Kindle review

Way back in September 2008, the Sony PRS-500 Reader was finally released in the UK - I wasn't very impressed at all, declaring I couldn't see the point of it and that I would be sticking to my *actual* books.

Roll forward to February 2012. More than likely spurred on by how many books I was planning to take to India with me and the realisation that he would be the one to lug said heavy suitcase containing these many books, O surprised me with a Kindle.

I was dubious at first - not sure how I would react - as picking up books do conjure up images of holidays for me. My copy of Memoirs of a Geisha - not available on Kindle, funnily enough - takes me back to buying a copy in the St Andrew's Tesco Metro the night before flying to Brazil and then reading it in the blistering sunshine. Eat, Pray, Love I read in the Middle East and Angels and Demons was read in Paris, and I remember at the time thinking I should have read it in Rome. It's not just holiday destinations - one of my favourite books of all times, Cents and Sensibility, transports me to summer 2006 if I ever pick it up, reading it in the garden in the horrifically hot heatwave we had that summer and in between calls at my front-of-house job at the Burberry offices.

Having a Kindle removes that. It also removes the barrier to purchase, by which I mean it's very easy to lose your head because the books are yours at the mere click of a button. There's no checkout process - a preventative measure to check over your basket and edit it down as you realise you've spent close to £100 on books - it's click and buy. Done. It also seems odd that some Kindle books are more expensive than an actual paperbook - you're getting something physical sent to you cheaper than something that's digital and wirelessly sent to you... it's a little odd.

Despite this though and my initial reservations, a few pages into my first book - Passenger 13 by Scott Mariani - and I was converted. I was more than fine, in fact, I loved the ease of the Kindle - how light it is, how I don't have to cart two books with me if I know I'll finish one on my journey, how nice the reading experience actually is. I think it's safe to say that I'm now a convert, and considering my 'rents are on at me about what I'm going to do with the two thousand physical books I left at their house... it's probably a great time to have become a Kindle fan!

What are you thoughts on Kindles, Kobos and e-readers? Have you got one? xoxo