I swore that I wouldn't, as I love the look and feel of real books too much.
In my house in France, books are stacked up on shelves, under and over tables and piled up on the floor. They are literally, part of the decor, as I've always believed that books bring warmth and character to a room as well as being part of your personal history.
But in January I bought a Kindle. It was purely for professional reasons – I wanted to see what my books looked like in electronic format. Then I discovered that on Amazon you can 'sample' the first ten per cent of any e-book for free, which is enough to tell you whether you want to carry on reading. It's the book lover's equivalent of being given an unlimited tasting at the Charbonnel & Walker chocolate counter.
I've also discovered that on Kindle, I read much faster. As a result, I have zipped through twice as many books as I normally would, many of which have been on my 'must read' list for months.
When the snow and ice arrived in France recently – blocking out the satellite signal and making it impossible to leave the village for nearly a week – I was even more grateful for my Kindle. I had no TV and no organic vegetables but I did have the the world's biggest book store at my fingertips.
It's important to point out that Kindles are far from the only way of reading e-books – you can download to many tablets and devices including your computer - and Amazon is not the only place to buy e-books.
As for me, I will buy books on Kindle because it is a quick and convenient way to read; and then, if I really love a particular book, buy the 'real' version for my bookshelves.
It is the immediate access that makes e-books so wonderful. It's also a good way not to waste money on books that turn out not be your cup of tea.
And so dear readers, this is a very roundabout way of telling you that ... TOUT SOUL IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON AMAZON. And if you are waiting for the print version, you can in the meantime, click on the link below and have the first two chapters of Tout Soul delivered free to your e-reader, or your computer, tout de suite.
Hi Karen,
I've waited for this moment since last summer and have just read the first two chapters on my Kindle while sipping coffee in bed :-) Love it already!
Best wishes and love to lovely Biff,
Monika