Which one do you prefer?
World Book Day, which is held annually on April 23 worldwide, champions the accessibility of books to everyone. The effort highlights books and fosters reading despite different demographics. Started in 1995, the global event has seen a development in terms of reading materials from the different genres introduced on different platforms.
In the year 2024, different platforms, such as e-books and audiobooks, stood alongside physical books. Although all three platforms aim at sharing ideas, knowledge, stories and cultural information, they each offer a different experience to their users. And with different experiences, each attracts different users.
Sharing their preferences, these individuals talked about which platform they preferred — physical book, e-book and audiobook — and why.
James S L Yong, baby boomer, semi-retiree
“I definitely prefer physical books, but I do listen to audiobooks at times. Sometimes it’s good to give one’s eyes a rest and just listen. I’m particularly drawn to audiobooks read by the author or someone whose narration skills are good. But I never really get into e-books unless I urgently need to read a new title and can’t take the usual ordering delay.”
Jacqueline Voon, 65, stock broker
“I definitely prefer physical books, as I do not like to stare at the screen all the time. My stockbroking profession requires me to look at the screen all the time, and that is enough for me.”
Jessa, 26, MBA student
“I prefer physical books. It helps me retain information better. I can write anything that comes to mind while I’m reading the book. When you actually see the words, your attention is held more closely. You can always go back and find any part you missed, especially if your mind wanders.”
Victoria Joanne, 43, writer
“I used to prefer only physical books in the past. Having an actual copy in my hands so I could feel the pages on my fingertips and smell the papers they are made of has always been such a delightful pleasure for an enjoyable read. However, I’ve come to be more open to e-books recently due to the amount of reading I need to get done for my work and studies. I carry my current reads with me everywhere I go, and I’d usually have three to four of them at any one time. Sometimes, it’s not possible for me to lug all these books around.”
Georgette Tan, 46, writer and poet
“I used to be a diehard proponent of dead tree media, but physical books take up space, and things that take up space become a place where dust settles. Meanwhile, reading e-books was something I found myself easing into. There are so many places where you can get e-books for cheap or even free without resorting to piracy. I also noticed that some e-books are cheaper than the print version.”
Jamie, 33, psychologist
“I prefer e-books because I can carry a device that is loaded with multiple books. I read everything from fictional literature to self-help books. I tend to swap between two books at the same time. An experience with the difference between physical and e-book is searching for a particular topic or part in the books that I’ve read. In e-books, the search is faster by just typing in the keyword. Physical books will require flipping through.”
Annabella Wee, 39, mother
“When I was an air stewardess, I was crazy over Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles. I could finish a book within a day. I had to go from one bookstore to another to look for the missing chronicles. I was so desperate that I tried looking for it online and found a PDF version! I realised then that I didn’t have to spend so much every week waiting for the book to arrive at the store. But one thing’s for sure: back then, I would rather own the book. It’s like a sense of achievement.”
Alcila Abby, 32, event coordinator
“To be honest, I prefer physical books for the way the pages are turned, the texture, the smell, and the sound they make. But on the practical side, e-books are what I’m into now — practical, economical, fast (want a book? Just download it), saves physical space, is hassle-free when you don’t like the book, and can just be deleted without thinking much about how to dispose of it responsibly.”
Kelly Kong, 36, mother
“I prefer audiobooks and I can listen to them until I fall asleep. As a mother, I cannot be glued to a book when I have my children next to me. So I would multitask by listening to the stories, and if I do fall asleep, the next day, I would have to go back a few pages to find where I last remembered the story to listen back.”
Stacy Gregory, 36, housewife and part-time project leader
“Being clinically diagnosed with depression and anxiety, I listen to audiobooks to sleep most times as a white noise, to drown out the inner voice when it gets too loud. Nonetheless, I do still read physical books because nothing beats the smell of the papers, the feel of the pages, and the folds of the corners.”
