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Chopping up books when they're physically too big

attainablefelicity.mattkirkland.com

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Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#2
This is exactly why I love e-books as an adult.

As a kid I loved "pocket books"[1] because they didn't make my hand feel weak trying to hold them on a road trip and I could fit a few in my backpack.

But, obviously, not every work was published in a pocket book format.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocket_Books

Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#6

At that rate, you might as well buy and use an e-reader instead. It really doesn't get any more comfortable in the hands than a light device like a Kobo or whatever one you prefer.

I chop my books and read them on my reMarkable tablet. It really doesn't get any better.

https://www.davisr.me/projects/books/

Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#7
I would never do this normally, but when I walked the Camino Primitivo the guidebook contained other routes so was more than twice as big as it needed to. Weight matters so I tore out the bit I needed.

I read most fiction these days on my Kobo. I prefer physical volumes when I'm sitting at a desk.

Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#8
post #6

At that rate, you might as well buy and use an e-reader instead. It really doesn't get any more comfortable in the hands than a light device like a Kobo or whatever one you prefer.

I chop my books and read them on my reMarkable tablet. It really doesn't get any better. https://www.davisr.me/projects/books/

That's cool and all, but I generally prefer my text reflowable, and find PDF reading on any not-huge e-reader to be a pain in the ass. It's worth it for things that are rich in figures and formatting (like House of Leaves, many textbooks, comics and manga, etc), but for the typical novel or non-fiction book, I really do want just text and the most minimal formatting and layout instructions possible, so I can configure to my own comfort, not to whatever the publisher has decided they want me to see.

Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#9
I came to a similar realization recently. I used to care so much about how pristine my books looked and then I realized that some of my favorite books I have found in used bookstores are ones which are written all over and have a well-worn feel to them. I now annotate all my books with pencil and also write my name in them. I love seeing a history of who's owned a given book when I open the front cover and see a name and phone number.

Re: Chopping up books when they're physically too big

#10

At that rate, you might as well buy and use an e-reader instead. It really doesn't get any more comfortable in the hands than a light device like a Kobo or whatever one you prefer.

I somewhat liked my Kobo except for how much Rakuten kept getting more aggressive with forcing their environment on me. And then my Kobo decided to wipe and reset itself on its own, losing all of my bookmarks and other data.

Nice hardware concept, completely unacceptable software.

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