https://childrensaudiobookarchive.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

This is the link to my digital archive of children’s audiobooks.Some embedded links in my posts don’t work. If you run into an issue please click the link provided below the audio bar, this should take you to the direct website where the audiobook is posted.

Have fun listening reading!

For my final project I wish to expand on an idea I formulated through a previous assignment. In our earlier search of finding examples of audiobooks I decided to narrow in on the children’s book genre and found a number of YouTube channels showcasing audio retellings of popular children’s tales. I was impressed with the technical value and production of these videos. The storytelling aspect had been elevated with use of sound effects and voice modulations and the overall ambiance of the audio harkened me back to a simpler time in my life where books were often read to me. In my blog post I mentioned that these audiobooks may act as a favorable method for parents and or teachers who are inclined to introduce their children/students to reading methods without their direct assistance. This idea of having an almost virtual babysitter intrigued me to learn more. 

Upon doing research on the added benefits of children centered audiobooks I found a bevy of articles on parenting/book sites that list the values of integrating such media into young readers minds. For the most part the benefits seem to line up with the belief that the audiobooks help children gain comprehension, vocabulary and pronunciation skills whilst also exposing them to literature above their grade level. This is especially pertinent to those who are diagnosed with ADHD or dyslexia as the visual to audio format allows for less distraction. Furthermore expanding on my initial point of audiobooks acting as a babysitter, the sites also add that the medium acts as a method to keep kids entertained and focused while the parent is busy or in need of a break. 

Base research alone has convinced me to look at children’s audio recordings as a formidable learning tool in the modern age. However as stated by Prof. Jeff on my blog post; children’s audiobooks have been a tool that have dated back as early as the 1920’s and 30s. For my project I would like to dive more into the world of children’s books converted to audio format. My goal for this project is to create a digital archive to showcase the evolution of production concerning the audiobooks. By breaking down the books found by decade I will observe the advancement of technical attributes applied to the recordings through the lens of what is to be expected through modern day standards. Through this process of finding and listening to these recordings I will discern if the quality of the audiobook has improved and/or altered itself to meet the needs of today’s children. Perhaps earlier recordings of children’s books exhibit qualities of storytelling that are not utilized today. I am hoping for this project to not only answer these questions but also act as a reputable source for those who are searching for children’s audiobooks themselves, whether that be for research or personal reasons. 

This project will require me to do an immense amount of research on children’s book recordings. Some of which may not even be available online. I am not too completely certain as to how I am going to compile all these recordings but my initial plans lie in doing at least 10 for each decade I can find. These recordings will have to be downloaded as an audio file and then linked to a CUNY WordPress site I will set up. The recordings will be filtered by date and genre and have a short descriptor on the story itself. This will involve author, date published and synopsis of the plot. I also wish to provide images of the book being represented to add an extra layer of organization and clarity. 

My main inspiration for the aesthetics of this project is derived from  https://archive.org/. This was the only reputable archival website I had found when searching for digital audiobook archives. The website is described as a non-profit digital library where users from around the world can upload media. This is not specifically delegated to just audiobooks but the site does feature a section dedicated to it. The layout of that particular page is similar to what I am trying to achieve as far as organization is concerned. I will attempt to follow this as a template to showcase the work I have compiled by the end of this project.

INTRO

Building on the literature based theories of writers such as Barthes, Iser and Drucker we have learned to see text as an object that may be manipulated and expanded upon by way of the reader. “The Reader” in all three theorists’ eyes is pronounced as an integral part of the formation of the narrative. Although the author is the one that creates the story, the reader is the one to transcend the text to new grounds. Of course there are a number of ways where the text can be handled but this project in particular has utilized the art of annotation. 

PROCESS

Our process began by first coming to an agreement on the type of text we wished to commentate on. Team member Teddy suggested the Victorian novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. The suggestion fit in well with our team’s all encompassing love for the macabre and vampire lore. We were all immensely intrigued by the prospects of the project and discussion on how we wished to approach the task commenced as soon as we formed our group. Our preliminary discussion revolved around the text itself. Some of the members had previously read the novel while others were pursuing it for the first time, I personally fell into the latter category. We agreed that we would all read the novel on our own terms and speed and start annotating when we felt prepared enough to do so. Our annotations are arranged on a free e-book edition of Dracula team member Brianna found on the website ProjectGutenberg. Those that didn’t have a physical copy of the book were able to use the e-version. Once we settled matters on the text we had back and forth discussions via whatsapp on where our text and annotations would be displayed. Manifold and Hypothes.is were our top two contenders. Although there were a wide range of benefits to both, we decided it would be best to keep things simple and easy to use to avoid any confusion. Hypothes.is was a platform everyone on the team was already familiar with so we managed to save time by skipping over any tutorials we would have needed if we had gone with Manifold. This proved to be a big advantage to us as we were allowed more time to focus on reading the text. 

