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Quirks, Habits & Superstitions

cabrasopa

cabrasopa

New Member
Does anybody have any quirks, habits or superstitions to do with reading or books

A Few of mine.........

Before reading a word the very first thing i do is ALWAYS check how many pages long the book is (superstition)

Always wash covers of second hand books, even use spray disinfectant on some (Quirk)

Try to never bend spine

Never bend corner of page. Always use a bookmark

Never put an open book face down on anything




Just a few, i'm sure i've got some more that i don't realise

Cabrasopa :cool:
 
cabrasopa said:
Try to never bend spine

Never bend corner of page. Always use a bookmark

Never put an open book face down on anything
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Same here. Except you can put an open book face down without damaging it if you don't push it down too flat and if you are careful. I've only just started using bookmarks. I always used to memorise the page number or tear off a corner of the TV mag and use that.
 
cabrasopa said:
Try to never bend spine

Never bend corner of page. Always use a bookmark

Never put an open book face down on anything
Click to expand...

Same here. Also if I'm lending someone a book I make sure I write down whos got it and when I gave them it. Also with my special books (my favourites bought new that I really don't want damaged and I'm lending them it out of the kindness of my heart) I give a short lecture about how they're not allowd to have it near water, food or pets :p
 
I don't mind bending spines, but bending page corners is a no no!! I always use bookmarks. And I always check how many pages there are too. I wash off library books too some of them have lots of dirt on them.
 
I never let anyone pick up and start reading the actual physical copy of a book that I'm reading. It feels like a violation, like they are sneaking into the middle of my dream, literally intruding on my relationship with the book.

They are welcome to it when I am finished.
 
Always check how long the book is....thats pages not length in centimetres! :) (why...i'll never know!)

Always use same bookmark
 
I actually bought a friend of mine a bookmark before I lent her one of my books because I abhor dogears.

I, too, am particular about the binding breaking. I read very, very carefully.

Oddly enough, one of my kitties likes to chew on the corners of book covers. I used to get very angry with her when she did; however, I have realized she's a very good judge of book quality. Most recently, she chewed on the Alchemist and Middlesex, but completely avoided chewing on Star Wars: Rogue Planet.... Coincidence??

I won't write in a book either. I try to keep paper or notecards handy if I want to mark quotes or write them down. (I used to have about 30 index cards stuck in The Power of One, with the quotes and page numbers written on each.)
 
My dog ate a big chunk of Charmaine Solomon's Complete Book of Asian Cooking. He has very good taste. :)
 
Neato thread. I never put a book face down - I always have to have the cover face up. I also like to rub my books right before I put them down; maybe that's weird, but that's just me.
 
Wow, I'm not quite as quirky as you lot, but I do have one issue. If I put a book on it's back and the front cover lifts off the title page (you know how it does this because the pages have been flexed) I have to put something on top of it to squash it down. Naturally this leads to me losing books under things rather frequently, but I can't stand to see that lifting cover!! It's odd because cracking a book's spine never bothers me, although dog earing pages is a HUGE no-no.
 
i am a bad bad bad book owner, i bend spines,and fold pages. i have been known to skim the end just to see who makes it. i think the anxiety of thinking a favourite character might kick the can is too great and i rush the book to see what happens. if i know that so and so makes it, i can at least enjoy the book or be prepared for the inevitable.
when i worked at the bookstore i would read the books so carefully so not to bend spines or fan the pages. when i read the 5th harry potter, i read 13 different copies to avoid fanning.
 
If i'm bying a book i will always go through every copy until i find the one in the best condition, Usually right at the back.

Also get rid of books that smell of smoke after i've lent them out. (Got a thing about smoking)

Cabrasopa :cool:
 
My main thing is that with any hardcover books I NEED to remove the slip before I start reading the book (typically with those glossy covers, though I do the same with cloth and normal paper). I just can't stand reading books with external bindings. Even when it looks better with than without (about 10% of the time), I just can't stand it. As a result, I've lost most of the covers (and thus most of the illustrations that can be so cool).

I prefer trade paperbacks because they don't typically have external covers.

Other than that, I treat my books pretty bad. Sometimes write in them, sometimes sleep with them (and on them), sometimes leave them lying in the back of my trunk for months on end, and finally salvage a wrecked copy of what was once a brand new book - before it got to the trunk.
 
Whenever I stop reading a book, I always put it on its front, so the backcover is facing out. I don't know why, very weird habit.
I also have this thing about making very small tears on the sides of just about everything, including books. I don't know why.
I treat my books badly but it's only because I love them. :D
 
cabrasopa said:
If i'm buying a book i will always go through every copy until i find the one in the best condition, Usually right at the back.
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I do that! I pick up the book, check the cover is not bent, scratched, torn etc., look at the three unbound edges to check they are not dirty, torn or bent, and check the spine is not damaged. If it passes all that, then I buy it! :eek:
 
I tend to leave bookmarks in the books after I've read them, so I go thru quite a few. Other than the free ones that I get at bookstores, I also use paint sample color strips. If I use those, I try to color coordinate so it matches the bookcover.

When reading poetry, I tend to mark my faves with a bookmark, so it helps to have several handy. Either I have lots of matching ones or i tear up a sheet of paper.
 
A little bit of furniture polish brings 2nd books up a treat
Most dirty marks round page edges can be removed with a rubber, but hold book firmly closed...
I now do this to most 2nd hand books I buy :)
 
I usually see how many pages there are in a book before I start reading. I always use a bookmark. When I buy used books (which I do frequently), I look to see if the store has multiple copies of the book I want, so I can get the one that's in the best condition.
 
Delta_doh! said:
A little bit of furniture polish brings 2nd books up a treat
Most dirty marks round page edges can be removed with a rubber, but hold book firmly closed...
I now do this to most 2nd hand books I buy :)
Click to expand...

This made me think of something I learnt last year... You know that annoying sticky patch that's often left by a pricetag? Eucalytus oil will get it off quick and easy - an absolute God-send if you're like me and *despise* that little sticky bit.
 
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