Book #5- One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn

 

This book has honestly been my toughest read so far.  Although it's a mere 140 pages, the material is pretty heavy and there are no chapters.  The writing is great and you really find yourself rooting for the hero of the story, but the reason that it was so tough to get through is that it's an extremely accurate description of life in a Stalinist era Siberian labor camp.  There isn't any glamor, no real climax, just a gritty look at the beauty and tragedy of humanity.  

Here's my take on ebooks:  If they make you read more than you would with hard copies, do it!  I absolutely admire people who can read ebooks with as much gusto as the paper counterpart.  However, I am not one of those people.  I'm a bit more romantic about books in general.  I love the feeling of flipping pages, the smell of old paper (I buy 90 percent of my books used), and the sound of a book hitting the wall when the story didn't end the way I wanted it to (Her Fearful Symmetry).  

As far as investment, it just all depends on how much you read, and how you acquire your books.  If you're like me and prefer books with paper pages, I highly recommend buying your books used.  Amazon has extremely cheap used books, and I'll use them if my local used book store doesn't carry what I'm looking for.  It usually does though, thanks Myopic Books!

Also, the Chicago Public Library system is a great one and it's a great resource for any reader, researcher, or curious community member.  I'll go further in detail about CPL  and libraries in general later.

Moral of the story is- whatever, however, whenever best suits you, just read!