Once the annotation tool was set it was formatted into a Cuny WordPress blog where we were all administered as members. Work from here on out was largely independent. We kept in touch through text messages but we decided early on that our annotations will reflect on how each of us personally wanted to view the text. Some members had a specific critical lens they wanted to focus their analysis on while others followed an almost stream of consciousness while reading. We did not want to infringe on anyone’s creative process so each member was given free reign on their contributions, the only overarching theme we wanted to abide by was the objective of incorporating humor into our work. Highbrow vs Lowbrow was a theme that constitutes our team the best so we definitely wanted it represented in our project. The modern day use of the internet has provided readers with the opportunity of utilizing comedy when discussing literature. I think this is a perfect representation of the evolution of text that has permeated our readings the past several weeks. The shift they seem to have disregarded is meme culture and its effects on how literature is viewed today. Our modern take on Dracula by use of internet humor invites conversation we hope to see on our site. 

PERSONAL ROLE

My personal form of annotation did not begin with a defined approach, rather I wanted to go with qualities of annotations I prefer when reading a piece of commentated work. With that being said, if I were to attempt to dissect and organize my notes, I would say they fall into three categories; theories, definitions (I always find these helpful) and cheeky humor. Every now and then I did add an annotation on the obvious but that’s more or less me wanting to emphasize something I felt was exciting. Personally I did not want to conform to one specific mindset when reading the novel, I wanted to give myself the opportunity to say how I felt in the moment while also attempting to be analytical of moments in the story I felt were worth discussing further. I hope I conveyed that through my work and I invite anyone to chime in with their thoughts as well. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

My experience in annotating the famed vampire novel was truly enlightening. Because I have not read the novel beforehand I was able to experience the story with fresh eyes. Although I already had my preconceived notions on how the text was going to play out, I was pleasantly surprised to uncover that this is not a mere piece of monster fiction. Stoker definitely has taken liberties in his work to express themes outside of horror and mystery. Themes of love, friendship, queer romance, domination and submissiveness pervade the novel. Annotating has given me the chance to remark on such themes. Given the opportunity to highlight and comment on the novel has provided me with the platform to open up further discussion on a 19th century book that has long been manipulated by the hands of Hollywood. My own personal work aside I also got the chance to see the thoughts of my fellow members as well. Annotating honestly feels like a virtual book club! One of the central benefits of an annotation program is the ability to foster an environment for conversation and introspection. There were a number of things that my members picked up on that I hadn’t thought of when reading the novel myself. In all, I think the benefits of annotation have made way for a renaissance of literature and reading as an activity. I look forward to seeing the evolution of lit based analysis in the years to come, perhaps even more use of memes!

In Wolfgang Iser’s piece The Implied Reader, we are given insight to the evolution of the  author-reader relationship. As an author, you are given creative license to mold your readers mind to the interests of the characters and world you have created. Iser describes the aforementioned relationship as a simulated partnership that “gives the reader the impression that he and the author are partners in discovering the reality of the human experience”. However Iser notes that this assistance of the writer has shifted after the 18th century as literature was no longer considered a form of leisure and luxury but rather an arduous task that requires the reader to fend for themselves when uncovering what the author intended with their work. In taking on this task the reader may rely heavily on the narrator to provide clues. The narrator, as Iser mentions, is the one that communicates directly with the reader as a somewhat character in the book. This is independent from the author of the book as well as the implied author- who Wayne Booth, author of Rhetoric of Fiction describes as the one who’s attitudes shape the book. Even though these three roles are separate from each other, the reader relies on all three to work together to piece together the puzzle of the book in order to sink into the reality it has taken place in. Reality in general is something Iser mentions cannot be replicated in a novel. Even in a realistic novel the vast occupancy of reality is not something that can be conveyed through mere text. Therefore, the narrator and implied author jointly put the reader in the experience of the sentiment of reality the book has created. The implied author arranges the events while the narrator comments on them. The narrator can take on the role of the guide but can leave space for interpretation on part of the reader. This allows the reader to make themselves part of the social reality that constitutes the book. 

