Sixth-grader John Riggs and his classmates find the book "Eggs" a real page-turner.

Make that a real screen-turner.

Students in the electronic reading club at Horace Mann Middle School in Charleston dabble in a couple of types of electronic book, the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader Digital Book.

The devices allow students to download a number of new books and old classics - from Emily Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" to one of Riggs' new favorites, the Demonata series.

On Kindle, students also can access 18 newspapers, several magazines, Wikipedia and a dictionary. Plus, students asked the Kindle a question Tuesday when they needed expert advice on the causes of male-pattern baldness.

Still, Riggs clearly favors the Sony.

"I've read a whole book and the battery did not go down," he said. It's easy for him to zoom in and out for small or large print. The e-book screen always shows the book's cover first. Sometimes it's illustrated.

"The Sony's graphics, even though they're black and white, are very good," he said.

"Sony should hire you, John," said English teacher and book club adviser Shari Heywood.

She believes the e-book is the perfect device for the frequent traveler and avid reader.

Sony advertises that its device will hold up to 160 books at one time, and offers several other features. Ben Glasser, a seventh-grader, said he could easily mark pages that he finds important for a book report.

Make that a real screen-turner.

Students in the electronic reading club at Horace Mann Middle School in Charleston dabble in a couple of types of electronic book, the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader Digital Book.

The devices allow students to download a number of new books and old classics - from Emily Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" to one of Riggs' new favorites, the Demonata series.

On Kindle, students also can access 18 newspapers, several magazines, Wikipedia and a dictionary. Plus, students asked the Kindle a question Tuesday when they needed expert advice on the causes of male-pattern baldness.

Still, Riggs clearly favors the Sony.

"I've read a whole book and the battery did not go down," he said. It's easy for him to zoom in and out for small or large print. The e-book screen always shows the book's cover first. Sometimes it's illustrated.

"The Sony's graphics, even though they're black and white, are very good," he said.

"Sony should hire you, John," said English teacher and book club adviser Shari Heywood.

She believes the e-book is the perfect device for the frequent traveler and avid reader.

Sony advertises that its device will hold up to 160 books at one time, and offers several other features. Ben Glasser, a seventh-grader, said he could easily mark pages that he finds important for a book report.

Still, Glasser and a few other classmates remain skeptical. He'd rather "read a real book," where the battery doesn't lose power and other kinks don't stop a good read dead in its tracks.

Horace Mann librarian Rebecca Rollyson agrees that the e-books' biggest drawback is when "all of a sudden you go blank and then it has to be recharged."

It's also annoying when a button sticks and the reader scrolls ahead seven or eight pages, Glasser said.

"I read faster with the Kindle, the e-book," said seventh-grader Katelyn Campbell. "I didn't want to give it up."

Riggs agrees that he also reads faster. He and other students said that if their textbooks were on the e-book, it would be easier than lugging so many around.

More companies are sure to follow with their own version of the e-book, Rollyson said. She and Heywood suspect that more books will be available for download and e-books will become more commonplace in everyday life. 

The students in the club share four e-books among them, reading a book or two or just some chapters at a time.

Horace Mann Principal Mickey Blackwell said the Kanawha City Lions Club donated the money to purchase the new e-books.

"Technology's a tool and if you want your kids to be competitive then you have to give them all the tools to be competitive," said Blackwell, who's just fine with anyone who wants to donate extra. "If we had 50 of these books, 50 kids would have them."          

To contact staff writer Davin White, use e-mail or call 348-1254.