I purchased the first generation of the Kindle reading device when it came out in 2008. I was traveling internationally for work a couple of times a month and was tired of lugging multiple books to read. My paper copy of Don Quixote literally went around the world with me, but it is not light to carry all day when travelling.

The Kindle was great because I could carry multiple books and purchase books on the go. I found myself reading multiple books at a time as I could easily carry them and could pick light reading or heavy reading depending on my mood. The downside was I no longer had conversations with other people about the book I was reading as no one could tell what you were reading.

Fast forward to today and I am on my third Kindle device, the Kindle Paperwhite, and have the app on my phone, computers, and a fire tablet. I pretty much always have a book to read no matter where I am at. I still prefer the Kindle Paperwhite as it is light, small but not too small, can be read in low light and bright sunlight, and battery life is phenomenal. I always take it when I travel, and usually what I read when on the treadmill or bike at the gym. My phone provides the tunes.

I miss the smell of a book and going to a bookshelf, opening a book I read, and finding little surprises like a boarding pass stub, business cards, or the occasional slip of paper money I used as a bookmark. But the fact that I have my library available without carrying the weight is worth the tradeoff.