# Why are people so obsessed with "smelling" their books?



## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

I'm asking this somewhat tongue in cheek but geez.  So many times when someone is dissing on the kindle they say they want to feel the book and smell it!  

Really--*smell* it!?  I mean, I have nothing *against* book-smell, but ummmm...I always think of that dusty, musty book smell that makes me sneeze when I go into a used book store.  To me it is not romantic or sensual, it is "allergenic!"  I'm thrilled to know that my clean, plastic Kindle will not make me sneeze or wheeze and I won't get my hands dirty from dust and icky newsprint ink that might even contain lead!

So yahoo for all the book "smellers" out there--I will let you have your smelly books and I will keep my lovely odor-free K2!  I'm glad there's something for everyone now!


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## Patricia (Dec 30, 2008)

I often find myself smelling my Oberon leather cover.


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## David Derrico (Nov 18, 2009)

I don't get this either. I have a few friends who are avid readers and I know a Kindle would be perfect for them. But they "love" printed books too much and like having them on their shelves (and the storage space they pay for each month to store all their old books). I'm confident that 98% of people who try a Kindle will quickly love it more than they ever loved printed books and will never talk about the "feel" or "smell" of printed books again.

I love the words on the page, not the paper and glue. I just don't get it.


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## laurie_lu (May 10, 2010)

I prefer the smell of electronics.  I get giddy when I first step into a Best Buy store.


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## eldereno (Dec 27, 2009)

David Derrico said:


> I don't get this either. I'm confident that 98% of people who try a Kindle will quickly love it more than they ever loved printed books and will never talk about the "feel" or "smell" of printed books again.
> 
> I love the words on the page, not the paper and glue. I just don't get it.


I just had a conversation about this with a client today. She said she just could not give up the "feel" of a real book in her hands. Funny though...she mentioned a friend of hers that loves her Kindle and had no problem with giving up the "feel" of a book and SHE IS A LIBRARIAN!


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## Thalia the Muse (Jan 20, 2010)

I DO like the smell of books! And the look and feel of beautifully designed book covers. But my house is full of them, and I don't need to add more ... the Kindle is key in making sure there's room for people to move around the house.


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## intinst (Dec 23, 2008)

I am convinced that 99% of the people who say things like that have never tried to read on an e-ink display. Once you do and see all the other advantages of a Kindle (adjustable font, dictionary, instant access to all your books, one minute downloads, etc.) most would never go back.

and if the smell of books is something you can't live without: http://smellofbooks.com/


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## caracara (May 23, 2010)

Oh come on who can miss that wonderful moldy damp smell of class sets of books, and the random stains that you hope were water, and graffitied books...

Yeah I don't miss the smell of books a bit.


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## jasonrw (Jan 2, 2010)

/thread


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## Martel47 (Jun 14, 2010)

intinst said:


> I am convinced that 99% of the people who say things like that have never tried to read on an e-ink display. Once you do and see all the other advantages of a Kindle (adjustable font, dictionary, instant access to all your books, one minute downloads, etc.) most would never go back.
> 
> and if the smell of books is something you can't live without: http://smellofbooks.com/


That is wrong! I love it!


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

caracara said:


> Oh come on who can miss that wonderful moldy damp smell of class sets of books, and the random stains that you hope were water, and graffitied books...
> 
> Yeah I don't miss the smell of books a bit.





jasonrw said:


> [...video about Pavlov's drooling dogs...]


So I guess that video explains those "random stains."


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

Maybe some of these people like mold and dried out browned pages.


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## Shadin (Dec 29, 2009)

Patricia said:


> I often find myself smelling my Oberon leather cover.


i do this too


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## akpak (Mar 5, 2009)

They only smell good when they're brand new. Even so... harping on the tactile and olfactory "pleasures" of books just seems like elitist posturing to me.


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## ak rain (Nov 15, 2008)

its all in the atmosphere that is created. there are some beautiful books out there. I did read and enjoy the following ebook but the looks of the hardcover was great. did I buy it - no, ebook was enough but enough for all? maybe not. others I think have not tried it, and still others may not be the .....reader.

book People of the Book: A Novel by Geraldine Brooks

Sylvia


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## lovesangelrn (Dec 28, 2009)

I believe smell is the sense that is most associated with memory.  So by smelling the book, you bring back all the feelings and memories associated with it.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

People in general are full of inertia and at the same time very good at rationalizing it. There are still people who will tell you they like playing vinyl LPs on their stereo in part because there is a sort of ritual to carefully removing the LP from the cover and sleeve, placing it on the turntable, cleaning it, cleaning the stylus, and then finally playing it. Personally I hate all of that, but I _do_ love the way they sound, so I still play LPs now and then.

