Early Christmas Present: Kindle Review

I have mentioned many times on this blog that I am a voracious reader. Primarily Fantasy novels (typically series) but also historical romances, some murder mysteries (JD Robb) and the occasional contemporary book. I buy many books in hard cover and have already filled our 14 foot bookshelf in the 2 years since we had it built. Needless to say, it is an expensive hobby but worth it for me because I often re-read books, especially if a new one in the series just came out. No, I haven’t tackled the 13 previous Robert Jordan books when the 14th one came out because even I have a breaking point! But I will probably read the whole series again when the last (supposedly) book comes out next year (supposedly). However, I digress.

I’ve been toying with getting a Kindle for a while. The biggest sticking point for me is that many of my fantasy books do not come out on the eReader until several months after the hard cover has been published. Why? I have no freaking idea. I mean, the publishing company already has it formatted in Word or some other application, right? So how hard can it be to just published as an eBook? I started hinting to my husband that maybe a Kindle would be a good idea for my birthday which is in April. We were supposed to be finished with our Christmas shopping for each other. See what I did there? Drop hints about a birthday present right around Christmas? Yes, I’m devious.

Because we are traveling for the holidays, DH and I decided to do a small gift exchange this weekend. He pushed for it and I caved. What did he get me for Christmas? A Kindle! I’m convinced DH insisted on gifts early just so that I wouldn’t pack tons of books for our trip and force us to pay even more for checked luggage. He got me the 3G version and I’ve spent the past two days playing with it, downloading free samples, searching for my favorite authors and purchasing one book. Yes, just one…for now.

Let me start my review by saying I love my Kindle already. But a lot of what I am going to write here will seem negative. I’d love to have you weigh in if you have an eReader.

The Kindle is super easy to use. I was able to download a sample from a book without even looking at the directions. But as an iPhone user, I kept sliding my finger along the screen to get to the different areas of the page. Yes, Apple has corrupted me and I now expect every device to be interactive with a touch screen. I’m sure that is a future enhancement to the Kindle but it does take longer to navigate without it. The keys for typing are also pretty small and they are low and round which makes it a bit more difficult to type. Amazon would have been better served to copy Blackberry’s keyboard format (yes, I have a Blackberry for work too).

The screen is very easy to read and you can adjust the type font and size quickly. I have kept mine on the factory settings. Why mess with a good thing? That might change if I start downloading periodicals or magazines. I do wish the screen had a backlight for situations where the lighting is less than optimal. But something has to be sacrificed for the amazing battery power. I read for 2 hours last night and didn’t even make a dent in the batter power indicator. Another big plus is how light and small it is. I can easily tuck it in my purse and pull it out to read at any moment. Pure bliss for me.

Here are the really big negatives for me. First of all, is there some reason that most of the books cost the same as their in-store counterparts? The book I purchased was $7.99, the exact same I would pay (without my B&N discount card) in a store. It doesn’t take an MBA grad to know that that is fishy. No shipping, no paper, no binding…where exactly are my savings from buying this eBook? Is it the publishers being greedy or Amazon? Yes, I know that hard covers are typically less ($13.99 vs. $24.99) but I expect to see that same savings for paperback editions too! I don’t begrudge a slightly higher margin for publishers but charging the same as in-store makes me feel ripped off. I’m going to spend a lot more time on Amazon’s site to find books that are more affordable. I’ll provide an update to this review if I am successful.

The second big negative is one I’ve mentioned above. Most of my favorite books are not available as eBooks. Raymond Feist, Mercedes Lackey, Anne Bishop, David Eddings, etc. Only their most recent books are available in the Kindle store. I am aware that makes the most financial sense for Amazon and publishers but many of these books aren’t available at all in stores. So why not just convert them into eBooks and start generating more revenue? This might force me to branch out and read more contemporary books. I’m not opposed to that but I wish the Kindle store would offer more of the books I like.

There are lots of other features on Kindle that I don’t see myself using any time soon: comments on passages or articles that get posted to Facebook, note taking, etc. But for more tech-savvy users, I’m sure they are wonderful features. I'm also not sure that I really needed a 3G Kindle. We have wireless at home and it's available in many other locations. But I'm sure I will appreciate the convenience when I really need it. So, what do the rest of you think about the Kindle or other eReaders? Do any of you have the same complaints I do about eBook costs?

Just like mommy

DH picked up Cameron the other day and he told me that when he entered the room he couldn't see her right away. He said hello to the teacher who was in the middle of a diaper change. Looking around the room DH spotted Cameron sitting up on a pile of mats. She was sitting quietly "reading" a book while the other kids played with toys. Ah, that's mommy's little bibliophile!

