Culture

Product: the Bookseat
Manufacturer: Emerging Products
Website: www.thebookseat.com
Retailer: University Bookshop
(5/5)

 
   Even among gadget geeks, there is often some unease over reading accessories. They somehow seem to go one step too far: they’re too geeky. However, upon very brief reflection, one realises how very useful certain such accessories might be. The quintessential example of this, to my mind, is the Bookseat. As its name clearly suggests, it’s a seat for books; it holds books upright for hands-free reading, and it does so exceptionally well.
   There are lots and lots of book-holders on the market, of which the most familiar are probably those heavy metal-framed things our mothers had for holding recipe books. Unfortunately, they aren’t much use for anything else, since they’re not built to allow easy page-turning. Plus, they’re not the most portable things in the world. Recently, however, there has been a proliferation of fancier collapsible plastic devices, which have the obvious upside of being extremely portable. However, they tend to be too light for large and/or heavy books (e.g., cookbooks), and page-turning is still a bit of a pain. I do think there’s a place for these mini-book-holders that can be conveniently carried around in a handbag or satchel despite their limitations, but I’m looking for something that can deal with a wide variety of books.
   The Bookseat is basically a modified beanbag – a faux suede bag, filled with polystyrene beads – designed to hold virtually any book up in virtually any context where people tend to read. As you may have gathered, my biggest complaint about book-holders is with how difficult pages are to turn when I’m using them. the Bookseat’s solution to this problem is wonderfully simple and elegant: there is a clear, Perspex page holder attached to the front of the Bookseat by a high-quality elastic band and a plastic toggle. All I have to do is position the book on the Bookseat and adjust the toggle so the page holder holds the book open firmly, and whenever I want to turn the page, I just pull the plastic toggle down and flip. With some practice, this can be done with one hand! It’s really this innovation that makes the Bookseat great, I think. The elastic band and toggle system allows books to be held firmly, which is important if you’re not just using the Bookseat upright on a desk. Most book-holders can’t be used lying on their sides because in that position, the books just fall off the holders; this isn’t a problem with the Bookseat. The other (and more obvious) main feature of the Bookseat is its beanbag-like design, which allows it to “mould and shape” (their words, not mine; as an aside, isn’t “mould” an ugly word?) to a large variety of surfaces. The practical upshot of the Bookseat’s flexibility is that it will sit nicely on any armchair, your lap, and your bed; and it can be placed upright or on its side or at a convenient angle. The design comes at the cost of portability, of course, but it’s light enough that I don’t really mind taking it with me on longish trips. 
   So, the Bookseat is a terrific book-holder. But why have a book-holder at all? The two key benefits of having a book-holder is that (a) it makes reading at a desk more comfortable, and (b) it allows the user to read hands-free. Like most students, I spend a lot of time reading books and papers, and my neck gets sore pretty quickly if I have the book lying flat on the desk (assuming that the book can stay open like that at all). So, I have to hold the book at an angle, often off the surface of the table. Not only does this fatigue my arms, it also makes note-taking very difficult. I have to put down the book, write or type, and pick it up again. This is especially awkward if I want to quote from the text. Book-holders – including the Bookseat – elevate and angle the book for more comfortable reading, and free one’s hands for note-taking (and eating and drinking and knitting, etc.). It’s a multi-tasker’s dream. 
   Seriously, head out to the University Bookshop and buy a Bookseat.