I am an avid reader. It wasn’t something that just happened. I used to hate reading. But one day, while looking through my parent’s basement I found a book called, The Naked Sun. I was barely in my early teens and, of course, the title made me smirk. I remember showing it to my brother Mike. He immediately started, “It’s a great book! Have you read it yet? It’s about…”

Which was really odd. I guess he didn’t realize that I was trying to make fun of the title. So, not knowing what to do or say I read the book in hopes of being able to comment further. And that’s when I got hooked on reading. The key for me was to find books that interested me.

Which leads me to a couple of days ago when I was struggling to read a book. The book interested me, but it was in PDF format and that meant I was limited to reading it on my PC or Ipod touch. Currently, I spend too much time in front of a PC at work and the Touch has a small-ish screen. What to do? In slides the Sony Reader!

The reader is thin and light, easily held in one hand. You can use it to read ebooks, pdf and txt documents, view pictures (in grayscale) and it will play MP3s, too. The screen is big enough to present me with a paperback feel and the text is clear to read in moderate lighting. Although the interface is a bit sluggish and a little less than user friendly, I quickly found myself enjoying its ability to bookmark pages and increase font size. Additionally, there is definitely a lot less strain on the eyes while using the Sony reader than using a PC. I’m hooked!

Here’s a picture:

Read, Baby, Read!

BTW, my brother and I never had that follow up conversation about the book. So Mike, if you are reading this: You were absolutely right about The Naked Sun. It was great. And for encouraging me to read it… Thank you!