Why Books

I went to the antiquarian book fair this weekend and bought two books I'd never heard of (one by Andre Gide, the other by Heinrich Boll), a pair of bookends, and a small bust of Schubert. Digital books don't interest me. I require the artifact, preferably with an attractive dust jacket and on good paper. Alfred A. Knopf made such books for the mass market starting in 1915; he was stickler for bindings, typefaces, and artwork. He also brought important foreign writers to the American public in translation. Horace Liveright's oversized editions, including the Black and Gold Library, are elegant and durable. A wall lined with books brings energy to a room: It is both accusatory (Why haven't you read X, Y, and Z?) and reassuring (as old friends should be). With a book in your hand you know exactly where you are in relation to the end. A digital book is a solution looking for a problem. Digitization goes hand in hand with commoditization. It's bad for books.