Dog -Eared Madness

noo.. this is not about cute puppies coming and smelling your feet (ha! gotcha =)) today in english class, our teacher was emphasizing on the importance of reading(hmm which was funny, because she thought sidney sheldon was a woman), and that got me thinking... 
i have been reading since i was 3 years old.. no i m not kidding, i remember my mom had bought me a cute little book with pictures of chicks and cats, and since then i was hooked.. of course , i have matured nicely since then =)  i started Harry Potters a little after my 7th birthday. i dunno if that is late or early, but for me, it didnt come fast enough.. i was stuck to harry potter for the next (almost) ten years!
why do we read anyhow? in my opinion, reading opens a window(or portal for you time travelling buffs!) into a whole new world , some place where  your worries have no place (coz ur too busy worrying abt that hero who seriously needs a normal life). when i read , my mom would be yelling in my ear and i wouldnt even know!! its crazy, i pay customs like hell everytime i come back from india.. just for books!!  
but is the era of the paperback giving way to the reign of the e book? i personally like the convenience of e books but theres nothing like a good old fashioned hard bound, dog eared, peanut butter stained buddy on the front porch is there? (oh, a good book would be nice too.. ;)
ok i am off to read... see ya if i remember anything!