If you know me, you know I champion eBooks. Even though they have become an enormous headache for libraries and helped in the decline of Barnes & Noble, I still love them.

My first eReader was a Nook 1st Edition by Barnes & Noble. I loved you, Nook 1st Edition, with your e-ink screen and your strange little LED touch screen menu at the bottom. You even played music that I loaded onto you myself to play as I read. You were there for me through so many life changes, so many moves to various apartments and houses. You were with me when I brought home my dog Onyx from the Humane Society back in 2008. I read the Hunger Games books with your help, as well the Oz books. The first library eBooks I ever borrowed using OverDrive, I borrowed through you. But, it seems all too soon, your number was up, and it was time for us to part. Another Nook came into my life, and I cast you out, sending you to another home. I am sorry for that. You deserved better considering all we had been through.

My next eReader companion was a Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight. I’ll always remember the happy times we had. It was a Barnes & Noble staff member who introduced us. Soon after, I began working at that very Barnes & Noble part-time and met my soon-to-be-husband with you just a few feet away at a friend’s house. You were with me when I relocated to Cleveland, you were with me when I moved in with my soon-to-be-husband, you were with me through different librarian positions. I loved how you felt and how you made me feel. Your warming glow at night was easy on my eyes, allowing me to seamlessly drift off to sleep; you were thin but had weight; I loved your bulky side buttons, so smooth and soft to touch as I “turned” your pages. Obviously, I miss you. Your number was up too soon, when I accidentally dropped a physical book on you, cracking your screen. There’s such poetic imagery there about the struggle between eMedia and print media, I could not have dreamt it myself.

For the past year, I’ve become quite fond of my newest eReader friend, the Kobo Aura One. That’s right, I abandoned the Nook for you, Aura One, and I went to a new device from a new company. Though I miss the Nook dearly, all the experiences we shared and the books read between two devices and me, you, my new friend, have a backlight that automatically adjusts thanks to your sensor, you’re waterproof, and you’re even more lightweight than the other two devices. Also, I can borrow library eBooks directly from you, without having to side-load, no chord required, or send from an app. Here’s wishing for years and years of adventures together.