CPL's Book a Week Challenge discussion
2022 Weekly Threads
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Week 15- What Are "Real" Books?
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Honestly, I've been in such a weird place lately that I haven't actually sat down and read a "regular" book in ages. I still want my stories, though, so I have been doing almost exclusively audiobooks for months. I listen to them when I am taking my lunchtime walk and on long commutes. They have helped me stay sane!
I like that audio books are so portable,great on long drives,also outside while gardening, and it makes ironing quicker,hubby is old school no wash and wear for him
I guarantee the person gatekeeping what a "real" book is spends waaay more time posturing on social media (and in real life) than actually reading. If they have a decent-sized personal library they've never read much/any of it, because to dilettantes like them books are just cultural signifiers*; everything they've collected is based on how "cool"/"interesting" it looked, because it was hyped or a bestseller, or some combination of these.*Unlike myself, of course, whose personal collection remains largely untouched due to laziness.
This is a trick question.
All books are real books. The medium they are presented in doesn't matter.
Why are we talking about this? I was inspired by a reel I saw on Instagram. One of the people I follow did a whole thing where she indicated that yes, audiobooks, graphic novels, children's/middle grade, indie, ebook, etc. are all "real" books.
See, there are people out there who will tell you otherwise. They'll tell you that "real" books only consist of a physical object, with either a soft or hard cover, that contains paper inside full of lines of words. Images may or may not be allowed depending on the circumstance.
These people are wrong.
All books are real books regardless of what medium they come packaged in.
So I just wanted to put that out there to everyone. If you're struggling to determine if a book counts as a "real" book for this challenge or for Goodreads logging or whatever, the answer is "yes."
Listen to those audiobooks. Immerse yourself in a graphic novel. Scroll through that story on your device. Buy that book from a local author. Dive into childhood stories.
All of them are real books.
Happy reading!