As someone who has mostly read paperbacks for decades, I am drawn neither to their smell nor their feel. Even most popular hardcovers these days use low quality paper that neither smells good nor feels good to me. They _do_ look nice in a book case, but that has nothing to do with whether I enjoy reading them.

What _does_ affect my reading pleasure are the *actual words on the page*. If those words are great, then I love the book whether it's on my Kindle, a paperback, or a deluxe leather-bound edition. If those words suck, the finest high-rag content paper with gilt edges and an elegant font in an exquisitely tooled leather cover with hand-colored end papers is still going to suck.


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## originalgrissel (Mar 5, 2010)

I've always loved the smell of new books, that mixture of printers ink and paper is Mmmm,Mmmmm good, but I love the convenience of reading on my Kindle2 & if I want to smell a book I can go to B&N and do that every now and then.   I think people that claim they could never give up "real" books for a Kindle because an electronic reading device doesn't feel or smell like a "real" book, wouldn't miss their dead tree books after reading on a Kindle for an hour or so.


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## roderpol (Jun 15, 2010)

laurie_lu said:


> I prefer the smell of electronics. I get giddy when I first step into a Best Buy store.


With you on that one!


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

I'm convinced these people are closet glue sniffers!  They're addicted, that's why they can't make the switch to e-ink!


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## MichelleR (Feb 21, 2009)

I think book smell is tied up for a lot of people with learning to read and their first library card and bed time stories and book stores... I think we all have scents we associate with good things. It doesn't really bother me when people use book smell to justify not being sold on the-greatest-book-reader-on-Earth, because people should enjoy leisure time activities the way they want and for some readers that means using smell to bring back the moment when Almanzo proposed to Laura or Heathcliff did the whole more myself than I speel.  

I like knowing someone didn't sneeze all over my book or avoiding an allergic reaction, but I accept other people experience it all differently.


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## Hillary (Apr 26, 2010)

I'm not really a book sniffer myself, but there is _something_ about the smell of my Harry Potter books, especially the first two. Call me weird/nerdy but they almost smell as magical as the plot is. I guess it comes from the fact that those two books are what turned me into the bookworm I am now, but even when I first got them they had the same smell. It just really takes me back, and I've had no other book since thats given the same effect. So, I'm happy with my Kindle for all the right reasons, and I keep my HP books for the sniffing.


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## Andrew Kaufman (Jun 16, 2010)

Have to agree with you there. I'm a little leery of book-sniffers!


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I like the smell of books and the dusty smell of an old used bookstore or a library... but I don't go around sniffing books.  People using that argument against the Kindle strike me as scared of change and looking for any excuse.  Sure the pages of a well made book are nice to the touch and there's a certain feel to having a nice book in your hands... but do people really read Easton Press leatherbound editions every time they read a book?  No, it's usually going to be the cheap grey paper with the easily smeared ink of a mass paperback which smells mostly of glue and cheap ink.  I don't get nostalgic over that at all.


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## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

Ah! Thanks for the smiles, everyone!



> Even so... harping on the tactile and olfactory "pleasures" of books just seems like elitist posturing to me.


 Maybe that is one of the reasons I get annoyed by uptight "book-sniffers" They seem so elitist, LOL! Of course some of my best friends are "book-sniffers" so not all of them are elitist posturers, LOL!



> I DO like the smell of books! And the look and feel of beautifully designed book covers.


 Ha ha! Maybe *That's* my problem--I have mostly dime-store sci-fi books kicking around my house and they don't smell as nice, LOL!


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

I think that people are used to reading one way and are having difficulty moving to a new medoum. They think of an ebook reader as a small computer and want to preserve the regular reading experience. Most people who try a Kindle or Nook or Sony immediatly see that the text appears the same and then can appreciate the ereader.

Give them time. I know plenty of folks who were freaked out by CD's and DVD's. I remember my Dad telling us not to spend too much on CD's when we got a CD player because they were not likely to take off.


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## misscrabtree (Feb 1, 2010)

Smelly books are the main reason I stopped going to the library.  I must have a super sensitive nose or something but if a book smelled like cigarettes or musty I couldn't concentrate on what I was reading, just the smell!  Since adopting my Kindle I read constantly and am thankful I don't have to deal with those issues anymore.


