“A house without books is
like a room without windows.” This quote
by Horace Mann sums up what many consider to be one of the greatest attributes
of books. They allow us to look out into the vast unknown of people, places and
events, to travel through time and space without physical limitations, to hear
the words of those who would otherwise remain silent, and to do this at any
time we choose. In these respects they are magical creations, portals into
space and time.
Yet this is not their only enticement. For the true bibliophile books
assault all the senses. What booklover has not experienced the pleasure of
holding a leather-bound volume, of catching a whiff of the paper as he turns a
page, even of hearing the solid thud as he lays it on a table? Who does not enjoy the sight of a shelf full
of beautifully-crafted books?
Now, with the inevitable evolution of the book in the digital age,
e-books hold their own unique appeal. Whereas once it was impossible for
someone to carry more than an armful at a time, now hundreds and thousands of
books can be transported by a device the size of a wallet. Where once it took
hours to sort through and list particular passages, this can now be done in the
blink of an eye.
Books are indeed magical, and it remains to be seen what the future has in store for them. Only one thing is certain: they will continue to fascinate, inform and entertain, regardless of what form they take.
