A year ago, I invested in my Kindle Paperwhite (11th generation) after having my TikTok For You page flooded with reviews and hacks for them. As a college student with limited bookshelf real estate, having an e-reader really appealed to me because I could have the physicality of a book while also having access to hundreds of thousands of books at my fingertips. Since then, I have managed to convince both my friends and family that e-readers elevate the reading game.
First and foremost, my Kindle is so customizable. When reading, I can adjust various display settings including font type and size, light or dark mode, alignment, margins, and other details to make the perfect reading experience. When I pick up physical books, I tend to be picky about the margins and spacing of the words because it affects my reading experience even if it seems like a small thing. It also has accessibility features that you cannot easily get with physical books. My roommate, whom I convinced to get a Kindle, uses a special font that makes it easier to read with her dyslexia. There are also other accessibility settings such as text-to-speech, an engrained dictionary, and an “X-ray” feature that gives you some insight into certain details of the book you may have missed. Within the Kindle, you can also sort your books into “Collections” which make it easy to organize and navigate through your library. On my Kindle, I created three sections: read, currently reading, and TBR (to-be-read).
The device itself is lightweight and the screen mimics paper. The screen is matte, so it doesn’t create a glare like if you were to read on your phone. It’s even water resistant so you don’t have to worry about ruining it if you want to read at the beach or the pool. It also has a dark mode and adjustable brightness, so you can read at night or in the dark, which I always dreamed of doing as a kid with a flashlight and a curfew.
I carry my Kindle as if it gives me emotional support. I bring it everywhere just in case I’ll be able to read, even if it’s a completely unreasonable situation. It’s so small that it fits perfectly into all my bags and sometimes even in my pants pockets (à la Jess Mariano of Gilmore Girls).
When reading physical books, it’s easy to get intimidated by really big ones. My kindle is easily 7 ounces, and the percent progress bar makes me blind to the size of books. With this I can read books that are out of my comfort zone. Plus, since I can only see one page at a time on the e-reader, I can better process what I am reading and avoid spoiling the book by skipping to the next page. With that, I’m able to just consume the media and read much faster than if it was paperback.
Amazon has a monthly subscription where users can access thousands of books, audiobooks, and other digital media called Kindle Unlimited (KU). I personally do not have KU, but I know that they feature many independent authors, a lot of which are popular on Book Tok. It is somewhat limited because you can only have twenty KU titles in your library at a time, but these can be swapped out when you finish reading. An alternative to this is getting a library card! With library cards, you can connect to apps like Libby and Hoopla to rent e-books. These e-books can be delivered directly to your e-reader. The only thing is that there are limited quantities of books, so you may have to wait until the book becomes available for you to read.
About four times a year there is an event called Stuff Your Kindle Day where thousands of books are available completely free. This is not just limited to Kindle; it is available for almost all types of e-readers. Like KU, a majority of the books are by indie authors. For the past few years, this event has been limited to romance books, but because so many readers have taken part, they’ve expanded to different genres. This month alone there are free fantasy, cozy, mystery, and horror Stuff Your Kindle Events going on. The next big Stuff Your Kindle Day (for romance) is happening on December 27.
Another cool thing about Kindle is their Reading Insights. Reading Insights is a feature that you can view on the Kindle App that tells you your reading trends and records, and where you can set a reading goal. It even has challenges and achievements. These challenges are seasonal, happening for many months before they end. There are achievements for how many days you’ve read total, how many days you’ve read in a row, books you’ve finished, and there are even surprise achievements. These challenges help to make reading more fun, as if I’m doing little quests to unlock these digital trophies.
If you love annotating your books, Kindle also has a feature where you can highlight and take notes. Those annotations are then saved and can be accessed on the Kindle or online even after you return a book. I love this feature simply for the fact that I can return to some of my favorite quotes from the books I’ve read. It’s also useful if I’m reading a book for class because I can easily refer to important details that I marked. Kindle can also connect to your Goodreads account where you can post all your highlights and notes to your profile. This allows you to share your favorite book quotes and thoughts with your friends!
Half the fun of having a Kindle is making it pretty! I use a clear case that I decorated with stickers for nothing but aesthetic purposes (and maybe a little bit of protection). I’ve seen people who add charms, use cute sleeves, and go all out to decorate their Kindle. Other accessories that can elevate your e-reading experience are a tablet holder and a remote page-turner. These are the best for cozy evenings where all you want to do is be wrapped in blankets and lay horizontally without having to move an inch to turn to the next page.
I used to be a paperback only type of person, I didn’t understand the hype and adoration of e-readers until I got one for myself. With my Kindle I have read more and have enjoyed reading more. Getting an e-reader has reignited my passion and love for reading which I haven’t had since maybe elementary or middle school. I was heavily influenced by social media to get one but through all the features it has elevated my experience as a reader. My Kindle has been with me during countless pages, harrowing adventures, coziest mysteries, and lighthearted romantic comedies. Through late nights and long flights, my e-reader has yet to let me down and has been one of the best things I have bought.