Just recently I found myself in an office supply store, browsing through the newest trends in technology, and had my first look at Kindle - Amazon's wireless reading device. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.

Personally, when I first heard about the idea of a digital book, I hated it. I've always been the type of gal who loves the spicy, dusty, slightly moldy smell of a used book store. Or that first great crack when you break in the binding of a new hardcover. I like my books old, beat up, and smelly. I figure if you find a really old paperback that is in great condition, with no dog-eared pages or creases in the cover - then that book just might not have been loved all that much. But you know what they always say, "Don't judge a book by it's cover", so maybe I've been discriminating against the e-books a little too much.

First, I was surprised at how comfortable it was to hold. As an adult I usually lean towards paperbacks and anything over 400 pages is hard to hold without giving myself hand cramps. Then, my major concern would have been the screen, but I found it surprisingly glare free; and since it doesn't actually emit any light, it didn't hurt my eyes. But would these things ever get me to give up my lovely, musty, pulpy paperbacks that line the walls of my house? Well... we will have to see about that. My little house can only hold so many books after all.

But recently I ran across a site called Wizz-E, a London based publisher of interactive eBooks for children. In their 'About Us' section, they had some good points about today's new readers:

"Let’s face it. Our children love computers! Our goal is to leverage that love to help them get reading. You can choose to read the books with your child or let them listen to the story as it is read out loud. If your child reads the book to themselves and they get stuck on a word just click on that word and they will hear it spoken. There is even a space for games! Or why not have a giggle in the jokes section - remember reading jokes and having fun is STILL reading!"

I think that a site such as Wizz-E can be integrated in ways that the Kindle can't - first, it's far less expensive. Parents can buy the books and use them on devices that they already own. Second, it's kind of a sneaky way to cut into all that time kids spend on computers and video games by getting them to actually learn something!

The CEO and founder of Wizz-E, Jeanette McLeod, has something right in believing that we have to embrace the fact that our kids are going to have computers in their lives more than we ever had. And, at least when they are at a young age, we have to help them create a love of READING before they can develop a love of books, and devices and websites like these can help us do just that very thing.

After all - what is a book without the words? Just a bunch of smelly old paper.

Mamma B