Paperbacks are the next e-readers

Artwork by Betsy Freeman. All rights reserved.

Just because we can do things differently doesn’t mean we should.

Copy and pasted below are my takeaways and wanderings from the book The Future is Analog: How to Create a More Human World by David Sax, an excellent read.

The pandemic revealed the shallowness of the “future”.

We experienced the amazing “all digital future” only to come running back to inefficient, uncontrollable in-person experiences. Why? Because there will never be a technological substitute for the embodied experience of life. The same experience humans have enjoyed for millions of years.

The same is true across countless other verticals.

The ease of social media is creating a deadly loneliness epidemic.

Heard of Soylent? Successfully removed the need to enjoy food or eat together with friends. Congratulations.

Our humanity requires age-old analog experiences.

The question is not what’s new, but what has lasted for millenia? Family, friends, music, books… and cooking.

Did you hear Barnes and Noble made a comeback? The people want books. No more screens. We want focused, thoughtful writing.

Read, cook, and make with your hands and with your heart. The skills of the future are grounded in the rhythms of the past.