[New York Times] Will Books Survive Spotify?

[Sirtel]

Strange why for some the book smell is pleasant, but for others it isn't. I can understand why it wouldn't be pleasant for non-readers, but we're all mostly readers here, grown up with paper books. And yet some of us don't associate the smell of paper with the content they enjoyed, while others do.

The smell of old books actually makes me want to puke, while that of new books is just mildly unpleasant. I've read plenty of both in my lifetime and enjoyed them (the content, that is, not the smell, feel or taste ).

Edit: I guess the likability of various smells may partly depend on individual genetics. We know that the ability to taste bitterness and sweetness (among others) depends on your genes (some people are not able to feel the bitter taste at all, while others are oversensitive to it; also some are more sensitive to the sweet taste than others), so it could be the same way with smells.

[rkomar]

Used book stores don't smell good to me, but the smell still evokes good feelings. So many happy hours spent hunting for treasure, and often the smellier the book store the better the finds.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rkomar

Used book stores don't smell good to me, but the smell still evokes good feelings. So many happy hours spent hunting for treasure, and often the smellier the book store the better the finds.

I've mostly always liked new releases better than oldies published before I was born (with a few exceptions). So I was never a frequent customer of used bookstores and the smell of old books doesn't associate with anything particularly happy for me.