Bibliophiles unite!

[STIguy]

Probably looking for a way to monetize the space. 

[TeaBag]

Yes, that's right.  They are putting cabins in the space.

[travelpeon]

15 hours ago, Denny01 said:

One suggestion since libraries are on the way out on all ships is to go over to the Roll Call for your cruise and suggest book club/exchanges there. Done it and it worked nicely. 

 

Excellent idea.  You could also start a book club or reading list for the fellow cruisers.  I just picked up a used copy of "Tales of the South Pacific" by Michener as our itinerary is the South Pacific and plan on reading it, then bringing it onboard for someone else to enjoy.  It doesn't come in eBook (oh boy is the font small and my vision is 20/20 at reading distance). 

 

Most of the used bookstores closed or moved out of my area due to rising rent prices but you could probably get a nice stack at a thrift shop near the port to leave onboard when you are done.  Bibliophiles tend to love browsing book stores, anyhow, so it'd be a nice pre-cruise treat to stop by a local book shop.  My local library also has a used books for sale section where proceeds benefit the library.

 

Perhaps the better question is which cruise lines still have sizable physical libraries?  It looks like Viking Seas do https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2473413-viking-library-on-board/

 

[cruise kitty]

I have to admit I was one of those who said no e-reader for me,  I like the feel, smell, experience of a "real"book.   However, in 2009 before our first TA I bought a kindle, & I"m hooked.  The paper white gives the same look as an actual page (no glare, it's matte)  I can read in bed without needing a light, I can adjust the font so my 50 something year old eyes don't struggle, It's waterproof, & it can hold thousands of books.  I keep about 400 on it at a time & the rest are archived in my Amazon account.

 

Having sailed on a "sick" ship before (Solstice in late 2017)  I remember talking to the crew about how some of the most difficult things to sterilize are the books in the library,  so I can understand why ships are slowly doing away with them.   

 

I do think that for those who like a hard copy of their books that an exchange is a great idea.  DH usually buys a book at the airport before our flight & then leaves the book in the library at the end of the cruise.  

[DrivesLikeMario]

I was just on the Sky Princess and it had no library.  I've learned that the libraries rarely have what I want to read anyway.  Ripped through 5 books on my 1-week cruise and got a good half way into the 6th.  That's the only reason I like the e-readers!  I can 'carry' a ton of books with me all the time in a small space.

[zitsky]

I do both.  I just bought a new iPad because my Kindle was kind of flaky.  But I still like reading paper books.  I have a wall of them at home I need to finish.  Paper is good at a beach where you don't want to go swimming and leave your ereader on your chair for someone to steal.

[hcat]

4 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

This was the library on first day of Edge TA

 

 

Yup.. the cheesy shopping cart  aka book cart on EDGE...better than nothing but  they could find something nicer,

FIrst day we did  find some nice art books etc.

The old  libraries had wonderful  maps and atlases...long gone!

 

Library on QM 2 sets the standard of a great library..well used!

Edited February 22, 2020 by hcat

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, travelpeon said:

Excellent idea.  You could also start a book club or reading list for the fellow cruisers.  I just picked up a used copy of "Tales of the South Pacific" by Michener as our itinerary is the South Pacific and plan on reading it, then bringing it onboard for someone else to enjoy.  It doesn't come in eBook (oh boy is the font small and my vision is 20/20 at reading distance). 

Actually, it's readily available as an ebook for purchase (see below), a free download in several formats, including epub and PDF, and as an online book (below). So if you want to save your eyes, get an e-version and donate your printed book onboard.

 

 

[Caymus88]

5 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

This was the library on first day of Edge TA

 

 

This is what I remember, too

[NMTraveller]

A Kindle is the fast food of reading.  If I want yet another Tom Clancy book it is easy to do.  I have both but highly prefer a sophisticated library.

 

If I want to explore what book I want next, a library is the place to do it.  With Kindle I am limited in my viewing of a new book I may want to purchase.  In a library I can just start reading and if I don't like it put it down and pick up another.

 

Fine wine or house wine.  Libraries or Kindles.  Fine Art or Fine Art prints.

 

I don't think that the germ consideration is why the libraries were discontinued.  If it was you would not see a single buffet on the ship.  It is profits and squeezing more cabins on the ship.

 

I don't think that a book exchange could come close to replacing a library.

 

With a library I am much more likely to pick up a book that I would not have otherwise.

Edited February 22, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, NMTraveller said:

If I want to explore what book I want next, a library is the place to do it.  With Kindle I am limited in my viewing of a new book I may want to purchase.  In a library I can just start reading and if I don't like it put it down and pick up another.

I purchased an original Kindle back in 2007, and there were some very definite limitations back then. The only choice was to buy, and too bad if you didn't enjoy the book. Times have changed. Today I use my iPad as my primary reading device, although I can easily read the same books on my iPhone and other iDevices, and since libraries have kept pace with the changes in their readers' reading habits, I no longer have to buy my ebooks.

 

Unlike you, I don't need to go to the library physically, as I can download my ebooks from the comfort of my home. If a book turns out to be less than I'd hoped for, I can simply download another. And I can do that 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year, from my home or from a cruise ship half the way around the world.

 

1 hour ago, NMTraveller said:

Fine wine or house wine.  Libraries or Kindles. 

Sorry, but your comparison simply doesn't hold water. It's the contents of the wine bottle that matters, not the bottle, and the same applies to books. A good book is a good book whether picked off the shelves of the library or downloaded electronically from the same library.

[NMTraveller]

16 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I purchased an original Kindle back in 2007, and there were some very definite limitations back then. The only choice was to buy, and too bad if you didn't enjoy the book. Times have changed. Today I use my iPad as my primary reading device, although I can easily read the same books on my iPhone and other iDevices, and since libraries have kept pace with the changes in their readers' reading habits, I no longer have to buy my ebooks.

