Normally I am lurking around here talking about fashion but turns out I love a few other things just as passionately. Books being one of them. Just not ebooks. I figure at this point we’ve all been a part of a good debate about digital book reading using a Kindle or what have you versus the old fashion way with a paper book. It all comes down to personal preference I guess – but for me, well, I’m a die hard paper book fan and I’ll tell you why. It’s not that I have refused to read an ebook. I’m not that intolerant. I have tried. But you know what I do? I end up skimming it like it’s a website! I start reading like I’m in a damn hurry! I start looking for the high points like there is something in bold print that I need to read first. When are the pictures coming?! I spaz out. I have never been able to complete an ebook from beginning to end. I just lose it after a few on screen pages. I get easily distracted when I am reading, say, on a tablet because I find myself drifting to other things like checking email, downloading something, listening to music, or any other randomness because I feel like I am being productive with my time. Ha. Being out from in front of a screen means I am unplugged and available. I have better concentration for a longer period of time. With that being said, let me throw out my... Top 5 Reasons Why Good Ol' Fashion Books You Can Hold In Your Hand, Win:   Used books are the best - Growing up, the library was our playground. My mom would take my brother and I to the kids section and we would just go to town. I loved to read and I still do. It was an adventure then and it still is now. The library is one of those institutions that I hope never goes away. The smell...the quietness...the excitement of your first official library card. Speaking of that smell – you can’t bottle (or maybe you can) – the smell of old books! Walking into an old book store – taking in a deep breath, adjusting your eyes to the dim lights – sends your senses into a delicate tailspin of learning, relaxation and curiosity. As an adult, when a good friend passes you a book that they’ve read and loved and know it is perfect for you and it really is perfect for you, you know right then that friend “gets you”. There’s an unspoken dialogue between the two of you that says, “I might know you better than you know yourself”. Gulp.   New books are the best - Sometimes nothing beats cracking open a brand new book that has crisp, white pages and smells like, well, fresh paper. Hot off the presses! In school I would love to put that hot pink neon highlighter right on my favorite line and know it would stay there forever. It’s mine! Alllll mine! Used books are sentimental and have been loved - It’s pretty rad to get a book from a yard sale and find a little note inside. I get all curious about who they were, what they were like and why were they reading this book and so on. Used books have sometimes been through the battlefield and are nice and worn in. Does that mean it’s a really good read? Maybe. Maybe not. You’ll have to find out.   Books are flexible - The classic paperback version fits great in your hand, your purse, or heck, even your back pocket from time to time. They fit any location at any time. Sure you might need a flashlight in the middle of the night but that’s part of the fun. They might get wet but there is no panic needed. It can be resurrected. Books become a collection - Taking a look at someone else’s bookshelf is a great insight into who that person is and what they are all about. It’s a visual outline of their interests, hobbies, obsessions, and randomness. I will still venture into the land of digital books I am sure, but they won’t take the place of a hand held book. Like I said, it comes down to personal preference and to each his own. Maybe I’m just too old fashioned. Maybe I am behind the times. One medium I do love in addition to old school books is audio books! I get bored driving the same routes daily and an audio book kicks ass in that situation. I have shed my old school skin and also just recently started to enjoy podcasts. See! I can be adaptable! What about you? What side are you on?