Three people I know have recently told me that there was no way that they could have read and enjoyed Doris Kearn Goodwin’s doorstopper (944 pages!), TEAM OF RIVALS, if they hadn’t a Kindle. 

Quite truthfully, I’m ambivalent and vacillate in my feelings about the Kindle.  I don’t have a Kindle, but my husband Michael does, and I have, in fact, read  two books on his Kindle.  It really did take twelve seconds to download, and a Kindle affords the opportunity to download the first chapter of any book that you’re interested in.  The books I read  are THE LITTLE STRANGER by Sarah Waters and THE HELP by Kathryn Stockett. Now that the Kindle price has been reduced to $299 (which you can purchase, ahem, here.) I suspect that more people will be buying it.
 
There’s very little you don’t know about a Kindle- (and if you dont check out this link for the basic info from Amazon)  I’m technologically handicapped, and I found it easier to navigate through than my cell phone!  It’s light, very well back lit, and efficient.  It’s more intuitive than a cell phone.  I loved being able to read in bed without disturbing Michael, and it’s light, so I can really understand how convenient that is if you’re reading TEAM OF RIVALS or ATLAS SHRUGGED.  The pagination is a bit off-putting because there are no page numbers;  you can change the font size, so there’s no specific way to indicate pages.  I did highlight sections, and that was easy to figure out, too. 
 
Bottom line:  it’s not a book;  you can’t turn pages so there’s no tactile and emotional involvement, but it’s so convenient, particularly for travelers.  When I take the train into NYC, it’s easy to read from a Kindle because then I don’t have to lug the book all over town.  The Kindle goes right into my pocketbook!

One item of note: Kindle also enables daily subscriptions of US and International newspapers, and popular and trade magazines - a greener solution to the usual read-and-throw-away.
 
Please let me know your thoughts and experiences with the Kindle.  I’m eager to hear from you!