I love ebooks. I love being able to take one suitcase on a 12-day vacation yet still have an infinite number of books to read. I love that I can read books on my phone, which means I always have books with me yet still can carry the smallest purse possible. (I hate carrying a purse.)
But here’s what I don’t love about ebooks: Fewer books on display in people’s homes, which is an absolute catastrophe for introverts at parties.
Studying the bookshelves is one of my go-to party survival strategies. I’d say it’s No. 3 on the list, ranking just behind “Finding a useful task to perform for the hosts” but well ahead of “Hiding in the bathroom.”
(No. 1, of course, is “Marrying an extrovert.”)
Studying the bookshelves serves two useful functions. First, it gives me something to do rather than just standing around awkwardly sipping my drink and trying to figure out what to do when everyone else in the room already seems to involved in a conversation. Second, it gives me a conversational gambit should someone wander my way. “Our hosts seem to be fans of (insert author/subject matter/genre here). Have you read …” It’s not much, but it’s marginally better than “Hot enough for you?” or, because I live in Dallas, “How ’bout them Cowboys?”
Increasingly, though, everyone’s books are on their tablets, and so now what the heck am I supposed to do?
Maybe I’ll spend more time wandering into the kitchen to look at the cookbooks. “Oh, Steven Raichlen! Have you tried the garlicky pork chop recipe?”
And if the hosts don’t cook?
I’ll be the guest hiding out in the bathroom.