I'm not sure if I've mentioned before that I am a voracious reader. I can knock out a book in a few hours. Well, mysteries and trashy romance novels at least. My fantasy books tend to be 600+ pages so that takes a little longer. DH likes to tell the story about when the last Harry Potter arrived in our mailbox one afternoon. I grabbed the book and immediately started reading. I finished the book before bed...it probably took about 5-6 hours to read. What I like the most about reading is that I am a bit of a skimmer so when I go back and re-read a book I can always find new things in it. At least that is my excuse for re-reading books up to dozens of times. How about the rest of you? Do you re-read books? Do you hoard books like me, only purging them for Goodwill every several years?

Cameron has only let me put her in pigtails once but doesn't she look so freaking cute?

DH calls this Cameron's members only jacket. Lately she has been requesting (by pointing, not verbally) to wear a jacket as soon as she comes home from school. Yes, Cameron will hate me for this picture when she gets older but how funny is this shot?

Tuesday randomness

Yesterday Cameron's daycare was closed until 9 AM. I am still flabbergasted that a minor ice storm (aka wintery mix) on Friday night resulted in a complete shut down until today. At least I was able to get Cameron to daycare at a reasonable hour and could chug through the rest of my work day. Many other parents weren't so lucky. Question for my readers, how do you decide who stays home with your kid(s) when they are sick or daycare is closed and you both have to work? DH and I have been trading off depending on work schedules. But we both hope it is a rare occurrence in general.

My friends know how much I love a "meet cute" movie which is why Lifetime is such a good movie channel for me. DH makes fun of me constantly for it. Usually I don't tape the Danielle Steel or other crime/romance stories but I love, love, love the contrived work/romance situations. The required ingredients include: couple meets cute, series of misunderstandings, multiple montage scenes, some kind of big speech, and happily ever after epilogue scene. If I'm really lucky then it also includes a dance scene. Movies that fall into this category include: 13 Going on 30, The Cutting Edge, Enchanted, etc. So I was thrilled to come across a commercial for Lying To Be Perfect. Before you ask, I only see these commercials during Project Runway or re-runs of How I Met Your Mother. If you like cheesy movies as much as me I recommend you add it to your DVR list. Totally cute!

I'm about halfway through a great book about kids and eating that Laura recommended: Child of Mine. It's already helped re-adjust my mindset about feeding Cameron. The biggest takeaway for me? Cameron is responsible for eating. Yup. Seems like common sense, right? But between breastfeeding, pumping, bottles and all the rest I ended up in a bad place thinking that I needed to be able to control how much and when she eats. Now I know better. So thanks to Laura for her recommendation!

I recently opened a savings account with BigFinance. DH and I already had a checking account but because of a few special offers and other considerations (despite a piss poor interest rate) I decided to open a savings account too. When I set it up online I didn't have DH's social security number handy so I opened it by myself and planned to add him later. The catch? I can't just add him online or through the phone. Nope, they have to mail me a form that we sign and send back and about two weeks later he can see the savings account information online. I'm also annoyed because they sent me a separate ATM card. Um, why can't it be linked to my current checking account? So I have to carve out some time to call and figure it all out.

In good bureaucracy news I receive my new passport. I think it took about 3 weeks total between mailing the completed form and receiving my new and old one back. So I have to give it up to the US State Department. Good job guys! Now if I have to flee the country I don't have to file for an expedite. Question: have any of you gotten passports for your kids? How does that work? I assume exactly the same way but it expires faster?

Enough randomness for the day...I'm off to go wrangle BigFinance. Wish me luck!

Monday mash up

Looks like the temperatures are finally going to warm up this week. It's been the longest cold snap in Charlotte in decades. And I'm so pleased we got to experience it during our 3rd winter here. Unfortunately I leave for NYC today and will be there until Thursday night. So I won't get to enjoy 50+ degree weather until I return.

What else does that mean? My first American Idol recap of the season will be late. Sorry, folks! With business dinner and drinks, not to mention the lack of a DVR in my hotel room I won't be able to watch the first two nights of auditions until this weekend. Perhaps one of these days I'll look into a sling box....

Good news on the American Idol front, however. Turns out that everyone else hated the Top 36 and Wildcard format just as much as this faithful recapper did. So the producers have decided to go back to the Top 24 format with 12 guys and 12 ladies squaring off. The claim is that the audience gets more emotionally invested because we see the performers more often prior to the Top 12. I'm just happy that it might help with my American Idol pool rankings. I'm still hesitant about the 4 judges. Last season Simon didn't get to weigh in on every performance and since I agree with him 95% of the time it was distressing for me. I also wonder who will take the Paula role over now that she is gone. There really has to be a judge who pours on the sugar as an antidote to Simon's bitterness. Well, not really bitterness but that metaphor ran away from me. Y'all know what I mean.

