Excel is flat file, has a record limit, is unable to create data relationships, has no referential integrity, is single user is has a completely different memory management mechanism when dealing with multi workbook projects.
Not suggesting that Excel is preferable to Access for RDB work in general. However, for simple tasks it does a fine job and just about everyone has a copy. It's a bit like saying you must have a B747 to fly around the country when you can probably make do just fine in a C310 for mum, dad, and the two kids.
My example (which certainly should be, and eventually will be, in Access or something similar) has 8 main workbooks and 2000+ line item entry sets per each of those workbooks and works fine in Excel for my purposes although there are a few minor inconveniences - a simple logbook will work fine in Excel even if it might work much finer in Access.
having a new worksheet aka "tab" for every page in your logbook is not the way to go
Why ever would one do that ?
Not trying to be difficult and certainly acknowledging that a RDBMS will do the job better all round .. but if one just wants something simple like a personal logbook on the PC one wouldn't rush out and buy Access just for that purpose, surely ?
Perhaps we should simply agree to disagree ?