Children Need Both Digital & Print Books

Must we have the digital vs. print battle?
By Gabrielle E. Miller
I lead a national children’s literacy nonprofit organization, so it is not surprising that two recent book industry developments caught my attention: Barnes & Noble’s efforts to digitize 1,000 children’s titles and the use of digital library kiosks in a few locations around the United States.

People frequently ask me what I think about digital books for children. Somewhere in the question is the usual implication that one is good and the other is bad – a question that is not really information seeking, but rather a request for validation from someone who has already taken sides in the upcoming ‘battle’ of digital vs. print in children’s literature.

Do we really have to go down this road? Haven’t we already done this? Is it really going to be digital versus print?

There is nothing new here, other than the specific (digital or robotic) technology. The questions about print versus ‘fill in the blank alternative’ versions of children’s books have been around for a long time, long before Kindles. Yet, over and over again we have seen the ‘wow’ factor of the latest technology replaced by the unquestionable power of parents and children sharing books along with the healthy growth of technology.

Since moving from Washington, D.C., to Silicon Valley two years ago, I must admit that I have become more susceptible to the ‘digital innovation wave of the future’ bit. I do run a national organization based in Silicon Valley that helps families develop the habit of sharing books.

One would think that books would be a tough sell in Silicon Valley and that this would be the epicenter of the digital book revolution. Not true. I have yet to meet one person who argues for digital instead of print for children. I see many children with Kindles, but I also see families using libraries, and many, many used book stores. It is ironic that in one of the world’s most progressive technological areas nobody here seems to be feeling like they have to choose.

They insist on both – which is exactly my point.

We absolutely need both. You cannot put a Kindle in a bathtub with a young child, but you can use a vinyl book. You do not always have room for 15 children’s books on vacation, but you can take a Kindle. You cannot have a pop-up or a tactile ‘tie your shoes’ Kindle (at least not yet), but you can have those things in a book.

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