Mirror.

[zabado]

If I hold a newspaper or book in front of a mirror the words reflected are backwards so how come they're not upside down too. ?

[newmodarmy]

For the same reason you're not upside down in the mirror.

[Old_Geezer]

They are reflected correctly. Trouble is you have difficulty reading reflected words.

[douglas9401]

The mirror

Crack'd.

[Atheist]

If  you wrote a word on translucent paper and then held it up in front of you to read through the paper, you would see it backwards, exactly as you see it in the mirror. You wouldn't see it upside down. I'm not very good at explaining, but you might make something of my attempt.

 

[PsalmEquipt]

To show yourself a newspaper or book in the mirror, you reorient it so its backside faces you. The mirror is not reversing left and right but is instead showing you what the front side would look like if you could view it from the back.

[ToraToraTora]

A mirror does not reverse anything it simply reflects what hits it.

[youngmafbog]

But of you were in Australia 😁

[Old_Geezer]

Precisely.

Anything near the top of you looks near the top of you in the mirror.

Anything near your feet looks near your feet in the mirror.

Anything to your left looks to the left of you in the mirror.

Anything to your right looks to the right of you in the mirror.