One of the primary arguments extended against e-books is that books, in their hard copies, have an aesthetic value that simply cannot be replicated electronically. The texture of the paper, the smell of the ink, the lush covers. I myself have extended this argument.
I was struck, however, by an odd thought when I visited my local village library on Monday. Going to this library is like stepping back in time. No computers, just cards which slip in and out of yellow pockets, and stamps. The second floor of this library is lined with old hardcovers, some exquisitely bound, some so faded along the cloth spines that it is impossible to read the titles.
Haven't we already lost much of the aesthetic value of books? What, truly, is the aesthetic value of a mass-market glued paperback when compared with a leatherbound hardcover with thick pages and hand-stitched binding?
On a trip to Europe last year, I was lucky enough to visit some amazing libraries. The Long Room of Trinity College, Dublin, was among them. It was stunning. It was full of beautiful books. I hope we'll always have beautiful books, that publishers will keep commissioning them and printers will keep printing them. But what have we really lost if mass-market paperbacks turn electronic?
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