The times of hectic holiday travel and leaving at least one thing at the hotel are among us. With all those stressful but fun scenarios to work through, a book lover is left scrambling to keep up with their books.  Being a book fanatic for as long as I can remember, I have struggled with holding onto all of my books during the holiday season. My mom often found books all over the house, in the car, and of course on the floor of the hotel room seconds before we checked out. Cramming the car with fifteen books was not something my parents wanted to continue in the future. So, when the Kindle hit the market, two were beautifully wrapped under our tree on Christmas morning.

Though it has been out for a while and we’ve seen many different iterations, I’m still amazed by how many books I can cram onto that device. I still love reading physical books as much as the next reader, but my Kindle has been a lifesaver more than once. Firstly, I can fit it in my purse and magically still have room for my plethora of odds-and-ends. Since I don’t have Hermione’s bottomless purse or Mary Poppin’s carpet bag, fitting one hundred and thirty books into my purse would be impossible without it. Sure, I don’t need to read all of them at once but having the option to reread any book I choose whenever I want is awesome! Also, I live in a tiny apartment where bookshelf space is scarce and carefully curated. Buying only physical books would result in my apartment turning into a swimming pool made of novels.

I’ve been very lucky in life and have been able to travel to some amazing places. On those seven-hour drives to the beach or flights abroad, my Kindle has been a wonderful companion. Stuck in the airport after already finishing your book because you read way too fast? Congrats, you’ve got a gazillion other options to choose from! As long as you have access to wifi and an Amazon password, the possibilities are endless. Also, some Kindle books can be cheaper than the books they sell in the airport, so it’s more efficient to hop onto Amazon for a new book and download it onto your device. I remember being stuck on an eight-hour flight with no urge to watch movies and a fully charged Kindle at the ready. I blazed through Harry Potter and Sorcerer’s Stone and hopped over to reread a specific scene from another novel. I tend to get an intense urge to read certain scenes in books after I’ve read them the first few times, so being able to go straight to the chapter without having to thumb through pages is great.

Finally, one of my favorite things about the magical world of Kindle’s and similar devices are samples. Emily, you may be saying, out of all the possibilities you choose samples? Why? Well, think back to a time when you picked up a new book in a store. You read the back, it seemed interesting, but you didn’t have time to peek inside to see if you liked the writing style before you shelled over $25. Then, you get back to the comfort of your coziest chair, crack open the book, and two chapters in you put it down. Two years later, it’s still sitting on your bookshelf, gathering dust and taking up a space that could be filled with one of the new book in a series you’ve been eyeing for weeks. With the sample option on Kindle, you can read the first few chapters before spending money on a book you might not like. I’ve read so many samples that never get to the full book stage on my Kindle because the first few chapters sent boredom alarm bells through my mind. It’s also a great way to keep track of what books you want to buy in the future, be them traditional books or in the Kindle book format.

Do you have a Kindle or Nook? What do you like about using them? Or, if you don’t have one, why? Let me know in the comments below! If you want to recommend some Kindle books that you’ve enjoyed this year, you can submit them here.