 

Unlike you, I don't need to go to the library physically, as I can download my ebooks from the comfort of my home. If a book turns out to be less than I'd hoped for, I can simply download another. And I can do that 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year, from my home or from a cruise ship half the way around the world.

 

Sorry, but your comparison simply doesn't hold water. It's the contents of the wine bottle that matters, not the bottle, and the same applies to books. A good book is a good book whether picked off the shelves of the library or downloaded electronically from the same library.

 

Yeah but try finding a new Kindle book that you might read.  Their samples are small.  Once you hit Purchase there is simply no going back.  Some of the larger books with big print are much much better than reading on the small Kindle.  I will always prefer book stores and libraries to Kindles.  If I am in a hurry I might download a kindle.  Definitely not the same experience.

 

It is the presentation of the book that trumps that of the Kindle.  

 

I get it.  People even read books on their phones.  Definitely not the same...

 

Looking at a print of a fine painting is not the same as looking at the painting itself.

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Fouremco]

19 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

 

Looking at a print of a fine painting is not the same as looking at the painting itself.

Yet the words of a book are identical, whether in my iPad or a leather-bound first addition. The medium is NOT the message, as you would have us believe.

[Covepointcruiser]

My husband was also one of the, never a Kindle, people.   We have taken cruises on “sick”  ships where the library was closed for two weeks!  We read that bedbugs have been found in the spines of library books and used books.  We both now use Kindles and even my husband is happy.   I know the IPAD has the capability but I don’t like reading from a shiny surface.  

[NMTraveller]

11 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

Yet the words of a book are identical, whether in my iPad or a leather-bound first addition. The medium is NOT the message, as you would have us believe.

As are the pixels of a fine painting on a photo.  Not the same.

 

Put a fine glass of wine in an inexpensive thick glass or thin glass.  Not the same.

 

I do both.  But appreciate the fine glass of wine when it is available in the thin glass.  I also appreciate the texture of the book and of the pages.  There are works of art in literature and paintings.  For both I prefer the original.

 

 

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Fouremco]

True, but we are talking about words, not pixilated photos or fine wine swigged from a tumbler.

[NMTraveller]

Books can be works of art also.

 

I have a high resolution semi pro camera and its pictures pale in comparison to the original.  No pixelation on the camera yet the Kindle IS pixelated.

 

Read it as the artist/author intended for the fine books.

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[travelpeon]

@Fouremco Thanks for trying!  The first link is about Michener, not the book itself?  I'm not quite sure where the second screenshot comes from.  In any case, I've got nothing against paperbacks but have been a bit spoiled by eBook spacing options.

 

Regarding Kindle books, I guess it could depend on if you're reading traditionally published current books vs independents.  Kindle does allow a lot of independent publications which I find varying in quality.  One of my favorite authors has a blog and every so often opens up a post asking for new book recommendations.  Sometimes it is specifically for independents or various genres and I've found a few favorites there.  Otherwise, I don't tend to buy new-to-me prolific independents, especially if they don't traditionally publish, who price everything under $4 as I usually don't find them well written, edited, or particularly thoughtful.  TBH the downside here is not being able to snap shut my kindle (no case) and send it to book purgatory for wasting my time.

 

I usually stick to favorite authors when buying eBooks and recommendations from fellow humans instead of algorithms.  I used to feel bad for giving a book about three chapters to audition for my time until I met a bookstore owner on a cruise who gave her reads one chapter.

 

Anyhow, read and let read 🙂

Edited February 23, 2020 by travelpeon

[zitsky]

I have a bootleg PDF of a classic finance book.  It's a poor scan but readable.  I would gladly pay for a printed copy but the cost is $300 for a used book.  Sometimes print is better.

 

When I first saw this thread I thought someone was writing about the Bible.  Had to read twice.  Can I tell you about my Lord and Saviour.....

Edited February 23, 2020 by zitsky

[NMTraveller]

And watching a good movie on the Big Screen vs watching it on your IPAD.  Not the same.

 

Sure the pixels are the similar but the equipment is lacking...

 

I too thought that this was a religious thread by the title. 🙂

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Fouremco]

13 minutes ago, travelpeon said:

The first link is about Michener, not the book itself?  I'm not quite sure where the second screenshot comes from.  In any case, I've got nothing against paperbacks but have been a bit spoiled by eBook spacing options.

Good catch on the first screenshot. My bad!

 

The second was a screenshot of an online version found here: 

https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.73009/page/n5/mode/2up

 

24 minutes ago, travelpeon said:

I usually stick to favorite authors when buying eBooks and recommendations from fellow humans instead of algorithms.  I used to feel bad for giving a book about three chapters to audition for my time until I met a bookstore owner on a cruise who gave her reads one chapter.

I was loath to give up on a book I'd bought for my Kindle in the early days, but with the library downloads, I have no compunction whatsoever. And while I can't snap shut my iPad, there's a certain satisfaction in hitting the delete button! 

 

 

 

[zitsky]

Amazon gives me a free book every month that I will never read.

[NMTraveller]

53 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Amazon gives me a free book every month that I will never read.

 

And I have several books on Amazon that I  have not cashed in...

 

 

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[NMTraveller]

2 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

And watching a good movie on the Big Screen vs watching it on your IPAD.  Not the same.

 

Sure the pixels are the similar but the equipment is lacking...

 

I too thought that this was a religious thread by the title. 🙂

 

E class vs S class no comparison.  Cheesy vs. refined.

Edited February 23, 2020 by NMTraveller

[zitsky]

10 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

 

E class vs S class no comparison.  Cheesy vs. refined.

 

Are you talking about cruise ships, or Mercedes Benz cars?