Why You (May) Read Faster on an E-Reader

In my last post, I talked about people generally reading faster on an e-reader as opposed to a print book. This time I'm going to explore why this may be the case. I can't speak for all readers of digital books, but I will share with you some of the reasons why I probably read faster with my Kindle:

• I can adjust the font size.  I love that I'm not restricted to the publisher's font size. I can choose a size that's comfortable for my eyes to read. I can also choose a serif or sans serif font, if I'd like.
• I can read in dark mode.  If you're not aware of this, dark mode puts text in white against a black background. This makes it easier on the eyes to read in low-light situations. It's an eye-saver for me to use dark mode to read in bed at night.
• It's lighter to hold than a print book.  My Kindle weighs far less than most books. Also, I don't have to hold it open or even hold it at all (I actually have a triangular pillow pad on which to prop it).
• I can get a book anytime.  If I finish my book outside of library hours, I don't have to wait for the library to open to get my next read. I can get it at 11 p.m., 6 a.m., or whenever.

Not too long ago, someone who prefers reading print books told me I went over to the "dark side" and "drank the Kool-Aid." I replied that the dark side is pretty nice and the Kool-Aid tastes good. Not everyone may agree with me regarding the use of e-readers, and that's okay. I will say, however, to be open to different things because you just never know if you may discover something new to enjoy.

Wishing you delightful refreshments to accompany your reading from the perch.

With What Do You Read Faster?

Do you read a paper book faster or an electronic book? That is the question for today since I stumbled across this article claiming we perceive that we read faster on an e-reader.

When I first started reading ebooks on my Kindle during the pandemic, I admit that I had to adjust to reading on a screen and swiping across it to advance rather than turning a physical page. However, once I grew accustomed to using an e-reader, I was like a fish taking to water. It indeed felt like I was reading faster on a screen than a printed page. I thought that must have been my imagination. Did I really read more ebooks than print?

To get to the bottom of things, I went to my LibraryThing page to see how many print books I read throughout 2019 (my last pre-pandemic year of reading strictly print) versus how many ebooks I've read this year (post-pandemic) so far. Surprise--I listed 10 books in all of 2019 compared to 19 books in 2023 and there are still 3 MONTHS left in the year! I actually do read more on my Kindle than in print! Who knows how many books I'll have read by December 31?

According to a blog called Simone and Her Books, 66 percent of people say they read faster on an e-reader, while 34 percent say they read slower. Wow! Bear in mind that Simone didn't do a scientific study; she got these percentages from people who responded to her topic-related question on Bookstagram. If it's true that people read faster on readers, it would be interesting to ponder why that's the case, something that's best left for another post.

Do you feel you read faster on an e-reader or in print? Share with us!

Wishing you good reads (electronic or in print) from the perch.

Up for Some Death Cleaning?

Back in April I posted about helping my parents house hunt and promised to talk about adventures in moving at a later time. Well, I'm making good on that promise. I've recently returned from helping my parents move out of their New York house and brought them across the country to move into their new house in Washington State. At the time of this writing, my parents are staying at my house while waiting for their moving truck to soon arrive with all their furniture and other worldly possessions.

A big part of moving, as those of you in the military will attest, is deciding which things to keep and which things have to go. This part was especially difficult for my father, who has a tendency to keep more things than he should (like over a dozen pill boxes--don't ask). However, if you're downsizing from a bi-level house to a single level, getting rid of things you no longer need is essential.

Helping my father sort through his belongings and part with unnecessary things was a lot like Swedish death cleaning (and of course, I had to read Margareta Magnusson's The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning in the middle of the move). If you ask me, the Swedes have the right idea--clean and get rid of your unneeded stuff as you go through life so someone doesn't have to clean up your junk after you're gone. Not only does this make your house less cluttered and more organized for you now, it also makes it easier on the person settling your affairs later, leaving a good last impression of you. After all, no one wants to be remembered for being a hoarder, right?

Along the lines of Swedish death cleaning, I helped my father toss or donate quite a few things that were taking up space for far too long. Bills that were paid in the '90s, a number of key chains, 8-track tapes of polka music, clothes that weren't worn in ages or no longer fit. Items that are still being used and sentimental things, like family photographs, were naturally kept. It was a rather intense process, but well worth it and one I highly recommend for everyone at every age. I'm proud of my father for having done so well with cleaning out his things. Now, if I can only get him to part with a few of those pill boxes he insisted on keeping...

Wishing you happy death cleaning from the perch.

Movies that Speak Summer

Some movies capture summer so perfectly you can feel the sticky, humid heat and smell the barbecue along with lake water or briny ocean air. By no means is this a definitive list of movies that take place in summer, but these are some of my favorites (all of which are available at the library):

• American Graffiti  School's out and there's not much to do in a pre-tech, pre-internet world than ride around in your car and hang out with your friends at the burger joint. See a young Harrison Ford before he became big in Star Wars and Indiana Jones.
• Dirty Dancing  A lakeside cabin at a family resort in New York's Catskill Mountains. A summer romance between a hunky dance instructor and a cute girl wanting to change the world in the turbulent 1960s. Expect both the expected and the unexpected.
• Jaws  The early classic of Steven Spielberg that made and continues to make people afraid of going into the water. A bigger boat is always a good idea.
• Mamma Mia  Plenty of shorts, dresses, bathing suits, beautiful Greek islands, and ABBA music to accompany the story of a young woman who invited her three potential fathers to her wedding. A guaranteed feel-good movie with a stellar cast including Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried, Colin Firth, and others.
• Mystic Pizza  A group of girls having summer jobs at a local pizza parlor in Connecticut have fun, make mistakes, and learn about relationships in this 1980s favorite featuring a young Julia Roberts.
• Rear Window  You can feel the steamy summer in New York City while watching this Alfred Hitchcock classic. A photographer with a broken leg is confined to his apartment, spies on his neighbors through his window, and finds out more than is good for him.
• A River Runs Through It  Summer in 1920s Missoula, Montana means church, family, socials, and fly fishing--lots of it--against the background of beautiful big sky country. Directed by Robert Redford, starring Brad Pitt, and based on the semi-autobiographical book by Norman Maclean.

