My Kindle and iPhone Experience

I'm surprised to report positively about my recent Kindle book experience. 

I have only seen one woman using a Kindle on an airplane but she was an armrest stealer with hostile body language.  There was no way I was going to ask her about it, because I was concerned she'd eat my face off.  So due to the lack of research, I didn't have a lot to go on.

I thought I would miss the paper and struggle trying to read on a screen.  My mind was already made up that using the free Kindle iPhone app would be beyond my technical abilities. And be inferior to reading on an actual Kindle.  The theory of reading an entire book on a cell phone seemed OK but I imagined that the reality would be pretty horrible.

And you know what?  I was wrong. 

It was easy to download and pay for.  (I think anyway.  I clicked and agreed to a bunch of crap in German by depressing "Aktualisieren" and "Akzeptieren" a few times. I might be back crying when the bill comes). 

Not to mention it was comfortable to read and turn pages on the iPhone.  (Yet I do sometimes wonder if a new repetitive injury will be in our thumbs from that swiping to the right motion we make to advance the screen).  The phone itself is so smart.  Every time I went back in, it KNEW what page I was on.  It's genius.  If you rub your finger in the upper right hand corner, it dog-ears the page!   I never did figure out how to go back and actually find my dog-ears, but I imagine in time I could learn. 

The huge bonus for me was getting English reading material without having to pay twice the price.  AND choosing what I wanted instead of whatever the purchasers at my local German bookstore have decided to stock (and let me tell you... I really wonder sometimes).  It was extremely handy to have a book uploaded to my phone for times like when my kid falls asleep in the car and I want to give him 15 minutes of rest before waking him, or when we were camping and it wouldn't quit raining, or when I ended up alone in a restaurant unprepared.  Your book is already with you.  I'm not saying that I'm going to read everything on my phone now.  But I am going to have a kindle book tucked away to enjoy for those times I hadn't expected.

BTW - I read Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert.  Probably another major influence on the whole experience.  I. Love. Her.  I would read a book of hers if it was on a cracked, grubby, stolen cell phone.  This was no exception.  I felt like she was telling parts of my story.  Marrying someone outside your nationality is really complicated.  Marriage is complicated in the first place and once you start throwing in variables like not having the same native language/culture/it just compounds. Such a great story from a great writer, I was secretly wishing that she and her hubby would have to come live in Germany, on my street.  And of course we'd be great friends... oh i digress but just go get this book, digital or otherwise!!

Comments

[Linda]

LOL! Your last paragraph had my howling!

Great product review. Thanks for sharing.

[Veronika]

Yup, marrying someone outside of your nationality can be complicated but also quite hilarious really, especially when things get lost in translation, my favorite part of being married to my Englishman :)
Btw, if you love Elizabeth then you must watch her talk on TED, you'll love it, here you go: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html. Enjoy.

[Jen]

Oooo...I totally agree about Elizabeth Gilbert AND her book "Committed." I'm not totally committed yet to The Mann in the marriage way, but I could really relate to the book and her pragmatism when it comes to marriage and relationships. And Eat, Pray, Love had a huge influence on me and even on my decision to move to Germany. I met her once 3-4 years ago at her Eat, Pray, Love reading/book signing in my U.S. town and I couldn't keep the worshipful adoration from my eyes. :-) Funny, her reading was the last stop on her tour and she told us that the next day she was flying home and she was getting married that weekend.