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## bvlarson (May 16, 2010)

Usually anti-tech responses like this have to do with someone not wanting to have to learn to do something new. I teach CS courses at college, and every time there are a new version of office or whatever, people endlessly complain. People don't hate to learn, they hate to RELEARN something they already know how to do. Just think how happy you would be if the gov decided steering wheels were dangerous and joysticks were better, and ordered all cars to be equipped with them. Even if they were right, the list of complaints would be endless. 

With books there is also the invested "I don't want a reason to throw them all away" feeling. Once they see how easy it is to use an ereader, however, they usually convert on the spot. They see how clear it is, how cool it is and they very quickly want a Kindle, because it offers a superior reading experience with really zero learning curve.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

I have no problem with people preferring paper books over ebooks for any reason. My problem is when they then take that preference and jump to the conclusion that ebooks are therefore somehow invalid and to be avoided at all costs -- especially if they've never actually tried reading an ebook on a Kindle (and for more than a few minutes, but instead long enough to get used to it).

I like watching blockbuster action movies at the movie theater with the ambiance of a live audience, the huge screen, the smell of popcorn, etc. However, that does not stop me from watching a lot more movies at home whether on DVD or via my satellite dish. The convenience of watching movies at home plus the lower cost causes me to watch a lot more movies that way, even though I might prefer seeing them at a theater. And I have found that in many ways, watching a DVD at home is _better_ that going to a theater: I can pause the movie if needed, I don't have to worry about other people's cell phones going off or explaining the last scene to their date, and what the heck is now on the bottom of my shoe.

Likewise, reading on my Kindle is not exactly the same as reading a DTB, and there are a (very) few things about DTBs that I like that I don't get from e-books; but there are things my Kindle gives me that DTBs do not. Most importantly, I am reading more new books that I would never have read if I were limited to only reading DTBs.


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## PG4003 (Patricia) (Jan 30, 2010)

I think for most of us who love the smell of books, it's like the smell of many other things, the smell brings good memories to us.  I can remember as a child, getting to go to the library, and the first thing I noticed when I walked in was the smell.  I have lots of DTB's in my house and I haven't actually ever "sniffed" them just to smell them, but any time I walk into a book store, I recall the awesome feeling I had as a child.  

My mother has been dead for 52 years and to this day, when I smell Jergens lotion I think of her and I'm filled with a longing for her.  I guess it's the same philosophy as the book smell.


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## Sunnie (Apr 3, 2010)

what does "magic" smell like?


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I have always liked the smell of a brand new hardback, but the fact is after they sit on my shelves any length of time the smell is of dust.  And I never could buy very many hardbacks - didn't really want to if it came to that. Hardback books were only for a few very favorite authors. So now I'm happy to reduce my keeper books to a couple of bookcases that can actually be neat and not overflowing. I haven't bought a paper book since I got my Kindle over two years ago and don't plan on it again. I don't miss the smell or anything else.


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## Crystalmes (Jan 28, 2010)

laurie_lu said:


> I prefer the smell of electronics. I get giddy when I first step into a Best Buy store.


DITTO!!!!


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## fuschiahedgehog (Feb 23, 2010)

I've been an electronics sniffer since as long as I can remember.  Nothing like the smell of a freshly-opened motherboard or new gadget.   That being said, I have tons of books in the house as well, and I love the smell of an old musty book.  It instantly transports me back to childhood, when my grandmother was always buying me old used books on electronics, astronomy, geology, etc.  It's like I'm back in my grandparents' house, on summer vacation, sitting in the corner reading my geeky books.


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## Addie (Jun 10, 2009)

I love the smell of books. For me, it triggers great memories. The smell of books takes me back to my first public library and how I used to volunteer there. It also reminds me of when I used to go to BookStop before they closed down and get mom to buy me hundreds of dollars worth of books, get home, make a book tent/fence to isolate me from everyone else and just read.
The smell of books is a reminder of how much I love books.

That said, I don't actively search out books to smell. And I don't understand why it has to be one or the other.
If I want to reminisce, I can go to B&N or the library. The burden of having to carry around thick, heavy books always brings me right back to the Kindle.


