Huffington Magazine Issue 22 | Page 105

STEPHEN FERRY, FROM, “VIOLENTOLOGY: A MANUAL OF THE COLUMBIAN CONFLICT,” PUBLISHED BY UMBRAGE EDITIONS (VIOLENTOLOGY, SOLDIERS, GUNSHOT); CHRIS WARE/ PANTHEON (“BUILDING STORIES” ILLUSTRATION) Exit around the world, and unlimited in supply. For these reasons and more, the growth in American ebook usage has been swift and inevitable. Earlier this year, Amazon released figures saying that, for every 100 physical books sold on its site, it had sold 114 ebooks. BOOKS But print is fighting back. Now that physical books have lost their monopoly on long-form storytelling, they aren’t disappearing. Instead, booksellers, publishers and readers are taking a closer look at why we like books at all—for many, that feeling of loss has provided an opportunity. Instead of killing physical books, ebooks have actually encouraged a new level of fetishization of the printed page. Beautifully made editions that sit as HUFFINGTON 11.11.12 Violentology (left) had its pages printed on the press of a legendary newspaper. Building Stories (right) is a box of 14 graphic novels that all come in different shapes and sizes.