Do you have some favorite movies set in summer? Share with us!

Wishing you happy movie-watching from the perch.

What Does a Librarian WANT to read?

How's your summer reading so far? Are you reading some good books? Still working on your TBR (to be read) list?

You may recall that last time I talked about recently published books I've read and enjoyed. In this post I'm going to share with you some new books that I would like to read but haven't gotten around to just yet:

• All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley  Can you imagine what it would be like to work as a guard in the Metropolitan Museum of Art with all those priceless masterpieces? This book is a firsthand account of one guard's experiences.
• Your Table is Ready by Michael Cecchi-Azzolina  I'm sure a maître d’ of swanky New York restaurants serving celebrities and the elite has a few stories to tell, and I'm curious to read about them.
• Spectacular by Fiona Davis  If you didn't know, I'm a New Yorker, born and bred. Having been in Radio City Music Hall in the past and reading some of Davis' books about other New York City landmarks, I'm excited to see how she presents the story of this famous Art Deco theatre.
• Don't Think, Dear by Alice Robb  I've always found the behind-the-scenes ballet world fascinating, and this book was written by a former student of the School of American Ballet. She discusses how the school affected her and other women, both positively and negatively, whether they went on to become professional dancers or not.
• Beyond That, The Sea by Laura Spence-Ash  This book is about an 11-year old English girl sent by her parents to a family in Boston to keep her safe from German bombs during World War II. After first adapting to life in America, she must then re-acquaint herself with life in England when she returns to her parents after the war.
• The Little Wartime Library by Kate Thompson  As I mentioned in my previous post, I enjoy reading about libraries and other librarians, real or fictional. This novel is based on a true story about a librarian who creates a library in a London Underground station to help others get through the air raids of World War II.

George R.R. Martin said, "A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies." I don't know how many lives I've lived up to this point, but I do know that I love reading about different people and their lives, past and present, familiar and different.

What books would you like to read but haven't gotten around to reading? Share with us!

Wishing you many literary adventures from the perch.

What Does a Librarian Read?

With the start of the Summer Reading Program, you might be thinking about books you're going to read. If I may, I'd like to share some books that I've enjoyed recently, all of which were published over the last several years and can either be found in our library or on Libby/Overdrive.

• The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore  I love this book not only because it's about a librarian and about people coming together to help each other, but also because it's written by a local Spokane author and takes place in nearby Coeur d'Alene. Who doesn't enjoy reading about familiar places?
• Listening Still by Anne Griffin  The setting and topic of this book are a little off the beaten path--in a small Irish town, a funeral home director's daughter is able to hear the thoughts of the newly deceased. Although it may sound macabre, the book is more about the choices we make, the outcomes of those choices, and accepting those outcomes.
• The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin  I can't speak for all librarians, but I find it interesting to read about others in my profession, fictional or real. The story of a librarian from the Library of Congress working covertly in Portugal may be fictional, but the World War II events and circumstances depicted are not.
• Stupid Things I Won't Do When I Get Old by Steven Petrow  We may see our grandparents, parents, or other relatives aging and think we're going to age more gracefully. History, though, has a habit of repeating itself. I like how this author examines his parents' aging as well as his own with a mix of humor, frustration, surprise, and ultimately compassion.
• The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley  I guess I have a soft spot for lonely characters who eventually come together and support each other. This one, however, takes place in London and centers around a notebook in which the characters write about what their lives are really like rather than the façades they present to others everyday.
• Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt  This is a different kind of feel-good book told from the perspective of an octopus and an older woman who cleans a fictional aquarium near Seattle. The two form an unlikely friendship of sorts and unexpected things happen. Just take my word and give this one a try.

If none of these titles rings your bell, that's okay. Stop by the perch and I'll help you find a book that does.

Wishing you many good reads this summer from the perch.

Summer Reading = Fun!!!

The Summer Reading Program (June 1-August 31) is just around the corner! Hard to believe, I know, but the start of it is almost here!

I could do what I've done other summers and talk about how it's important for kids and teens to read in their time off from school. Summer reading prevents the so-called "summer slide," helping kids improve their vocabulary and thinking abilities as well as retain things they learned over the school year. But I'm not going to talk about that.

I could talk about all the cool prizes we have for kids, teens, and adults. There are jump ropes, noisy putty, coins, badges, highlighters, watercolors, microphones, spaghetti yo-yos (I really like those!), journals, cups, and phone stands. Of course, there are other things like bags, because you can never have too many book bags. But I'm not going to talk about that.

I could talk about the exciting activities we have in the library during summer reading. There are art experiments, break-out boxes, STEAM programs, and finding where Mango (the summer reading mascot) is hiding in the library each week. But I'm not going to talk about that.

What I AM going to talk about is having FUN reading, because that's really the heart of summer reading. Whether you're a kid, teen, or adult, just READ. It can (and should) be ANYTHING you want to read. Fiction or fantasy, mystery or manga, it makes no difference as long as it's FUN to you. Read if you have somewhere to go, read if you have nowhere to go. Read stories about people, places, and things. 

So, do the Summer Reading Program for the fun of it (and maybe that spaghetti yo-yo).

Wishing you good readings this summer from the perch.