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## Indy (Jun 7, 2010)

I don't enjoy smelly books.  I do enjoy physical things which are full of memories of a lifetime of use, however, and I own quite a few DTB books that have that quality for me.  As an asthmatic, I can not enjoy musty moldy things so I have to keep my regular books clean.  The kindle embodies cleanliness along with its neat appearance and other virtues, and of course my bible is still on my nightstand.  For that book my preferred reading method is the hard copy, and it's not the kindle's fault I was born years before the technology was.  There's magic in the kindle, and it smells like coffee and clean air.


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## JennSpot (Feb 13, 2009)

One of the reasons I love my kindle is that I don't have to smell books.  Apparently I have some sort of allergy and when I hold old books my fingers and lips begin to tingle and swell.  New books do not cause this, so I am guessing it is a mold or possibly a mite problem?


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## Carld (Dec 2, 2009)

To me the most important thing about a book, really the only important thing, is the words. I don't really care how a book feels in my hands, how it smells, or if it has fancy typography (as long as I can read it comfortably), all I care about are the words.


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## TLM (Apr 8, 2010)

PG4003 (Patricia) said:


> My mother has been dead for 52 years and to this day, when I smell Jergens lotion I think of her and I'm filled with a longing for her. I guess it's the same philosophy as the book smell.


When I smell Jergens I remember my grandmother, she always kept a bottle on the kitchen sink. Mothballs remind me of my 70ish best friends, I was 2 at the time. Yes smells are powerful. But I agree, most who say they love the smell of books too much to give them up are being scared of new technology or elitist. After all having a Kindle or a Nook doen't keep you from ever buying a DTB again. It just helps you make more room for the important hardbacks and gets rid of the cheap paperbacks taking up way too much space.


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## Martel47 (Jun 14, 2010)

NogDog said:


> I have no problem with people preferring paper books over ebooks for any reason. My problem is when they then take that preference and jump to the conclusion that ebooks are therefore somehow invalid and to be avoided at all costs -- especially if they've never actually tried reading an ebook on a Kindle (and for more than a few minutes, but instead long enough to get used to it).
> 
> I like watching blockbuster action movies at the movie theater with the ambiance of a live audience, the huge screen, the smell of popcorn, etc. However, that does not stop me from watching a lot more movies at home whether on DVD or via my satellite dish. The convenience of watching movies at home plus the lower cost causes me to watch a lot more movies that way, even though I might prefer seeing them at a theater. And I have found that in many ways, watching a DVD at home is _better_ that going to a theater: I can pause the movie if needed, I don't have to worry about other people's cell phones going off or explaining the last scene to their date, and what the heck is now on the bottom of my shoe.
> 
> Likewise, reading on my Kindle is not exactly the same as reading a DTB, and there are a (very) few things about DTBs that I like that I don't get from e-books; but there are things my Kindle gives me that DTBs do not. Most importantly, I am reading more new books that I would never have read if I were limited to only reading DTBs.


I like what you're saying here. I used to run/work at a movie theater(s). Blockbuster did not kill the multiplex. Granted, Netflix might kill Blockbuster. But the theater and Blockbuster/Netflix both serve complimentary purposes. I do think the analogy starts to break down at this point. Theaters usually offer better quality sound and projection for the content of the film, compared to home theater, or at least different in scope and scale from home. The content of DTBs and e-books are the same and don't depend on the media. However, there is certainly still an "experience" with DTB's. For me, that experience is not something that is all that important, and I actually prefer the Kindle "experience" to the DTB, given all other environmental considerations. I can read both in the same places; both are portable; both deliver the same content.

Still e-readers win for portability of books and cost of those books. I wonder how many books I'll have to buy to equal the cost of the reader itself, though.


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## idolguy (Dec 31, 2008)

liannallama said:


> I'm asking this somewhat tongue in cheek but geez. So many times when someone is dissing on the kindle they say they want to feel the book and smell it!
> 
> Really--*smell* it!? I mean, I have nothing *against* book-smell, but ummmm...I always think of that dusty, musty book smell that makes me sneeze when I go into a used book store. To me it is not romantic or sensual, it is "allergenic!" I'm thrilled to know that my clean, plastic Kindle will not make me sneeze or wheeze and I won't get my hands dirty from dust and icky newsprint ink that might even contain lead!


I have 2 kindles...yet I was smelling a paperbook book I purchased earlier today. It's an aesthetic sense. Hard to describe if you don't enjoy it.


