Reading recently of the ongoing challenges in the import/export markets of the UK paper industry, and the recent launch of the Kindle and Sony reader, has made me think how much books and their printing, access and reading has changed in even my limited lifetime. Nathan Bransford linked to this article in the New York Times, discussing the merits and successes of using video games to spark an interest in books in younger readers.

When I left university, the Internet was only beginning to be used by the masses. To me it was an unknown. Tecchie geeks, who hid in the paper-cupboard sized, sock scented room, worked on 'computers', whatever they were. I was an Arts student. I had no idea.

Recently planning permission was refused for the Bodleian expansion, much needed since the library stock has outgrown its cavernous storage system beneath the buildings. It owns over seven million books, stored on an ever growing 110 miles of shelving.

I had the privilege, though I didn't truly appreciate it at the time, of reading in some of the most well stocked libraries in England, probably in the world. I was able to read books from different centuries of history in which I hoped to find the answer to my essay of the week, a quote which would bring enlightenment, or a simple explanation of the subject in hand. Some of the libraries required the books to be ordered, and to be read onsite. You would get nervous as closing time approached, the essay deadline the next morning, and you were not yet finished. A bell would be rung a few minutes before closing time, the signal for readers to finish working and leave. The books could not be removed from the building. Some were incredibly old. Fragile. Valuable. Some were a complete waste of time, in terms of achieving my purpose. And yet, they may have been rare copies of works.

I wonder what will become of paper and books in the next fifty years, or the next hundred?

With carbon emission restrictions and the gradual reduction in pulp production, will we be able to afford books? Will they become an elitist luxury or a treasure to be locked in darkened rooms? What of books that are felt to have no purpose? What if the digital world will require books to become only accessible by electronic means, and the book itself, would be banned for the common man, nothing new printed and unwanted books, destroyed?

Through news of the reopening of the Saatchi gallery, I came across this blend of artwork, sculptures and even furniture made from books, by Jacqueline Rush Lee, originally from Northern Ireland now living in Kailua, Hawaii. It seems almost sacrilegious, but on the other hand, they take on a new life and beauty, beyond the words that were contained within them. What value has the book of itself? Does the printed book matter or is it the writing, once recorded in any format, that gives it it's value? And if it is the writing, then what does it matter if it is available in digital or in a paper form? And yet I think it does.

image © Jacqueline Rush Lee