• Welcome to BookAndReader!

    We LOVE books and hope you'll join us in sharing your favorites and experiences along with your love of reading with our community. Registering for our site is free and easy, just CLICK HERE!

    Already a member and forgot your password? Click here.

Are you picky about the condition of your books?

FrodoLIVES

FrodoLIVES

New Member
I was just wondering what everyone's thoughts were on this. Myself, I am totally obcessed with having my books in perfect condition. When I buy a new book I look through all the copies the store has to make sure I get the best one. And I hate to loan my books to people for I fear that they'll dog-ear the pages or crack the spine. My parents like to borrow my books and I always give them a lecture on how to care for them beforehand. It's gotten to the point where I usually have to just buy a copy for them so I don't have to worry about my precious books :rolleyes: I have perfected the art of reading a book and having it still look brand new. My parents laugh at me because I never open the book very far so the spine will remain in pristine condition. Any other people as crazy as I am? :p
 
I've actually left bookstores only to travel to another bookstore to pick up a copy of the same book I was looking at just because it wasn't in the most pristine condition.
 
I like to have my books in pristine condition when I buy them too. Although when it comes to spine-cracking it really just depends on the book for me. If it's a book that I love then I'd prefer not to, but everything else is usually fair game. I don't like lending out my favorite books to people.
 
GREAT! I was thinking I was a little over obsessive in looking for good book conditions. Glad I'm not the only one! :D
 
I used to be incredibly neurotic about my books. I never bent the spine, folded pages, or anything that would make the book look even slightly newer than perfect.

Heh, now, I don't care anymore. I buy all of my books used, cheap, so I'll take folded, bent books that look like they've been thrown around some.

I'm still really picky about my textbooks, though. I hate highlighting.
 
I really do not care about the condition of a book as long as I can read it. I do not buy books with underscore markings and handwriting notes on the margins of pages though...I hate such things.
 
Couldn't give a toss. I actually bought a second-hand copy of Foucault's Pendulum and when I flipped to the back there was a heap of handwritten notes by the last owner where they were questioning and researching some of the theories. Brilliant stuff - what a delight to get a bit of personal history with a book!

Generally, as long as a book is in readable condition (for me, this means the pages are intact and not smeared with food or waterlogged), it's alright. I'm actually of the opinion that a worn looking book indicates many reads, which in turn indicates a well loved story. What a compliment to the author.
 
I used to worry myself with the condition of my books (such as making sure the spine wasn't creased or the pages bent) but now I don't really care. I still have habits from my more neurotic days, such as continually running my finger down the spine of the book that I am reading to see if there are any cracks in the spine and usually feel guilty if there are. I lend my books and and usually hope that they crease the spine because then I won't feel so guilty about doing it myself.
 
I'm really not fussed as I buy a lot from the market, or have them passed to me from friends/family etc. I do like the smell of a brand new book though!
 
Are you all having treatment? Or do you just have counseling on how to live with obsessions?:cool:

New or old, my books get covered in coffee, jam, butter, spines cracked, not pages bent over though. That's bad.:)
 
If i buy a book new then it MUST be perfect, but once i've read it I don't mind what the condition is. an old, worn, well-read book is as good as a pair of comfortable old slippers!
 
In an odd way, yes. In reading new books, I had a thing for not bending either the front half or the back half backwards in order to just read the given page that I was on. I don't mind creases, bent corners of pages, or even(gasp!) tears on the cover. After I'm done, the books will have a long shelf life in a safe bookshelf that is nice and dry.:)
 
I'm very particular about the condition of my books, at least when I buy them. If a bookstore only has one copy of a book I really want and it's in poor condition, I won't purchase it.
 
I don’t mind a book looking as if it has been read more than once. I don’t like to see a book that has been mistreated however.
 
When I buy brand new books, I expect them to be in near mint condition. You'd be surprised at the state of some of the books in my local Barnes and Noble.

When I buy used books I usually dont mind tiny creases or dog-eared pages. I like to keep my books in the same condition as when I purchased them. I'm lucky I don't have that many friends, much less friends that like to read so I don't have to worry about lending out my precious books.:D
 
I'm not fussy about the condition of my paperbacks, but if my husband or I have just spent a lot of money on a brand new hardback right after it comes out, I take off the cover and set it aside while I read it, in order to protect it and make sure it looks nice on the shelf. But paperbacks... meh. As long as they're readable I don't mind.

My husband, though, will comb through all the copies of a book he wants to buy in a bookstore to make sure he gets the best one. Now I can tell him he's not alone :)
 
If I'm buying a new book, I like it to be in new condition. A used book can have a few cosmetic faults, but I expect it to be in good condition. I won't bring home a tattered copy unless its something very rare indeed. I also have a thing against foul smelling books. I have allergies, and some old books really do a nasty number on my head and eyes..
 
Balmy Westwind said:
I don’t mind a book looking as if it has been read more than once. I don’t like to see a book that has been mistreated however.
Click to expand...

Very well put.:)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top