The dog ate my e-books. All of them.
Actually it wasn’t my dog that ate them, but a pair of Rhodesian Ridgebacks at our local park. MacGregor and I were playing fetch when I made the mistake of leaving my Kindle–encased in a new, apple-green leather case–on the bench. When I turned around, the Kindle was Ridgeback road kill.
Ridgebacks were traditionally used to hunt lions in Africa. Turns out, they also have a taste for leather and digital literature. My Kindle looked okay when I extracted it from their dripping fangs, but they must have snapped its little e-spine. It was a goner.
Back when I bought the Kindle and started downloading books, I gave passing consideration to the idea of losing an entire library in one fell swoop. Now that it’s happened, I’m going to find out whether I can restore the whole library on another device. I’m sure there’s some e-magical way to do that, but this entire experience has left me shaken. For one thing, I don’t want to shell out money for another reader. Plus you never know when solar flares or another pack of wolf hounds will start messin’ with your pixels.
Or maybe this time I’ll go for broke. Get an iPad, maybe–but only if it comes with an insurance policy. Preferably one with compound interest.
Did you ever have disaster befall your e-reader? Did you lose any books?
You can go to your account at Amazon.com and view all the books you have ordered. You can download them again on your new Kindle.
I had the free Kindle for PC program on my computer long before I got the reader itself. I just transferred all my titles to my new reader via the usb cable that came with it. After reading of your experience, I think I’ll back up all my titles on the pc.
Of course, my Kindle is bigger than my dog…
Dave
Sorry to hear about your lose, Kathryn. Like Dave said, all your books are still there in your account. You can purchase a new (or used on eBay) Kindle, register it, and re-download everything you’ve previously purchased. If you buy new, consider the very inexpensive insurance policy Amazon offers. They will replace the Kindle, no questions asked.
I’m with Dave, Kathryn – I like having my titles on my Kindle for PC.
It’s a free program, and you can have your entire library on your computer.
I have them on my iphone reader as well.
Thanks for the tips, all! It’s a brave, slightly more complicated world. For now I’ll retrieve the books on my laptop, then consider my options!
Ouch! Sorry to hear about your doggone Kindle! (better the loss to a dog than a cat, I say!)
Either way, it’s not pleasant when you have to replace something unexpectedly.
I don’t yet have the Kindle for PC app that folks have mentioned. That sounds like it would solve the problem of unreadable graphs and charts on the Kindle (absolutely the only negative I can find about e-readers).
We got my wife the Kindle Touch for Christmas and she loves it. When you replace, you might consider the Touch over the traditional.
Oh noes! I am so sorry! Ditto on what everybody else said. I have the Kindle 3G with keyboard and love it.
And, after having the library dig up a couple of old books for me on inter-library loan and leaving them on the bed and coming back to find the puppy had chewed the corners off them and getting to write a $40 check to the library, I know there is no sure thing or best choice when you mix dogs and books in any format.
Terri
Thanks! Whatever else, I’m definitely going to go for the 3G, or whatever it is that lets you download regardless of wireless connection. I generally have had a problem getting a wireless connection outside the home.
Kathryn, I live in the Kansas boonies and never have trouble getting a signal. Rarely 3G, but I can always connect and download with no problems.
Terri
I’m absolutely convinced I have a Poltergeist that follows me around messing with my signal,
Terri. I feel cursed,lol!
Kathryn, few decades ago I adopted a stray and forlorn beagle. I came home one night to discover that she had destroyed my first edition copy of RINGWORLD by Larry Niven and, to add insult to injury, had eaten only the last hundred pages of the book, which of course I had not read. At least your e-books are safe. Bummer about the unit, though. I think if/when my Kindle 3 G dies I’ll go for the Kindle Fire, which is in my “want, but don’t need” list.
Square trade warrenty is the way to go for electronics. Amazon offers them at a reasonable price and you can get added coverage for drops and spills.
That’s the first time I heard of that warranty, Rhiannon–thanks for the tip! Joe, at least your dog didn’t destroy the only copy of your manuscript. Faint comfort, I know!
Sure, the Kindle Fire is fancy and all, but I do love my Kindle Touch with the e-ink. Good for my tired, old eyes.
Sounds like you will at least be able to retrieve most of what was lost – whew! I think having the dog eat a rare first edition would be far worse that him eating the electronic version – not that I want to encourage my puppy to chew my iPad! I recently had to reload all my kindle purchases and it was pretty easy – just inconvenient!
Sounds like you will at least be able to retrieve most of what was lost – whew! I think having the dog eat a rare first edition would be far worse that him eating the electronic version – not that I want to encourage my puppy to chew my iPad! I recently had to reload all my kindle purchases and it was pretty easy – just inconvenient!
I have first editions of Walker Percy’s Moviegoer, Willie Morris North Towrad Home, SILENE OF THE LAMBS, GODFATHER, Guttersen’s SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS, and maybe 30 more and I lkeep them high up on shelves away from Doogies and Kiddos. MAny of my Kindle Books say 1st Edition… funny. I often think 2nd editions are rarer than most firsts.
I bought my grandson the Kindle Fire. I have the 3G. Don’t need color or games, but it’s something I will get next time around.