Vook. The e-book answer?

Making the leap from printed page to digital screen is still an experience in its infancy. Fueled by new apps for the iPhone and propelled by Oprah's love of the Kindle, more and more people are trading in their paper books for digital versions. But other than a lighter briefcase, the advantages are hard to see and sometimes till tough to sell. A recent New York Times story about a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and a handful of other developers has a great "value added" idea that may move the idea from the fringe to the mainstream.

The group, with Bradley Inman at the fore, is working to develop video content integrated into e-books that will make them more compelling and more competitive with other forms of online entertainment.

Sara Nelson, the former editor-in-chief of Publishers Weekly, comments in the piece that video would need to be skillfully woven into a story to be truly successful – and I agree. Supplemental material, like video interviews with the author, video shorts, or "extra footage" like that done for the DVD version of a major film, is probably not enough for someone to open their wallet for the reading device. But what if that material delivered something that the book couldn't? Is there some visual component to the reading experience that we've all been missing? Can a clever jacket, for instance, be only the start of a visual experience that brings something to the story that words alone can't?

I love the idea that digital books could be something completely new for readers, something beyond their favorite, well thumbed copy of a classic or a clever film adaptation. Finding the right way to do this, though, may prove to be elusive. I suspect there could be a few clumsy attempts, like the awkward moments in the movie version of a Broadway show where characters burst into song for seemingly no reason at all. Done well, however, they could prove to be undiscovered gems. I eagerly await the first test drive or road show….plus, the name the Vook? It's genius in itself, with the quirky appeal that helped launch products like the Blackberry, the iPod and Google, those that quickly enter the lexicon and stick for good.

Reports of Publishing World's Death May be Greatly Exaggerated

New York reported last week that the book business isn't going to get a storybook ending and, in fact, may be in line for an untimely demise. Reporter Boris Kachka's piece cites stagnant book sales, big name authors playing musical chairs, and Amazon posing as some sort of sales "boogeyman." Finally, he suggests that publishing might need to turn to corporate America for solutions.

That last bit of advice seems unusual given the tumble on Wall Street that has the government offering bailouts and the word "Depression" creeping into the pages of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. I am not sure corporate America has the solution.

Publishing may be forced to fend for itself and frankly, I see firm evidence that it is capable. Too often dismissed as an industry that is behind the times, publishing can actually take credit for making great strides in taking its content digital and finding new sources of talent.

Consider that in the last decade a single mom from Britain created the next generation of readers when she concocted a seven book series about a boy wizard named Harry Potter. Not only did kids who'd barely lifted a book in favor of a Game Boy become devoted fans, but famed critic Michiko Kakutani called J.K Rowling's work, "monumental, epic and spellbinding." Kids' literature over? I don't think so. Ask Stephenie Meyer, who is cashing checks faster than her vampire tale Twilight makes it into the local cineplex.

It's not just kids' fare either. Philip Roth published his 25th novel, Indignation, this week to rave reviews. And last time I wandered through Chelsea, The Food Network was turning out celebrity cookbooks as fast as new episodes of Iron Chef. Not only can you now buy COOKBOOKS in the grocery store (nice distribution efforts by the publishers who put them right where you buy the food) but the last time I walked in the front door of my local market I ran into a stack of Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture accompanied by a video screen playing footage of the professor's famous final talk. By the next week, they were all sold, replaced by The Shack, a self-published book that was the talk of this year's book expo convention.

And I haven't even mentioned Oprah. Recommending books that range from Toni Morrison's novels, to Dr. Oz's YOU: series, to Maya Angelou's poetry, the woman has virtually reinvented the book club.

Reading dead? Apparently no one told Oprah. And they are going to have a tough time convincing me that it's game over for the book in all its printed glory.