It has been reported that the unit sales of print books rose by 3.3% over the previous year in 2016, and this has been a three year increase. People are wondering why exactly print book sales are raising so much again and even Amazon must be realising the potential by introducing physical bookstores.
The initial decline of print books came at the rise of eBooks. But although people have come to understand the convenience of eBooks, I believe people also realise that there’s no feeling like turning real pages. Sure, a percentage bar can be satisfying, but nothing beats seeing your progress in physical form by way of the amount of pages you have read.
Owning a book that you really love in print has now become a statement. I myself would rather buy a book that I’m not a sure about in eBook form, but if there’s a book I know that I will enjoy or want to support, I would rather own it in print. Because who doesn’t want that dream bookshelf full of fantastic books? Many feel like it gives them credibility as a reader, but me? I just want to own a great collection of books.
There’s also the resale value of print books
We also have to consider the core value of a print book. This is not just the price tag it’s sold for at retail. Many people resell these books, donate them to charity or pass them on.
An e-reader doesn’t work in the same way. An e-reader is something you hold onto to keep enjoying more and more books. Buying a print book opens you up to more options after you have finished reading it.
Whether you resell a print book or give it away, you are passing on a tangible item that will retain some type of value. Selling your e-reader on the other hand, means losing your means to read eBooks on that particular device and you’d have to find a substitute device to carry on enjoying that privilege.
With that being said, it was only a matter of time before readers thought to themselves “actually, I do really enjoy owning print books.” I have to admit that in 2011 even I jumped on the Kindle bandwagon and sung its praises. But now in 2017 I sit here smacking myself for buying A Brief History of Seven Killings and the Chaos Walking series in eBook format instead of in print. E-Readers are no doubt an amazing innovation, and something that is much needed for modern readers. But the greatest thing they have done is make the books that you choose to place on your bookshelf hold more meaning.
Feel free to share your thoughts on print books in the comments!