The reader themselves are sometimes kept at a distance from the characters as they are experiencing the events of the novel with them. This coupled with the narrator’s intended commentary gives agency to the reader to make critiques themselves. In other words the reader can be set in reality while also questioning it. The analysis of the situations and characters on part of the reader are facilitated by the narrator who can change the perspective, but it is the reader who accounts for the book to be considered reality. Thus the participation of the reader is essential in materializing the facets of the novel. The author is no longer projecting their own view on to the reader but rather expanding his vision “in order to compel the reader to view things for himself and discover his own reality”.

I found Iser’s piece to be extremely thought provoking. The perspective of the author shifting from “lawmaker” to hub for outside involvement is a most interesting thing to note. As a reader and writer myself I can see both aspects through my very own experience. Funny enough as a reader I am looking to dissolve myself into the world the author has created. Even if I am not familiar with the setting and situations being provided, I like to imagine myself as the character and go through the motions as they do. In other cases I like to imagine myself as a background character; observing as I go along but also somewhat taking a part in the action. It is almost instinct for me to try to find some relatability with the text that I am reading. However in the context of Iser, I can admit that there have been times where as a reader I found myself not being able to connect and relate to the characters at all. This is where my role of critic is summoned. I can sit and read a novel and judge the characters for what they have done and frown upon their exploits as they navigate the plot of the story. It is a bit mind boggling to think that involvement of the reader is a modern novel asset as I can’t imagine reading a book without my own input being thrown in the mix. I am glad that reflections and criticism can be shared with the novel without taking credibility away from the author. After all there is a difference between critiquing the characters and their actions and critiquing the overall writing style of the book. The latter takes aim at skillset while the former invites interest in the story. Polarizing characters and plot details make for interesting analysis and without it I’m not sure half of the English lit classes I took in school would exist. The idea of the narrator managing the reader without speaking for them makes room for multiple theories that go outside the scope of what the author may have intended. Book clubs and fanfiction have been created on that very same principle. I would argue that without space for the reader to become a part of the reality of the novel, the novel may be forgotten. It is because of the reader that the work lives on, which I feel is exactly what the writer has intended. Uncovering the intention of the author is rudimentary in understanding the novel but with allowance of interpretation we can answer the question of intention whilst also theorizing our own possibilities of what that may be. As a writer I relish in the idea of individuals assuming what they can with the details I have provided (stories, poetry etc). Even if their exposition is one I have not even considered while writing, I can still be excited by the theories being made. I believe an author in the modern age goes by the same mindset and with that the idea of uncovering the pieces of the puzzle to make sense of a story is not all that arduous as one might assume. It is now easier than ever to comment on written work as platforms and internet threads have been dedicated to it. The roles of narrator, author and implied author may go through another shift as we continue on this trajectory. With fanfiction already allowing readers to change the plot of stories, is it possible that we rearrange the importance of the roles? Will the reader be the main provider of involvement? Is modern text just a vehicle to be manipulated and critiqued? 

Continuing on our escapade into the stimulating world of audiobooks, the class and I were given the task to compose our own version of the modern text medium. Reiterating the sentiments from my last blog post I will once again state that audiobooks are not something I was all too familiar with before this course. Before diving into this project I was already intimidated by the prospects of what may come out of it. I knew the goal wasn’t to achieve perfection but rather a sense of agency; a way to procure experience in a new form of reading. With that in mind I still wanted to produce a piece of work that was suitable for the audiobook genre and with the help of my team I truly believe we have created that. 