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## idolguy (Dec 31, 2008)

David Derrico said:


> I don't get this either. I have a few friends who are avid readers and I know a Kindle would be perfect for them. But they "love" printed books too much and like having them on their shelves (and the storage space they pay for each month to store all their old books). I'm confident that 98% of people who try a Kindle will quickly love it more than they ever loved printed books and will never talk about the "feel" or "smell" of printed books again.
> I love the words on the page, not the paper and glue. I just don't get it.


It's an aesthetic thing. It either appeals to your or it doesn't. I own 2 kindles, but still love the smell of a good book. Owning a Kindle doesn't diminish that. Most of my books are on my Kindle now, but my enjoyment from smelling a good book hasn't changed.


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## pinkpoodle (Mar 14, 2010)

I can not stand the smell of books. What is even worse then smelly books Newspaper. OMG, I hate the smell of newspaper. Even worse is newspaper that has sat out in the sun. I can not stand the smell or feel of it. Just the thought of it eeeks me out. 
Shannon


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

Martel47 said:


> However, there is certainly still an "experience" with DTB's. For me, that experience is not something that is all that important, and I actually prefer the Kindle "experience" to the DTB, given all other environmental considerations. I can read both in the same places; both are portable; both deliver the same content.


I am so with you on this. I agree its experiential to read a brand new hardbound or a beloved paperback and I agree that the tactile experience is less important to me than the cognitive experience of the book itself. I haven't gotten rid of my library - there are too many books I love in it as well as various and sundry first editions that I want to keep - but I haven't read in pbook form in over a year.


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## worktolive (Feb 3, 2009)

Huh, some people really do like the way books smell. I really thought that was just a knee-jerk "I hate new technology" reaction. 

To me, new books have no noticeable smell at all, and as for used books, ugh, the first thing I noticed when I picked up one up after reading on my Kindle exclusively for a year was how awful it smelled. I could barely read it, I kept wanting to put it down. Pre-K, I just put up with that musty, yucky smell, but now that I know how much nicer it is to read on my K, the only reason I'm reading DTBs is to keep my costs down by buying the occasional used book. I won't buy them unless they are "gently" used though. I just can't bear that smell.


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## patrisha w. (Oct 28, 2008)

misscrabtree said:


> Smelly books are the main reason I stopped going to the library. I must have a super sensitive nose or something but if a book smelled like cigarettes or musty I couldn't concentrate on what I was reading, just the smell! Since adopting my Kindle I read constantly and am thankful I don't have to deal with those issues anymore.


{nodding} I was a part-time librarian for a time and was amazed how many smokers didn't realize that the books they brought back to us smelled. I remember one patron on whom we could smell tobacco the moment he came into the library. {It was, admittedly, a small one-room library!} He was a talented watercolor painter and taught at the local community college. I felt sorry for his students!

Patrisha


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## Jan Strnad (May 27, 2010)

I like the smell of a movie theater, too...but I don't want my living room to smell like that. I hate the smell of gyms, even clean ones, probably because I suck at sports and gyms remind me of being beaten half to death by dodgeballs in school.

I've never seen "book smell" cologne or after shave or air freshener, so I have to believe that the pleasure of book smell comes purely from a pleasant association with reading. 

If people are looking for a reason not to like ebooks, I suppose the lack of paper smell will do as well as anything.


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## mwb (Dec 5, 2008)

Like dogs, book readers can be quite territorial.  They have to make sure that no other reader has marked their books as "territory" before they can read it themselves.


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## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

Thanks, everyone for keeping this thread so interesting!  I actually appreciate the aesthetic and nostalgic feelings of a good paper book--it's just the histrionics of some people who say they could never read on a cold-hard *plastic* device that bothers me, LOL!  

And the Jergens lotion comments are so odd because the smell of it also makes me think of Grandma!  I guess there was a time when every Grandma would use it, LOL!

I love hearing your stories and opinions on this and I'm glad to hear the different points of view!


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## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

oh, Scott!  That is such a sweet story and definitely brought tears to my eyes!  Yes, indeed--that is certainly a book worth smelling!


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## PG4003 (Patricia) (Jan 30, 2010)

Very touching story, Scott.  And I so agree with you, there are certain smells that bring back pleasant memories to us.  I think that's what people mean when they talk about smelling books.


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## Jan Strnad (May 27, 2010)

Some quick book reviews:

_Frankenstein_: My copy smelled like it had sat under somebody's sink for a year. Moldy and damp-smelling. Avoid!

