#boox

I’m debating between the kobo libre colour (cheaper, repairable, waterproof, fast, easy to use, but doesn’t support third party apps for my manhwa - I’d have to sideload) and the boox go colour 7 gen 2 (more expensive, not waterproof, not repairable, better stylus, uses an android os so you can download third party apps including my manhwa apps, but apparently the os has a steep learning curve and is kinda weird).

The Game Changers

I'm gunna have to be honest here, I read the series like I breathe air. As in once I started, I barely stopped nor did I barely stop to take notes on my thoughts of the whole series. So I was initially gunna make a post per book but when I was developing my drafts, I was like waitt like what were my thoughts here etc. So this is my encompassing review of the overall series.

Overall, I really like the Game Changers universe. I think Rachel Reid did a good job entwining all the characters throughout each of the books while maintaining their development/showing where they got to after their stories got to their happy ending. I'm so happy that Ilya was able to slowly develop his friendships with others outside of Shane and find his community.

I was really surprised that Ilya truly followed through with Shane's plan and honestly like The Long Game did a solid job of showing like Ilya kind of being forced to process some of his trauma and depression while learning how to communicate his wants. Honestly though, I don't fully understand why TLG makes people hate on Shane. I don't think Shane did too much wrong. I think he was trying to read Ilya but also respect Ilya's boundaries but also trying to keep a handle on things happening in his life. But I also understand a little bit why people were upset with him considering he had his team and Hayden in the know and everything while Ilya had nothing at the beginning of the book. I just think Shane really developed a lot in the book and like once he got hit with reality of possibly losing the person he loves the most, he got his shit together and just fuckin went for it.

This video was about e-readers. And while the person has a huge collection of books behind them, goes on to explain that e-readers are so unnecessary, cause they are expensive. And if you are going to buy an e-reader, just buy an iPad cause they are similar in price….

I’m sorry but in what world is an iPad and an e-reader the same price?? (Or yk other tablets of a similar nature).

This person goes on to talk about how e-readers can’t install apps like Libby etc…are we just going to ignore the e-readers that run on android?? That function like a regular phone just with an e-ink screen??

I honestly gave up watching this video cause this person just sounded like they were pretty single minded on the topic. So here’s my two cents.

Pro’s for an ereader: (at least in my case)

1. E-reader’s are amazing for portability. Physical books can get very heavy, and although I love them, I hate taking physical books out with me cause I’m terrified of damaging them.

2. Books in my country, are incredibly expensive. You can go to the bookstore, and end up spending $50 AUD and get 1-2 books depending on what you get. Hard covers are usually $40+! Paperbacks can range between $17-$40 also. And if it doesn’t get printed in Australia?? Good luck. The only way I could get Hunting Adeline was to pay $65. Because whenever I ordered it from Amazon at $35, from America, it would come absolutely obliterated because they don’t package it in anything but a basic plastic mailer bag. No protection at all.

3. E-readers are much better for your eyes and don’t have constant distracting notifications and people trying to ring you. I have weak eye muscles. Always have. I wear glasses for this. And I used to read on my phone cause it’s what I have with me while I was out. But once I got an e-reader, I realised just how bad my eye strain was from my phone. E-readers have seriously improved my reading stamina especially since mine has the orange light feature. It’s not like we all don’t have an internet or phone addiction anyway. At least according to statistics I’ve seen in the past. Majority of us are trying to spend less time on our phones and more time doing what we love. And e-readers absolutely help with that. (Much better for my ADHD too honestly.)

4. I live with roommates, I have very limited space. So big book collections is just not something that’s possible for me. I’d love to, but again, space and money.

5. E-readers have given me the opportunity to read books that I’d never be able to get. Because of space reasons, money reasons, and the fact that Australia just does not get the wide selection of books that other countries do. We miss out so much. Some books, we have to wait YEARS for, while everyone else gets them on release dates. My e-reader has been such a huge investment for me, as well as an opportunity maker to give me the option to read books I’d never be able to get other wise.