PROCESS/ROLE

Our process began by first discussing the source material we wished to base our audio on. To avoid time being spent ruminating on the possibilities of what text from the literary world was best to record, we decided to make things a bit easier on ourselves and look into the examples that were already provided to us via the prompt. Unanimously we came to the decision that Ernest Hemingway’s novella In our Time was the preeminent choice. Hemingway’s writing is known to play off of vivid descriptions and dramatic tone of voice. Both of these elements were ideal for our text to audio conversion. Once we zeroed in on the components of Hemingway’s writing we wanted to feature, we started the recording process. Team member Sean was the first to record. Sean’s background in linguistics provided our team with someone who was quite proficient in the art of narrating. His tone of voice and cadence was pretty much perfect for what we were trying to achieve. This coupled with Sean’s enthusiasm for recording as much of the text as he could made us come to the quick decision that our audio should have one sole narrator. This decision was a great advantage for us. Not only did it make our process more organized, as we were now getting audio from one source instead of multiple, but it also resonated with the elements of Hemingway we wanted to maintain. Hemingway was clear and direct with his words while writing, it only made sense that one steady voice was best to convey that. Once we had compiled all the recorded chapters it was time to experiment with background noises. Although we were all aware that the use of sound effects might distract from Sean’s narrations, we were adamant in having them in place to bring Hemingway’s graphic images to life. This was in fact a work of literature that revolved heavily around themes of war and battle, not adding a noise feature seemed counterintuitive. 

This is where my role in the project came in. Listening through all recorded chapters I concentrated on parts where I felt a sound byte would be suitable. The areas I deemed could be appropriate for background were time stamped along with a short description of what sound I felt worked best for the sound mixers and editors to add in. This turned into collaborative work as I worked with the sound mixers to hone in on what can be used and what can be disregarded. Below is an example of our mini exchanges on our shared google doc.                          

     Example 1 Example 2

During this process our team unfortunately hit a bit of a snafu. Turns out there are two versions of In our Time, both published a year apart from each other. Although both feature some of the same vignettes, the 1925 version does disregard quite a few from the 1924 version( parts that we had already put in time recording and time stamping!) 1925 version also adds new stories into the mix by including time spent at an Native American camp and the witnessing of a cesarean section. With not much time left to re-record we decided to make the decision to work with what we have while adding a couple more chapters from the 1925 version as well. Furthermore our audiobook also features a disclaimer in the beginning to let readers know of our mistake to dissuade any confusion. Once we got past our small setback editing in the sounds began to take place. Led by Miaoling and Hampton’s talents, our audio was brought to life! 

LESSON LEARNED ABOUT AUDIOBOOKS

With the completion of this project I can definitely say our audio is something I was proud to take part in. I was already forming an appreciation for the audiobook genre when I first went on a search finding one to present to class. I was fascinated by the idea of having a text read to me as a viable form of “reading”. I must admit that in the past I felt audiobooks were too much of shortcut, a easy medium for those who wanted to tell people they read a book without actually reading it (in the traditional sense). Looking back I feel this might have been a trait of my pompous English major past. Although I still feel reading a text directly and hearing an audiobook version of it are two completely different experiences, I don’t think one is necessarily more superior than the other. The audiobook provides the listener/reader the opportunity to have a more sensory experience. It allows you to sit back and have a story be told to you without the physical labor of constantly carrying a text in hand. Hearing back the audio from our project I was able to listen while lying down comfortably in bed. This provided me with the privilege of letting the story wash over me as I visualized along with the words. Although I always liked the feeling of turning the pages of a book, I will admit that staring at a text for too long does get a bit draining. A lot of the time I find myself also getting distracted and having to re-read certain parts if I don’t feel the text is engaging enough to hold my attention. In the audio format I’m more inclined to listen as the story is being presented in a way that’s more appealing. I can honestly say that reading Hemingway is way better in audio. I truly don’t think I would have been able to get through In our Time without skimming at least five chapters if I had to read it myself. In all I feel audiobooks are a great alternative for texts. Not only for convenience sake but for engagement as well. 

INTRO                                                                                                                               

I want to start my post with full transparency and say that before this class, I had never delved into the world of audio books! Reasoning behind this doesn’t stem from any distaste for the medium, it’s just something I haven’t really considered for myself when “reading”. So with no prior experience with an audiobook I decided to hark back to the days of childhood where books were often read to me. Although these reading sessions weren’t professionally recorded the objective of it remained the same as it was still a text being read out loud for me to hear rather than see. With this in mind along with the general knowledge of knowing digital literacy has been prevalent in the modern age, I knew it would be very easy for me to find and access children’s books in audio format. Although I am not all too familiar with how the youth of today consume their literature, I assume prerecorded texts are a favorable method for parents and/or teachers who are inclined to introduce their children/students to reading methods that don’t require their direct assistance. I want to note that this isn’t a bad thing, audiobooks are often used as a form of convenience so why not use it in all aspects? I imagine children’s audio books are a great way to keep the child engrossed when the caretaker in question is preoccupied with other tasks.       

