Finding the beauty in the 'pages' of an e-book

I have stubbornly resisted e-books－that is, until recently, when I discovered the sheer pleasure of reading digitally.

There has long been a belief among many Chinese, and fans of the Oriental culture, that there are super beauties, even pots of gold, on printed pages－meaning that one can reach all life's big goals through reading books.

Even today, many people are tickled pink at the scene described by a Chinese poet 200 years ago that a night well-spent is to do some reading while a woman in red sleeves burns fragrant incense.

Such superstitious beliefs and fancies are handed down from generation to generation, and are closely intermingled with print. For people older than 30, these ideas are so deeply rooted in their minds that they would shun the thought of putting aside printed volumes and picking up a gadget like, say, a smartphone or iPad, for reading.

Frankly, I get eyestrain when I fix my eyes on a computer or iPad screen for more than 10 minutes, and the fun of reading disappears. More often than not, I would be led into the temptation of playing games or checking micro blogs while holding these devices.

But while old habits die hard, new lifestyles creep in.

I have cultivated a love of reading books in both English and Chinese. With this love, I have also developed a dependency on reference tools－dictionaries and encyclopedias. Without them, I would most likely stumble into slumber or misery, even though I have Shakespeare in my hand.

For example, I would have to draw the curtain for the play before Romeo and Juliet even unfolds, if I couldn't find, at the very beginning, what "star-cross'd" means in the line "A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life". A Longman dictionary, of course, comes to my rescue.