E-Readers: Room for Improvement

While many people here still like to use public libraries and buy used books, millions are switching to e-readers.

I've been looking at them. With my ever growing impressive stack of books (especially those sci-fi and fantasy titles that are hard-to-find in Lebanon) and my increasing worry on how I will be able to move all that weight from point A to point B 7,401 miles away, I can see the advantage.

Imagine being able to carry hundreds or even thousands of books in a cute little device that weighs no more than a 12.1 ounces or 343 grams. My favorite at this point by far, as far as options, looks, design, and non-proprietary ebook formats, is the nook by Barnes and Noble. Not just that, it also has a slot for a memory card, a micro USB connector, and most importantly a replaceable battery. This is actually the e-reader Habib is planning to get sometime in the near future.

I, however, have a problem, and I think it's a glaring omission.

See, Habib's reading consists of "knowledge" books so to speak. Philosophy, science, psychology, and whatever curious topic holds his interest at some point in time. A fiction reader he is not. I, on the other hand, while I do read the occasional philosophy or nutrition book, am an avid fiction reader. Mostly science fiction and fantasy, but other things as well. One really important part of these books, is the font.
Publishers spend a good effort when publishing books or novels to choose fonts that set the tone for the book. It's either sharp and focused for some sci-fi novels, more ancient looking for fantasy stories that are happening in some long forgotten era, soft and flowing for some romances, and so on. You may not notice it, but it definitely affects your reading experience. It also has another important function. It separates the books in your head and gives them character. In my head, I know what Harry Potter looks like on the inside, the font, the color of pages; I know what Lord of the Rings looks like, The Dispossessed, The Wheel of Time, Tokyo Vice, This Immortal, the Chronicles of Amber, and countless other books. So while this doesn't matter to someone who doesn't read for the experience but for the "information", it's a big deal for me because as cliche and trite as it sounds, each book is a unique journey. I don't like one book to blend in to the next.

At this point in time, I can't say if it's the fault of the publishers or the e-reader, however, all e-books have the same font. Yes you can change the size of the fonts, but for all practical purposes, all the books on your e-reader will have the same font and the same white background. I would like to see in the near future, an e-reader, with the option for each e-book to have its own background color and font shape or size as is present in the original hardcover or paperback and chosen by the publisher. And I will hold out on buying any such device (though it's tempting) until these myriad e-readers out there can offer e-books that read like their paperback counterpart. Until then, I would consider it blasphemy not to pick up "The Wise Man's Fear" next March (finally, a publication date..Yay!) in its physical form.