What is a Book?

A book is a fortress. A book is a place to turn to when you've got nowhere else to go. Books are there to help you when you're feeling sad, lonely, confused, anything. When you turn to a book, you're usually going to do one of two things: you're either going to forget about your problems and get absorbed by the book, or you're going to see that the characters always solve their problems one way or another and you'll realize that your problems can be solved too. Books are somewhere to hide away in, somewhere to get lost, and somewhere to live out any life you want to. When you read, you begin to feel like you are a part of the book, inside it even, so you live out what is happening in it. You can feel and see and smell everything that the characters do. I believe that a book is a fortress because they are somewhere to get lost, where all of the problems of the world melt away, and where you don't have to answer to anyone.

I don't believe that an e-book is the same as a hard cover book because it's not. One is on paper and one is online. That is the only way that they differ, though. Inside of the cover are still the same story, the same words, and the same message. The magical aspect of books is in the words that make them up and it has nothing to do with the medium it's delivered in. It doesn't matter if a book is typed out and printed on paper, or if it's displayed on tiny pixels, because in both cases it's typed out and delivered to you in some form. The smell of a book is something that a lot of readers look forward to; in fact there is even a perfume that is made to smell like an old book. It doesn't take anything away from the book, however, if there isn't that musk between the pages. Someone's e-reader might be wrapped up in a leather case and they get that classic leather musk every time they take their book out. It all depends on the reader's preference, but it's not okay to judge someone on their choice of form it's displayed in.