine Silverwood – Books, Bean and Ice cream)
When talking about the threats modern technology could have on independent bookstores in the future, she emphasised how long the digital era has been around and that they have all come out the other side of it, continuing to say that we are already seeing digital and print reading live side by side.
She explains how going to an actual bookstore is much more gratifying than ordering a book online through somewhere like Amazon. Emphasising how shopping in an indie bookstore in particular is “very personal to the people.”
Elaine spoke about a customer who visits every weekend, travelling from Liverpool because of how much she loves the atmosphere of the store, which is an experience that getting used to ordering online ruins for many people.
She talks about how the difference between shopping online and in person is that they care, saying: “Amazon, don’t give a damn what somebody buys and puts into a child’s hands. But we do. We care passionately about it. And that is the massive difference. And that is the edge we will always, always have.”
“Age appropriate is so important when you’re in on Amazon and they’ll recommend something. But they’re not actually telling you that, well, yeah, your child may be a really, really strong reader at 11, but the content is inappropriate for an 11-year-old. You’re not going to get that for an online company; with us you will get that.”
(Credit: Elaine Silverwood – Books, Bean and Ice cream)
Also noting that many people often assume Amazon is cheap for books whilst independent is often a lot more affordable. She says that whilst Amazon reduce the price of new releases, authors backlists continue to stay either the recommended retail price or sit above it.
Speaking to reader Paddy Swietlik-Szalbierz, who enjoys both print and e-books, he explains that whilst e-readers and ordering books online may be more convenient it takes away the fun of purchasing and reading the physical copy.
Paddy explains how he believes people have really started to value convenience more when consuming media.
He says: “We want everything to be on demand, everything to be quick next day, even same day, because we don’t really want to leave our houses anymore.”
Since many teens and young adults are used to this being reality and don’t want to do a small tedious task such as walking to the bookstore, which is what he says makes us human.
When speaking about his personal preference he explained that whilst he prefers physical books, an e-reader is more suitable for his lifestyle. As a university student who does not have a lot of space to store books and also someone who does a lot of travelling an e-reader just makes more sense in terms of portability and saving space. This could explain why many younger people tend to opt for digital formats of reading over collecting the physical books.
(Credit: Mia Sheridan)
Paddy spoke about how one of his favourite authors had recently released a new book that he had been waiting to read, saying that he could have gotten it on his kindle and read it straight away but that he decided to wait instead.
He says: “having physical copies of some of my favourite books is my favourite thing because, yeah, I can read them on my e-reader anytime I want. They don’t take up space in my bag, that’s great. But sometimes you just really want to hold what you love.”
Explaining that as someone who primarily uses a digital reader, the physical copy will always be more of an experience, and that “it’s just like the joy of having it in your hands and having something you love that you can tangibly like see and touch and feel.”
When talking about why he thinks people still collect print books he shares that he believes it’s the same as vinyl collection, even though we can stream music for free many people would rather pay for the tangible record. He says that he believes there is a place for both digital and printed books to coincide because of this, people will never stop wanting that physical copy.