AUDIOBOOK/QUALITIES     

Through a quick google search I was led to a bevy of YouTube channels littered with “read aloud” versions of popular children’s books (Storytime Anytime, Toadstools and Fairy Dust, Storybook Nany Read Aloud etc.) Luckily I was able to find the very particular children’s text I was hoping to discover through one of these channels. The book I decided to present in this post is Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. A book that I’ve read and had read to me numerous times as a child. The general premise of the text revolves around a young mouse who is consistently teased at school due to her unique name. Through the help of her parents and teacher she learns to accept the name she once loved so fondly. The book revolves around themes of self acceptance and bullying from peers and is a text  I recall heavily relating to as a youngling, as I also unfortunately suffered the wrath of bullying due to my name (being an ethnic kid in America kind of sucks). Nonetheless I remember taking solace in the fact that this was an issue not specifically delegated to me. Although I was aware the book was a work of fiction I felt a special connection with that little mouse. Hearing the audio for this book again definitely tugged at my heart strings a bit. 

The audiobook itself was taken from the aforementioned channel Storybook Nany Read Aloud. The female voice behind the audio enlists the use of various auditory accompaniments to bring the story to life. Background music, the sounds effects of objects moving, background noises as well as voice distinctions between characters were all utilized. Below are some time stamps of when these effects were used 

0:30- 0:40 (Mother and Father speaking)

1:05 (Sounds of Birds Chirping)

1:16 (Sound of faucet running)

2:15 (Sounds of taunting giggles)

2:30 (Voice of Main bully Victoria)

6:43 (Sound of dice)

6:50-7:07 (Music change indicating nightmare)

The production value of this video definitely made for a mentally stimulating experience. Although the video itself does feature still images of the illustrations taken from the book I decided to minimize the window for a complete auditory experience (I hope this doesn’t count as cheating, I know it’s not a legit audiobook but I figured it used the same elements). Even without the images I felt as if I could picture every scene of the book inside my head. The background noises coupled with the descriptions provided by the narrator made “reading” this text all the more enjoyable. Reading a print copy of a children’s book can be a delightful experience unto itself, but there’s honestly something about having a children’s book read to you. I believe in order to read children’s literature the speaker kind of always has to have an air of enthusiasm and animated whimsy in their tone and delivery. Although I feel these voice modulations can sometimes be a distraction and cross into “cheesy” territory, in the context of children’s’ books it always works! 

This assignment has sparked my interest in audiobooks and I look forward to discovering more in the future. 

When beginning to analyze the decline of pleasure reading in favor of digital platforms, the initial thoughts that often come up correlate the need for books with the time and era in which print novels seemed to be most popular. As novels were one of the few semi accessible forms of entertainment offered to an individual in the pre digital age, it is easy to make the call of judgment on modern society today and point the finger at the generation of internet dwellers who supposedly spend majority of their day to day lives behind the luminescent screen of their devices instead of the pages of a book. However I think it’s safe to say that this argument like many others crafted by the generations before us, is generally baseless. Too often then not the technological advancements crafted for the modern age have gotten criticism from boomers for its delivery of ease and simplicity. Because we as humans have evolved to a phase of everyday living where computers and the internet are always on hand, the argument of whether or not this has, for a lack of a better term, “dumbed us down” has been prevalent. However I along with the various authors cited in this post will make the case for the age of the internet and its many added benefits. 

