My husband and I are downsizing and we’re spending the early days of summer sorting and sifting through two decades of household goods.
We’re both writers and we have a vast collection of books. We’ve slowed down on new book purchases as we navigate this transition, and I have become extremely grateful for the Kindle app, allowing me to continue to ‘collect’ books in digital form without adding to the scope of physical stuff we have to deal with.
The app is free and enables you to read on any device.
While I love nothing better than the heft of holding a book, indulging in a summer reading binge-fest at the beach or poolside, the convenience of an e-reader is proving to be my salvation.
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My summer picks?
For fiction, I am loving The World Before Us (Anchor Canada 2015) a haunting novel by Aislinn Hunter.
Terese Marie Mailhot’s memoir, Heart Berries (Doubleday 2018), is absolutely stunning. I’m reading both of these on my iPad.
On the tech side, I would be remiss if I did not mention my own book, co-authored with Angela Crocker. Digital Legacy Plan, A Guide to the Personal and Practical Elements of Your Digital Life Before You Die, published by Self Counsel Press in March of this year, just hit the B.C. Bookworld Top Sellers list.
If you are inclined toward using some of your summer downtime taking care of personal business or you are in the position of dealing with the estate of a loved one, this book is your go-to. It is available both in print and as an e-book.
If household projects are on your summertime list, I highly recommend another book I co-authored with Maple Ridge’s decluttering expert Conny Graf Lewis. From Chaos to Peace, A Simple Program to Clear Your Clutter and Change Your Life is available as a Kinde edition on Amazon, and, for those who have not yet made the jump to using an e-reader, can also be downloaded as a printable pdf. It is based on a highly successful decluttering program we developed in 2018.
I’m a voracious reader and I find the cost and convenience of e-books of real benefit. I don’t think I’ll ever let go of my deep love of print and paper, and as I sort through a lifetime’s collection of treasured favourites, packing box after box of yet more books, I am struck by how attached I am to the simple volumes that have travelled the whole road with me.
My mother always said: “If you carry a book, you will never be alone.”
These books have indeed become old friends. Their spines are brittle, and fonts are somehow tinier than I remember, and as I discard some and recycle others, I find myself crossing my fingers that I will find them again in digital form.
Vicki McLeod is an author, TEDx speaker, and award-winning entrepreneur.