I've been surveying my library to determine what books I can purge and how to turn it more kid friendly (read: store more toys) for Cameron. I've also packed two hard cover books for my trip to NYC. All in all it makes me lean towards one day getting an eReader. There are some pretty cool ones that were showcased last week in CES. Here's a link highlighting a few. I am far from an early adopter. True, I got a Tivo way back in 2005 but even then it had been out for a few years. My biggest concern is that I want to make sure all my fantasy books get published in the digital format. And in strolling through Amazon I would estimate that only 30% are today. Anyone also struggle with this decision?

Cameron and I went to a birthday party for one of her play group friends this weekend. He turned one and his parents threw him a little party. It was timed perfectly for Cameron's nap and she enjoyed playing with "new" toys and tasting ice cream for the first time. It also got me thinking about what to do for her first birthday. Our house isn't very well set up for entertaining unless we were outside. But late March isn't a great time to have a BBQ. Perhaps we should just do something low key with a trip to Discovery Place or some other kid friendly venue? What did you did for your kids' first birthdays?

I finally got sucked in

For years now I have had people telling me that I would love the Twilight series. After all, I am an avid fantasy series reader. But I scoffed at the suggestion. I am a bit of a fantasy snob and don't really like books set in the "real world." I much prefer the Tolkien type genre of creating whole new worlds and everything associated with them. True, I did devour Harry Potter but who didn't?

Well, I finally caved and bought the first book of the series when I saw it at BJs in hardcover for $11. I had been in a bit of a book slump lately with little reading going on. For me this is unusual. I used to read at least a book a week and usually several. But Twilight reinvigorated my appetite for reading. I picked up the other three books in the series before I even finished the first. And I am very happy that every book in the series is out. No waiting for the next book (hello Patrick Rothfuss and Robert Jordan, I'm talking to you!) which is pure heaven for a quintessential fantasy reader.

I now completely understand why teens went crazy over this series. It has beautiful people, romance, action and whining. Based on the photos I've seen in UsWeekly, the casting director did a great job with the two leads in the movie. I think what I like the best about the books is that Bella is a completely normal girl. No one special. And frankly, that describes 99% of all high school girls which is probably why they now all think they will land an "Edward" of their own.

I don't want to ruin the plots for anyone who hasn't read the books yet but the fourth book is definitely a stretch in terms of believability compared to the first 3. True, nothing is believable about vampires but I mean it comparatively. I'm only a 1/4 of the way into the last book so it might improve plot-wise. Quite a few people (including my mom) think that Bella was too whiny of a character. Perhaps I am still too close to adolescence (stop snickering) but I think her attitude is spot on for her age and situation. She actually kind of reminds me of Buffy a little bit (in terms of the Buffy/Angel plot). But a lot clumsier.

So if you have some spare time and spare cash (only the first two books are currently in paperback) I recommend you read the Twilight series. It will really suck you in. He he he he. Has anyone read the book and seen the movie? How does the movie compare?

Adventures in Home Improvement: The Library

When DH and I moved into our house we starting making a list of everything we wanted to change about the place. The former home owners had done a good job with a few things (installed hardwood floors on the second floor, removed the wallpaper and popcorn ceilings) but the house was lacking in design aesthetic.

The biggest room in the house is the front room which would usually be designated as the formal living room. The only problem is that we don't exactly entertain frequently so dressing up a room that we would never use wasn't an economical use of our time or money. That's what the dining room was for :-)

As I have mentioned previously, I am a big reader. We knew we needed more storage for the massive amounts of books I currently have and plan to have. What can I say, if you are an avid reader of fantasy books the series can be very numerous. We also knew that eventually we would start a family so additional storage for that would be ideal as well as a room that could be versatile. The result? Our library.

The first step was paint. I picked out two colors: True Blue for the accent wall/built ins and Loft from Ralph Lauren. Here's a tip: name brands really do cost more. But for the darker colors, it is important to have high quality paint. I'm very happy with the colors I chose. DH, of course, did the painting.

We got an excellent recommendation for a contractor who built 17 feet of built ins for us out of red oak. It took him about 2 weeks because he was working on a few other jobs as well. It's the first time I've seen DH with total tool envy. DH also peaked in periodically to shoot the shit with Adam and picked up a few tricks of the trade that helped him immensely when he was rebuilding the nursery closet built ins.

