I often find myself reading on a device as well - it is not only convenient for me personally (as I can access pretty much anything I like at any time with the appropriate device and an Internet connection), but becomes a great academic tool. I not only can conduct almost instant research (rather than, say, spending days combing through journals on the fifth floor of the UGA library in order to identify someone who has made an obscure point in a little-known periodical), but I can give students access to "permanent" digital copies in the forms of PDFs and Word documents. However, I find myself agreeing with Hannah on a number of fronts. One of the elements that Thompson ignores is the aesthetic and sensual experience of reading a well-crafted book. It's not just about the feel of turning pages or the smell of a book - though that is certainly part of it - but the tactile interaction with another person's ideas. If the written word is thought made concrete, then being able to touch the page on which though exists is (if a bit pretentiously philosophical), an exercise in being able to interact with the author. Practical things like highlighting and dog-earing make the reading experience interactive and personal. Now, some might argue that the digital tools available to us are capable of recreating the interactive experience. I'll concede that the tools are amazing. But I will also point out that much research on physical note-taking and literal tactile reading notes a greater and broader retention of material. In short, the book and the page matter because they are real, not a series of binary ones and zeroes.