Week 16

Honestly, I have had a difficult time with books ever since I was a child. I loved to read when I was little. I loved having books read to me. However, it all changed when I started to participate in Accelerated Reader. Even though I now run the Accelerated Reader program at my school, I understand its importance now. I did not when I was a child. After I read a book, I knew I would have to take an AR test. I would have extreme anxiety as I would take the test on the computer. I hated taking tests in general, but I also hated failing the tests right then and there. I never liked to see my grade right away. I always needed a couple days to process and hope for the best. AR turned my love for reading to hate. I did pass most of my tests, but I would have to take them in the comfort of my mom’s classroom (she worked at the same school I attended).

When I finally moved to a different school in sixth grade, I didn’t have to do AR anymore and I was relieved. Since AR had squashed my love for reading, I never read anything I didn’t have to. I knew I wasn’t good at reading anyway, so why try? It wasn’t until high school that I really wanted to read and do better because my peers were good at reading. I wanted to be in Honors English class and read all the books that they did. I wanted to be smart like they were and I worked my way up to Honors English class. I started reading the Twilight books because they were popular and fell in love with them. (I know...I know...I’m barfing in my mouth right now because I have to admit it now). Those books got me to read, no matter how horribly written they are (in my opinion now that I have seen the light). I had great English teachers in high school that helped my love of reading grow. From Shakespeare to The Scarlet Letter, I loved all the books I read. And that’s how I wanted to become an English teacher and now I am training to be a full-time librarian. I love being surrounded by books and I love reading because it takes me on such an adventure. My experience from love to hate to love is a testament to how reading is a life-long journey.

As for the future of the book, I know times are changing. My dad works for a Christian Publisher, Tyndale House Publishers. He is in charge of the digital book agreements with Amazon. He definitely played a big part in getting Tyndale to the ebook side of publishing. Since my dad works for a publisher, I encounter many discussions on the “future of books” frequently. Things will change. Bookstores are continually going out of business because of Amazon. Amazon has changed the retail market as we know it. Don’t get me wrong, I love Amazon, but it makes it more difficult for independently owned publishers, bookstores, etc. to make a profit. Tyndale House Publishers is going strong, it is the only independently owned Christian publisher that is still profiting and in business. I hope that other publishers will continue to stay in business. In Ursula LeGuin’s article, “Staying Awake,” she writes that “CEOs [of publishers], a ‘good book’ means a high gross and a ‘good writer’ is one whose next book can be guaranteed to sell better than the last one” (pg. 15). Being bias towards this publisher, their main goal is not to sell books, Tyndale is focused on spreading the message of Christ and showing others that gaining money is not their first priority. I think other publishers should share a similar goal. They shouldn't focus on making the most money but spreading their love for reading and different kinds of books.

Also, many people are publishing their own books just by ordering them online or publishing them digitally. That is a great way to publish books if you really want them to be available to people, but that is not the best way. Being an author today is difficult and rejection is easy to come by. Even J.K. Rowling was rejected many, many times for her first Harry Potter book. And she is one of the most successful authors in this business! In the next 20 years, ordinary people will continue to publish books on their own, but the big-named authors will still be backed up by popular publishers.

I don’t think the physical book will be completely erased yet, but there may be fewer copies published in the future. I think reading will become more interactive digitally. Not only will there be just text in a digital book, but there will be more components as well: games, videos, and other interactive elements based on the books. Chopsticks, by Jessica Anthony, was released in print and digital form. The book includes a lot of pictures and video shots to accompany the story. The digital book is similar but includes interactive elements such as videos to be a part of the story. I think more books will become like this. Because our phones and tablets are a part of our daily lives, it would make sense that books will become more integrated into that. However, in the article, “The Future of Publishing Is Now,” Calvin Reid explains that “print books are growing in sale [61%]” (2017). Reid explains that “the strength of the physical book” is growing in importance. Even though digital publishing is growing and in demand, that doesn’t mean that the future of print books is going down the tubes. Reading this article was comforting. Even though print books will not be the main form of publishing, there will at least be that option out there in the future. I hope that my future children will find joy in finding a book in a bookstore or at least Target (depending if bookstores are still open!). :)

Resources

Le Guin, U. K. (2008). Staying awake: notes on the alleged decline of reading. Harper's Magazine, 316(1893).

Reid, Calvin. (2017, May 31). BookExpo 2017: The Future of Publishing is Now. Publisher’s Weekly. Retrieved from https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bea/article/73828-bookexpo-2017-the-future-of-publishing-is-now.html.