[lit-ideas] Books and E-Books

From: "Lawrence Helm" <lawrencehelm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Lit-Ideas " <Lit-Ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 06:37:17 -0800
In 1999 I retired and moved from a 1650 sq ft condo in Garden Grove to a
2200 sq ft house in San Jacinto.  A major reason for the larger house was to
make room for my ever-growing library.  Now after 15 years I once again
found myself having more books than my shelves would accommodate.  However,
this time I had a Kindle.  In my recent return to poetry especially poetic
criticism I discovered that Bloom's Modern Critical Views series was not on
Kindle; neither are the other books of criticism I've been accumulating.  On
the other hand I discovered the "Delphi Complete Works" series.  There are
some other "complete works" e-book series but the Delphi is the best I've
seen so far.

 

A danger in the electronics world has been that if you put every bit of a
certain sort of thing in a utility and the utility manufacturer goes out of
business then you are just out of luck.  I had that happen to me in the
past, but in regard to e-books the risk seems minimal.  My only e-book
experience has been with Kindle but Delphi Classics are available according
to http://www.delphiclassics.com/aboutus/ for more than Amazon.

 

I acquired the Modern Critical Views: Spenser and didn't find a Delphi
version of the complete works but I did find a 2012 Lexicos Publishing
edition of the complete works.  I haven't used it enough yet to see how it
compares to Delphi.  Nor have I done any searching in any of them to see how
difficult it is to find a reference.  But I do plan to get rid of my old
dog-eared copies of Spenser and take the chance.  

 

I acquired Bloom's Modern Critical Views: Stevens and then couldn't find my
edition of Wallace Stevens poetry.  Stevens isn't on Kindle so bought the
Library of America edition of Wallace Stevens, Collected Poetry and Prose
edited by Frank Kermode and Joan Richardson, 1997.  Will e-books put the
Library of America out of business?  Maybe if Kindle if the e-books become
just a wee bit more user friendly they might.

 

I have several boxes of books in the garage destined for the Salvation Army.

 

If Susan does eventually get a liver transplant the anti-rejection
medication and a few other things could cost a lot; so I'm getting ready for
an austerity program.  I can give up buying books entirely and read The
Golden Bowl in the Delphi complete works of Henry James, switch to the
complete works of Shelley and read "Queen Mab," then switch over to the
complete works of Joseph Conrad and read Nostromo then switch over to the
complete works of Byron and read Don Juan.  Not only are all those sets paid
for but I paid about $10 for the lot.  

 

Not so long ago I got rid of my 1980 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica
because Wikipedia is more useful.  I still have the 1911 set.  I just
checked and no e-book or PDF version seems to have that one quite right yet.

 

Sometimes I remind myself of the parable of the old man who was building a
barn to take care of all his additional grain:  "thou fool!  This very night
thy soul will be required of thee."  Oh well.

 

Lawrence

 

 



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[lit-ideas] Books and E-Books

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