_1984_: This one had obviously belonged to a heavy smoker! Gaah! No stars!

_Wuthering Heights_: Smelled delightfully of lavender and talcum powder. Five stars!

_Catcher in the Rye_: This book was obviously carried around in someone's gym bag for several weeks. Euw! Don't read this book!

_Marley and Me_: Obviously this book was pre-owned by a dog lover. Smells like it rolled in something dead. Avoid!

YMMV, of course.


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## Tuttle (Jun 10, 2010)

I do like the smell of books and of used bookstores in general. I think is because of how strongly scents trigger memories. I don't usually actively smell my books though I have before. It was hilarious when in a high school elective the shipment of Great Expectations had came and and the teacher gave them out and we all were smelling the books because they were arbitrarily nice smell books (literally the whole class was, it was something I liked about that class).  However, a used book smelling bad is absolutely a reason that I will avoid that book and look for a different copy of it - most commonly that is because of smoke of some sort. 

However, I don't think that's a reason not to use a kindle. I absolutely agree that there are books that I don't want on the kindle, I want a hardcover copy of, not even a paperback would suffice, but for the average book the kindle works well, is easier to pick up and put down, more convenient to bring with you, and generally averages to cheaper (especially for me who is mostly reading free books, making my way through the Baen free library).


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## zoewinters (Jun 18, 2009)

I got a kindle and then after reading in ebook for awhile I tried to read the latest Sookie Stackhouse book in print. And HOLY CRAP that book stinks. Like a paper mill. I don't understand this: "I love the smell of books" business. It's got to be the threat of ebooks. Then again, there is a small contingent of people who like the smell of farts too. Just saying.


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## Victorine (Apr 23, 2010)

zoewinters said:


> Then again, there is a small contingent of people who like the smell of farts too. Just saying.


ROTFLOL! Okay, that was so funny. Just had to laugh.

Vicki


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

Farts and cigar/cigarette smoke are the worst in my opinion.


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## TLM (Apr 8, 2010)

I love the smell of gas and coffee.  I wouldn't drink either, but like the smells.    I have my K2 to keep from adding to the stacks of books.  I will hold and smell the ones I already have it the need arises.  But, I agree, there are some books which I will continue to purchase DTB, usually in hardback.  Anything heavy in diagrams or photographs, maybe cookbooks or quilting books.  The next Outlander book.


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## zoewinters (Jun 18, 2009)

mlewis78 said:


> Farts and cigar/cigarette smoke are the worst in my opinion.


Oh, now I love the smell of cigar smoke. But not cigarettes.


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## ummhussam (Jan 25, 2010)

liannallama said:


> I always think of that dusty, musty book smell


I think of the same thing. I personally DO NOT like the smell of books. Then again, I'm also not one to sit around sniffing books. Or newspaper, for that matter. And since I'm terribly prone to paper cuts, the "feel" of books is also not a selling point of dtbs. In fact, my husband said to me after he bought me my Kindle, "At least now you won't get your usual 10 paper cuts per day."


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## ayuryogini (Jan 3, 2010)

Oh, I love smelling my new books, and the smell of a bookstore. 
But I love my Kindle so much, I don't really miss it, plus I still have plenty of books, 
And, yes, that great leather smell of the Oberon cover.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I love the smell of a new guitar. . . . . .


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## Feste (Aug 25, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I love the smell of a new guitar. . . . . .


Nothing better...

My parents were book collectors/antiquarian bookmen, my father was a librarian, all the walls of the house were covered in book shelves, we had ranges in the basement(didn't everyone?) it smelled like home with our multiple cats and smoking parents(1950's).

The first half of my working life I worked in the library system of a major university with millions of books in the stacks. Smelled like work and dust and anxious students.

The second half of my working life was in a book manufacturing facility(printing plant). Smelled like a factory.

I love rare, old books with their hand bindings and worked leather, the vellum sheets. But one doesn't generally curl up by the fire with those for a nice read.

But I have little association for the way a book feels or smells positively or negatively with regards to reading it's just the medium not the message. When it comes to reading I really have no awareness of the tactile or olfactory aspects of the book, unless it stinks to high heaven or weighs as much as a cinder block. The less it intrudes the better. So I doubt very much that I will miss the experience of holding a book and breathing in it's essence or trying to hold a heavy one when I get my kindle. In fact the small form factor, light weight and the mechanics of page turning is one of the things I am most looking forward to. Haven't really thought too much about what it smells like.