The first argument I want to zero in on revolves around the question of: does using a search engine equate to laziness and unintelligence? In Leah Price’s essay What We Talk About When We Talk About Books, she cites an article by Nicholas Carr brashly titled Is Google Making us Stupid? Carr mentions how immersing himself in a book or a lengthy article used to be so easy but in the digital era he found himself getting fidgety, and what was lost wasn’t just the information that he was no longer absorbing, but the taste for being absorbed (Price pg 2) Of course I can’t speak for Carr’s personal feelings regarding his lack of attention span spurred by the influx of cyberspace we have been experiencing for years, but I can say that a person making this argument the general consensus of how all of humanity generally feels, seems a bit injudicious. Yes, life has been made easier when an answer to a question does not involve the drawn out process of going to the local library to search through books and journals, but why is that necessarily a bad thing? Does the notion of taking a supposed shortcut diminish the fact that a person still went out of their way to try to find an answer to a query? Regardless of how the answer was obtained we can’t disregard the fact that knowledge was still acquired and absorbed. What is the need to add unnecessary labor and why does that equate to how intelligent we are? There seems to be a misguided understanding that the internet does more harm than good when it comes to the human psyche. I won’t deny there are frivolous and sometimes harmful assets to the world wide web, but the frivolous nature in particular doesn’t seem to be all that damaging to humans in the grand scheme of things. Lynn Coady touches on this in her novel Who Needs Books? when addressing the idea of the “serious writer” (Coady pg 11) although I found her take to be prevalent when it comes to readers as well. Coady’s tongue and cheek criticism of the “serious writer” was quite poignant as I too have also felt that the distinction between academics and “low brow” entertainment to be quite pretentious. It is quite possible to be well read and academically inclined and still participate in frivolous entertainment such as reality tv and internet memes. Assuming your life to a standard that is particular to your brand and profession has always seemed a bit try -hard in my opinion. Moreover I also appreciated the not so subtle judgment to the idea that writers can only be taken seriously if they devote their life to writing and nothing else. Coady is quick to call out how the overall privilege of one’s lifestyle is a big proponent to that (Coady pg 38). I would also like to connect this back to readers as well. Perhaps those that deem the internet a shortcut have never given thought to the fact that many don’t have the time available to get to the library and scour through various texts to get what they need. Maybe they have forgotten that the average individual probably has a job and social/familial obligations that prevent them from going through the aforementioned process. In other cases it may very well be possible that printed materials are not accessible to them at all. Coady brings this up again when mentioning Margaret Atwood’s anecdote about the co-founder of Wattpad recounting to her the time an old man from an African village had written a letter thanking the site for being a platform to read and share stories. The village itself did not have access to schools, libraries, landlines or books (Coady pg 45). Even though it is a bit jarring to think that there are regions in the world that have access to mobile devices and Wi-Fi and not educational institutions and books, we can choose to see this as a somewhat positive thing. The internet and the age of digital literacy has brought us resources that were not previously accounted for. Today almost anyone can have a world of information available at all times which in itself has become a pivotal benefit to the well being of our minds. Without the internet I can’t imagine knowing half the things I do now. 

Now that we’ve established the web as being a valuable resource, let’s center this argument around books and its evolution. Another point that has come up has been the question of- Can reading a novel on a tech based platform make us want to completely disregard the need for a printed physical copy? And what does that say for the legacy of printed novels? Price brings up that the debate between print vs. electronic has shifted between generations but the previous consensus has revolved around fear. Fear of printed literature being forgotten and written off as an old medium. However rather than being referred to as an old medium, Price believes that it’s a format being reinvented (pg 4 Price). This reinvention allows for the reader to engage with the text in ways that wouldn’t otherwise be possible with print. Take for instance the app based novel Pry referenced by Jessica Pressman in The Novel in the Digital Age. The composition of the novel is not traditionally served in a format that allows the reader to flip through pages to read a text. Instead readers use the “forefinger and thumb to pry open or pinch close a virtual window, a space on the surface of the screen” (Pressman, 9). The nuances and physical participation of the reader can transcend written text in new and creative ways. Ways that can very well encourage more people to read and engage with literature. Alan Liu in his essay From Reading to Social Computing praises the web as “one of the most powerful publishing platforms ever invented”. The internet acts as a halfway point for author and reader as an individual is actively using text to convey what they want from the web. Community reading and writing is more pervasive than ever thanks to twitter threads and comment sections. A thought or opinion is written for the public sphere to then elaborate, relate or argue on. Individuals can now even use social media sites like Facebook to model a text e.g. students using Facebook to convey Romeo and Juliet. This puts a fresh take on the classic play, one that may be more intriguing to the youth of today. 

I want to end this post by saying that I don’t think the death of the print novel is something that’s going to happen immediately. However I will say the internet is here to stay and will only get more revolutionized. Instead of harking back to the days of yesteryear we should embrace change as it comes and look for the value in the new rather than reminiscing on the old. If you are someone who wishes to continue your foray into print literature then that is your own prerogative. At the end of the day we have always chosen what to engage in. Let’s not blame the web for we as humans choose to consume.