(Part I of my initiation into the world of eReading was posted January 19th.)

Before I even slit open the box (mostly because it’s not here yet - UPS has had it listed as ‘out for delivery’ since 6:45 this morning) I will say that the very best thing about the Nook is that it doesn’t do anything other than display book text.  I think it has a built-in dictionary, which is cool enough.  And I could maybe even get on board with the Kindle’s offering free Wikipedia access for - ahem - fact-checking, but that’s as far as I’m willing to go.

Much to the disdain of people salivating for Apple’s Tablet, which will, by the sound of it, darn your socks for you while you’re wearing them, I know my Achilles’ heel.  It’s multi-tasking.  I’m so proud of being able to do ten things at once that my ability to enjoy one thing at a time has suffered greatly.  So when tech experts sneer that you can’t even check your email on the Nook, I applaud.  Maybe I’ll finally get some reading done.

It’s not that I don’t appreciate the convenience of multi-use devices.  My sister-in-law’s iPhone is the niftiest thing ever.  But reading is different.  It’s an immersive experience that I have not honored, too often lately, by keeping one eye on my inbox display. I’ve even checked FaceBook between chapters, I’m ashamed to admit.  I need to stop doing that.  My reverence isn’t for the paper, or the smell, or the heft of the book (although I do not begrudge these tactile rewards for the people who cherish them.)  I don’t collect books and I rarely reread them, but I do keep them with me.

Their stories and their knowledge become part of who I am.  Their words erode my ignorant edges and cut channels for sense and sensibilities to flow.  All I want from my Nook is a sleek new way to get out of my own head so I can get back into it.

The other things can–  Eeep!  There’s the UPS guy.  I’ll be right back…

Okay, first impressions:

Well, it’s beautiful and it works.  I helped my mother-in-law set up her new Kindle and it’s very nice, but I actually find the Nook’s organization more intuitive.  (Do not even try to get it out of its packaging without reading the directions, though, or you’ll think I started off with a lie.)  The touchpad works very nicely.  I was skeptical of the virtual keypad, but typed in my info with no trouble.

I’ve set up the Nook and ordered Stephen King’s, UNDER THE DOME, as a celebratory treat.  (It downloaded in about half a minute, if that.) Barnes & Noble set me up with three freebies - DRACULA, by Bram Stoker, LITTLE WOMEN, Louisa May Alcott, and Jane Austen’s,  PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (blessedly minus the zombies.)

The complaint over the page turn speed has, as far as I can tell, been resolved by the firmware upgrade.  Honestly, if that page turn speed overly frustrates you, I may have to suggest decaf.  Life’s short, but it’s not that short.  Ease up.

Anyway, I’ve finished chapter one of UNDER THE DOME.  Two people and a groundhog have already died. This could be epic.

Merry Christmas to me and we’ll see how long my glee lasts.

ETA -

Well, I guess it does a few more things than just display book text, but it’s primarily cosmetic, so I’ve also now added my own wallpaper and screensaver pics, an MP3 of John Gorka’s, Jack’s Crows, and William Haskins’ book of poetry, SIXTY-SIX.  Easy peasy.  Excellent.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 21st, 2010 at 4:40 pm and is filed under *Jamie's Posts, AuthorScoop Exclusives, Random Cool Things. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.