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## Samantha (Jul 16, 2010)

laurie_lu said:


> I prefer the smell of electronics. I get giddy when I first step into a Best Buy store.


OMG me too! I lurrrvvvee Best Buy!


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## calypso (Aug 21, 2010)

i dont get this too, and i've been a book worm since i could read. i've destroyed my eyesight at a very early age already because of too much reading so i know i am an avid reader.

but i dont buy books or read books to smell them. i don't use my nose to read books. i have my eyes for that. i'm so used to reading ebooks that i don't even remember the smell of books. or maybe i've just never paid attention. 

i dont even miss the physical bookshelf as more crammed stuff means more dust accumulation and that translates into allergy and asthma attacks for me, so much better for me.

i started reading ebooks around late 2008, when i first got my asus eee pc, which i used as an ebook reader then.  and then i switched to an msi wind with bigger screen because the miniscule screen of the eee pc hurts my eye a lot. my netbook has been my ereader eversince. i have a macbook as a main computer. i just could not justify the prices of ebook readers before when i can get a decent netbook with about the same price, or less.

since the price drop, i have no more excuse to sacrifice my eyesight and i made the plunge into getting the K3. cant wait!


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## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

I never read if I have a cold or my allergies are acting up because I can't smell the book and it takes all the enjoyment of reading out of it.


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## cc84 (Aug 6, 2010)

I am a book sniffer, i admit it. But it's only for new books. I recently took a book off my shelf that had been there a while and had been covered in dust, and that nice new smell had gone.


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## Tatiana (Aug 20, 2010)

eldereno said:


> I just had a conversation about this with a client today. She said she just could not give up the "feel" of a real book in her hands. Funny though...she mentioned a friend of hers that loves her Kindle and had no problem with giving up the "feel" of a book and SHE IS A LIBRARIAN!


I, too, am a librarian and I had no problem giving up printed books for my Kindle. I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of my K3.


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## Gerund (Aug 8, 2010)

It's been my experience that people who mope and hem and haw about "the smell of books" and other ABSOLUTELY VITAL GOTTA-HAVE-EM properties of books tend to forget about them as soon as you put an ebook reader in their hands.


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## Julia (Jul 30, 2010)

Not obsessed but yeah, I love the smell of new books. I've had my nose in a book ever since I could read so I have lots of good memories related to how books smell. I don't get why one has to pick one and shun the other. I love real books and always will. I love the Kindle and likely always will. It's like trying to compare watching a movie on dvd at home and watching a movie in the theater. Both have their good and bad points. Can't all the book lovers just get along?  I mean really, who cares if someone prefers one to the other? Personally I find it a bit obsessive to be so concerned with other peoples preferences that you have to put one or the other down. For those getting all hung up on it....take a deep breath...if someone has a different preference that you, it doesn't mean your preference is wrong or vice versa. It just means we are individuals with individual tastes. Everyone doesn't have to like chocolate OR strawberry, OR Kindles, OR paper books.


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## zoewinters (Jun 18, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I love the smell of a new guitar. . . . . .


I like new car smell.


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## terryr (Apr 24, 2010)

I only consciously smell my books if I smell something bad, like stale smoke or mold. LOL.  But I admit to liking the feel of the paper.


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Just part of the experience of paper books that some enjoy.  Nothing more to it than that.  Just like anything, everyone has their own set of things that appeal to them.


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## Philip Chen (Aug 8, 2010)

Will book sniffing replace glue sniffing in the New Age?


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

Philip Chen said:


> Will book sniffing replace glue sniffing in the New Age?


That's already what it is! "New book smell" is chemically treated wood pulp and glue. "Old book smell" is deteriorated wood pulp and dust/skin cells plus any other odours picked up from the environment, such as naphthalene, smoke, cooking smells and mould. So when people tell me they like the smell of books, I don't think "aah, a true reader", but "aah, chemical dependency!"


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## 4Katie (Jun 27, 2009)

I never got the whole book smell thing. To me, if a book 'smells' it's old and dusty - and probably moldy!


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## rcanepa (Jul 1, 2010)

You know, I hear that argument all the time and never really stopped to consider it before now.  Good point.  I do not, as a rule, sniff my books.

Maybe there's a difference between "individual book smell" and the "smell of an entire bookstore" smell?


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## akpak (Mar 5, 2009)

I prefer the smell of new electronics...


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