Barnes and Noble has officially announced their e-book reader. The device has arguably the best name for an e-book reader to date, “nook.” The device costs $259 and will ship by the end of November. The device uses an interesting interface. It has a color touchscreen underneath its 6-inch e-paper display that is used to navigate through menus and selecting books to read using a coverflow-like interface.

Barnes and Noble will obviously be the source for the content on nook but this device has something other don’t, and that’s sharing.

Share favorite eBooks with your friends, family, or book club. Most eBooks can be lent for up to 14 days at a time. Just choose the book you want to share, then send it to your friend’s reader, cell phone, or computer.

Sounds quite generous, considering nook’s main competitor, the Kindle, doesn’t offer any sharing services.

Previously:
10/17/09: Barnes and Noble E-Book Reader

Update 11/19/09: Matt Hamblen reporting for Computerworld:

The Nook, a $259 e-reader from Barnes & Noble Inc., will hit the booksellers’ stores on Nov. 30. That’s in time for holiday shoppers, but too late for “Black Friday,” Nov. 27, the traditional day of pre-holiday sales by retailers.

Update 11/21/09: The New York Times is reporting that Barnes & Noble’s e-book reader, the nook, is sold out for the holidays.

Update 12/4/09: The nook’s expected ship date has slipped to January 11. This is why some companies announce products when they’re ready to ship.

Update 12/10/09: Barnes & Noble nook Reviews Start Pouring In

Update 12/20/09: Barnes & Noble Sending $100 Gift Certificates to nook Pre-Orderers