I prefer to live dangerously...

I was shocked when I was recently told that I probably have ADD. Apparently I was the only one, because when I mentioned it to my friends, they all replied, "Of course you do."

But I've always been able to sit and read books for hours. From the moment I start a book, to the time I finish it, it's usually glued to my hand. Music playing, TV on, eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner... and the book would stay open. I'd be enthralled. It didn't make sense to me, then, that I could have ADD. Until I actually thought about it. Yes, I can read for hours - because it's constantly entertaining. There's never any need for my attention to wander very far, because every second amused by the story. So when Johnson, in his article “How the E-Book Will Change the Way We Read and Write,” mentioned the potential for wandering attention with e-books, I was kind of surprised. An e-book is still a book, which means it should have the same power to capture me.

Don't get me wrong -I habitually check my e-mail, and Facebook. All the time. I feel anxious when away from my phone for long periods. And I know many, many people who suffer from the same problems. But even when I'm reading a book that's printed, and actually in my hand, I still have the potential to be online. Hell, all you have to do is have a phone with internet access near you while you’re reading, and you’ll have that same constant temptation. Would it really be that different to have it combined?

I guess, what I'm trying to say, is that the people who like to read will still be able to have the same attention span for reading, regardless of its format. I do find his reference to Middlemarch highly amusing, though, since it’s one of the very few books that I was never able to make it all the way through. I still shudder when people mention it. And Dickens? Ew. Hate him.

Anyways, in the end, while I’m not against e-books, I don’t really agree with Johnson that they’ll have such a large impact on the finished product that we actually call a book. But I’d much rather read something that’s been printed, I like the danger associated - I mean, you never know when you’ll get a paper cut.