I Bought a Kindle

For the first time since the early days of this blog, I own a kindle. I won one in my past life that I used for eARCs and review requests from indie developers, but I eventually sold it to Half Price Books because it sat on a shelf untouched for quite a few years. And I was fine. I wasn't doing much reading, let alone digital reading, so I was unbothered. 

Flash forward a few months ago, I started reading again (due to TikTok). And then I started getting eARCs from a few of my favorite creators on #BookTok, which I read on my iPad. I do not recommend reading on an iPad. For one, it's uncomfortable keeping the the case of the device open with the case I had and two, it hurt my hands to hold up. It was also hard on my eyes. After binging some books, my eyes would be so dry they hurt anytime I tried to look at a screen. I have bad eyes anyway and reading on my iPad just made them worse. 

With reading more, I began to take my books to work to read during my lunch. Not a bad idea but I was limited in what I could read there. I didn't want anything with an inappropriate cover, and I didn't want anything too heavy to stick in my bag. It was fine for a bit, but I wasn't able to get as much reading time in as I wanted. 

So I bought a Kindle. 

It is everything I hoped for and more. I can fit it in my purse and read at lunch or on the go. If I'm grabbing brunch, I can chill with a nice book even though I forgot one at home. The battery lasts so long. And I can download fanfics from ao3 directly to my Kindle, so, of course, I'm reading more fanfiction. I have no idea how I lasted this long without one, or why I sold my other one in the first place. Also, downloading ARCs from Netgalley is so much more simple. I'm reading more than I have in recent years because even when I don't have the mental capacity to pick up a book, I can trade out my phone for my Kindle and read something fun. 

And since I bought a Kindle, I received three free months of Kindle Unlimited. Talk about game changer.

I have gotten to download so many books that have been on my TBR for so long that I hadn't bit the bullet and bought (since I spend SO MUCH on books, I can't get them all haha). 

I am IN LOVE. 

I still have two months left and there's so many more things worth checking out. I love having the access to Indie publishers that I don't usually get at my local (or big box) bookstore. I've found so many great books and new favorites because of the flexibility of Kindle Unlimited. The 'zon is not usually a place I like to support (because capitalism, piracy rules, and all that), but I think this is a great program they offer. When they are not taking down indie books for dumb rules. 

This is not a sponsored post by any means. I just wanted to share the joys I am getting from having a Kindle again. I can't believe how much I was missing out on. Maybe it's time to give audiobooks another try... 

-Kayl

In case you're interested, I just got the 2022 Kindle (not the paperweight). (Again, not a spon.)