I will clarify this by saying yes, I do have an iPad. But that was a gift. I didn’t buy it for myself. My mother very graciously bought it for me with her inheritance money. She went out of her way to make sure I had a good working device for university. That iPad was over $2,000 aud. My e-reader?? $250!!! HUGE price difference. And it has helped me save so much money in the process. Cause if I read the ebook, and don’t like it, that’s okay, refund. If I do??? Then I can absolutely go out and hopefully track down a physical copy. If that’s not possible?? I still have the digital version. That I can enjoy over and over.

No, I’m not ignoring the cons to do with DRM, and companies censoring ebooks, not at all. But I feel like either way there is still more pros then what this person was giving e-readers credit for. She sounded privileged honestly, she may not have a use for e-readers. But to be saying that you don’t need one, and that they are completely unnecessary….its just incorrect.

I haven’t even touched on how e-readers help others with disabilities to be able to access books. I have a friend for example that has been very unwell for many years now. And because of this, she has fatigue and strength issues. She at one stage could barely hold a book. But once she got her kindle, she was so over joyed cause she could finally enjoy books again. Kindles are so light, they have stands etc. It honestly reminds me of the people that say audiobooks arnt counted as reading and you shouldn’t do it. Sure, let’s just alienate all the people that can’t read or have vision impairment right? (For clarity, I’m being sarcastic.) Or how about all the cultures that past on the culture, history, legends etc all by word of mouth?? For centuries, way before anyone invented written script. But that’s a whole other tangent I can go off about later.

If e-readers arnt for you, that’s totally fine. But to say no one has a need for them, because physical books exist, is just closed minded. Just because you have the privilege of a huge book library and may not have use of an e-reader, doesn’t not mean that other people don’t have a great use for them.

Anyway, that’s my rant. I don’t like ranting online. But this just frustrated me so much. No hate to this person personally, I just think they weren’t open to the possibilities of how these devices are used and fulfil needs for other people that live differently.

I'm stuck in a weird position of wanting to data horde and keep all my books to myself and upload stuff to my devices at will, but ebooks I'm running into issues.

For starters, I have a Kindle. I love the device, it's great! Fits nice in the hand, battery lasts forever, awesome. I hate being locked to the Amazon ecosystem. Okay so what are alternatives?

Kobo - no Kindle support without converting files and uploading via something like Calibre

BOOX - Known for being fragile and having bad customer service

Nook - Same issues as Kindle with less funding behind them

Around the World in 80 Days? Dulllllll. Super boring. All I remember about it is that there was a long balloon ride that comprised a third of the adventure?

Also it was in large print, and in script form, and there were some line-drawing pictures in an unimaginative style. I had the feeling it was abridged for children. But it was what I had.

...

So anyway, I just went through it again.

And? This book is actually pretty great as an adventure novel. Absolutely a product of its time (this is code for casual impolite stereotypes), and reads like it was sold as a serial, which--turns out-- it was.

But I was enthusiastic from the first paragraph and my enthusiasm never waned.

The first few chapters write the protagonist as something of an autism-spectrum neurodivergent IMO and that, and the use of language in the book, are the biggest draws. And then the titular journey starts.

...and I don't feel like writing down what happens (it's an adventure; reading a synopsis would obviate the point, and you've wikipedia for that if you want to spoil yourself. Read the book!)

But?

The whole damn time I was reading it? I kept waiting for the balloon ride.

And.

My friend.

I have no idea what script I read as a child.

This was an effort to decorate with my personally printed fanarts, and i accidentally went on a green theme.

I got the palma mainly to be able to read during commute and into long hours (eink screens). And to reread my fave fanfics tbh 😭 so novel reading them in this medium

Bonus my 1st ever wallpaper on the palma :

It actually stayed quite a while as a wallpaper and screensaver. Goes well with my fish popsocket. Made by @unfortunately-tonedeaf