ambassador simonThe Bangkok Post has a brief interview with Israel’s Ambassador to Thailand, Simon Roded, in which he discusses recommendations for books he’s currently reading. Roded says that his generation grew up without access to television, so he entertained himself with books borrowed from the public library. “Now Roded is rarely seen without his iPad, with a rim-torn cover, as he is a sort of e-book advocate for their convenience and speed.”

Roded recommends several books, including Beyond the River by Hanna Meller-Faust, Let there be Water: Israel’s Solution for a Water-Starved World by Seth M. Siegel, Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle by Dan Senor and Saul Singer, and Culture Shock! Thailand: A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette by Robert and Nanthapa Cooper.

Then the interviewer asks him about his iPad, and Roded replies, “The iPad is extremely useful for downloading e-books. I don’t have to carry bags of books around.” It stands to reason that an ambassador, who would have to travel a lot, would find being able to keep a library of e-books on his person extremely useful.

Almost as interesting as Ambassador Roded’s use of the iPad is the Bangkok Post’s reporter finding it interesting enough to ask about. E-books have gotten to the point where they’re normal enough to be fairly boring over here, but in other parts of the world they’re still new and novel yet.

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TeleRead Editor Chris Meadows has been writing for us--except for a brief interruption--since 2006. Son of two librarians, he has worked on a third-party help line for Best Buy and holds degrees in computer science and communications. He clearly personifies TeleRead's motto: "For geeks who love books--and book-lovers who love gadgets." Chris lives in Indianapolis and is active in the gamer community.

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