The built ins at 75% complete

The trickiest part of the whole project was staining. DH decided that to save money, he was going to stain the wood and poly it himself. I was skeptical. But we got one quote that was for $2200 just to stain the built ins. That was more than we spent to build them (including materials)! So DH spent several weeks staining the wood. The problem? Apparently the wood filler used to cover the nail holes does not accept stain, regardless of what the directions say. So we had beautiful built ins with lots of light colored spots. It did not look good.

We managed to get another quote that was much more reasonable for someone to come in, sand down all the hard work DH did and re-stain it along with a couple of coats of poly. I think the revised quote was $600. Needless to say, the previous painter was trying to rip us off, no?

Built ins, complete. The left side is a cabinet, the middle a desk and the far right are drawers for additional storage.

Once the built ins were complete, it was time to get decorating. I searched for weeks for the perfect accessories and furniture. In fact, it may have been months! The most important piece of furniture was the chaise I knew needed to be included. I wanted a two armed chaise for reading. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a two armed chaise? And I live in NC, the furniture capital of the country! I finally found a floor model from a furniture outlet. I wasn't thrilled with the pattern (green with light blue dots) but figured I can always get it re-upholstered. Turns out I just integrated it with other things and I think it works. DH was very happy to save that money :-)

The chaise that I now have some issues getting in and out of because of the burgeoning belly.

I always knew I wanted to integrate my college and MBA chairs (thanks for the graduation presents Mom and Dad!) into the room with a "library table". Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a round pedestal table that isn't dining room table size!?! It was a beast, to say the least. DH and I were using up some left over gift cards from Crate and Barrel when we saw the perfect table. It was the final missing piece of furniture. When I work from home I find myself working from this table. It will be great once the baby gets older and wants to color, etc. Now if only the high gloss of the table was forgiving for children's play...

Library table and college chairs. We also put up our diplomas around the room to give it the additional "library" feel. I still have to get my Darden diploma framed but it's gigantic so it can wait.

My mom stopped by during the several months it took to finish up the room and helped me buy knickknacks and style the bookshelves. Thanks, Mom!

Another shot of the library from the doorway. This one of only three rooms in the house with curtains. Sad, but true. Why are curtains always the last to get put up?

I hope you all like the adventures in home improvement. If you do, let me know and I'll post more. DH and I love improving our first home together. Well, I love designing and he is great at doing. Perfect combination!

eBooks - friend or foe?

Those of you who know me know that I am an avid reader. In fact, I'm not sure avid is a strong enough adjective. Voracious, perhaps? I can't go anywhere without something to read. Preferably a book but a magazine will do in a pinch while waiting in line at the post office or at the nail salon.

For my honeymoon, 2 weeks in Hawaii required about a dozen books. And I think I ended up buying a couple more because I ran out. Books are an investment to me. I typically re-read books because I read so much fantasy and authors are constantly continuing a series. Robert Jordan has 10 books out right now and I will re-read all of them before the final book in the series comes out (and it's the final book only because he's dead). At 500+ pages a book, that's a lot of reading! I think I've re-read some series as many as dozens of times.

I visit the library constantly to reduce on book expense and have been known to frequent used book stores and Amazon Marketplace (particularly for hardcovers). I could spend hours in Barnes and Noble but find they are somewhat lacking in the Fantasy/Sci Fi area. Online is typically how I purchase my books these days.

DH and I had a contractor build 17 feet of bookshelves in our "formal living room" which has now become the library. I'm sure it will eventually be the baby's playroom but for now, it's all mine. I've done a decent job filling the shelves and will probably have them all filled in a couple of years. DH gets one small section of shelves for his books. And I've taken them over with old MBA text books. Sorry, dear!

Library built-ins, in progress. They are complete now but this was the only picture I had handy. It's small because Snapfish now requires you to pay for full size downloads! What a rip off!

I read an article recently about Amazon's Kindle product. Apparently the small niche for eBooks is growing. There are quite a few advantages to eBooks. Weight alone of all my hardcovers can overwhelm my luggage. Not to mention the valuable clothing space they take up! They are also significantly cheaper than the typical $25 I spent for a hardcover. But despite those advantages, I'm not sure I will ever go the eBook route. I love the feel of books. Paperback, hardcovers, big, small, there is always room on my lap for a book. I wonder how that will fit with a baby too???

How about the rest of you? Should I be more open to the eBook trend? Are we going the Star Trek route when Kirk is viewed as "quirky" because he reads real books rather than computer screens?