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20 Problems Only Book Lovers Understand
Last week we asked on Facebook and Twitter: What's a problem only book lovers understand? We got over 1,000 amazing responses! So even if non-book lovers don't get your struggle, remember—you're among friends here.
1. "The urge to buy books even though you still have too many books to read at home." (Rie VdWarth)
2. "Feeling sad for people who don't really exist." (Kimberly Moniz)
3. "RUNNING OUT OF SHELF SPACE!!!" (Kim)
4. "Getting interrupted when you are on the last few pages of a book." (Sobe Daya)
5. "The book hangover. When a good book finishes but you can't start a new one because you're still too immersed in the last book to move on." (Meagan Lewis)
6. "Wanting every book in a library section but knowing it is impossible to read all of them." (Richard Azia)
7. "Waiting so long for a sequel that you forget what happened in the first book." (Jessica Luong)
8. "When you're lying in bed and it's all cold in your room—and the hand holding the book freezes to death, even though the rest of you is warm under the blankets." (Alina Marie Swan)
9. "Finishing a book and having to wait a whole year to read the next in the series." (Sarah Scanion)
10. "Trying to keep the book dry while reading in the bath." (Patricia Boland)
11. "Ordering a book online and getting the book with the movie cover. A book with a movie cover just doesn't feel the same." (Anna RN)
12. "Not being able to read and eat lunch at the same time because you don't have a third arm." (Bernadette)
13. "When someone borrows your book and doesn't return it for ages!" (Pallavi B)
14. "Deciding. Which. Book. To. Read. First." (Monique Balsamo)
15. "Getting to a 'can't stop reading' spot in the book and it's 3:00am." (Joan Chesley)
16. "When you have a book with you, but it's not the one you wanted to read right then." (Virginia Osborne)
17. "Being forced to stop reading by other obligations, but choosing to ignore those obligations. Then getting in trouble." (Feel Like Fangirling)
18. "Packing for a trip and never being able to bring enough books." (Erika Gallion)
19. "Having a book fall on your face because you're reading on your back while holding the book up." (Manuel Cedillo)
20. And the ultimate book lovers' dilemma: "So many books, so little time." (Navy Reading)
Have another bibliophile-specific problem? Share it with your fellow Goodreads members in the comments! Chances are you'll find someone (or many someones) who feel your book pain.
(Top image credit: Illustration by Quentin Blake for Roald Dahl's Matilda.)
Comments Showing 51-100 of 1,070 (1070 new)
message 51:
by
Linda
(new)
Nov 13, 2015 10:35AM
Love this list! And thankful for my Kindle, which narrows it down to about 15 problems instead of 20!
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Ava wrote: "My reading list is longer than my lifespan"That would be me as well Ava.
When you're reading a page and your eyes involuntarily go to the italics or bold or all-caps word because you're to curios to stop yourself
Great List - I would add, "Having so many samples on your Kindle, you can't quickly find the one you want to read next."
Ava wrote: "My reading list is longer than my lifespan"oh, yes
Even while I am reading a book I need to have one ready in the wings waiting for me! I almost panic if I don't have a book at the ready!
"The book hangover. When a good book finishes but you can't start a new one because you're still too immersed in the last book to move on."This is true! But the book hangover definition I'm familiar with is staying up late into the night to finish a book you can't put down and paying for the sleeplessness the next morning!
when you get so excited to read a book then you read it and it's utter crap
#8 Definitely. It happens whether you read with a paper book or device. It makes me want to wear mittens to bed. LOL
Inkweaver wrote: "Living in a town where no one reads at all! I'm slowly dying from the loneliness..."Oh, Inkweaver! Join some groups on Goodreads. It takes some time looking to find a good fit, but they are out there. (It doesn't perfectly fill the void, but it goes a long, long way.)
Krishnaa wrote: "Having a reading order list for the hundreds of books you already have, but picking up another book that's either way down on the list, or one that you recently bought and haven't added to the list..."
I am a failure at reading orders. I am redoing my exclusive shelves on GR to help. Again.
Lana wrote: "Great List - I would add, "Having so many samples on your Kindle, you can't quickly find the one you want to read next.""
Or just, so many works on Kindle. (I am also a failure at making workable folders on Kindle.)
Tatiana wrote: ""The book hangover. When a good book finishes but you can't start a new one because you're still too immersed in the last book to move on."
This is true! But the book hangover definition I'm familiar with is staying up late into the night to finish a book you can't put down and paying for the sleeplessness the next morning!"
I suffer from both these kinds of hangovers :)
Joann H (Sshh!!! I'm reading) wrote: "when you get so excited to read a book then you read it and it's utter crap"
This! Especially if somebody recommended it to you.
Trying to tie my shoes with one hand, because I could not put down the book I was reading. I never succeeded.
19. "Having a book fall on your face because you're reading on your back while holding the book up." (Manuel Cedillo)HAH but actually this has happened to me... multiple times.
So true. I can relate to basically all of it. :)
Yep, right there with all the other bibliophiles on Goodreads! This is totally me! My family and friends would say especially the ones about shelf space, buying books even though I have far too many now that haven't been read... you know the usual issues that we face. I don't know why they get so up in arms, after all it was my parents, grandparents, and siblings that created the monster that is me when I was little... they read to me! I can think of a lot worse addictions to have than that of the written word!
Out of all of them, I don't think that there is any more than five of those problems that I don't have!
Number 16 always gets me. i hate having a book with me that i want to read but not at that very moment and then not having the book you've been craving for a while. sucks....
Judy wrote: "i am 61 years old and have read since i was 4. i lost the centaral vision in my left eye about 10 years ago, now i am losing it in the right...i read never less than a book a week, usually 2, but n..."You could learn braille? If you read less with your eyes, it'll probably also make your vision deteriorate more slowly and most classics should be availble in braille.
xD Feeling sad for people who don't really exist. xD
A cat who believes she is more important than the book. And she is, but I can't read her :-(
I also hate it when people who borrow my books dog ear the pages.
When you move from country to country every year or two years because of studies or work and you're not able to bring your books with you :(((There should be suitcases just for books and they should travel for free. Paying 70€ for an extra suitcase? nope, I'm a student.
Being scared to die before I have finished every book on my 'I want to read that book' list. There are still so many books to read and every day new books are published, I can't keep up with the pace.
really agree with this list xDbut i want to add when you really love the novel but hate the ending :(
Angélique wrote: "Zoe wrote: "I would also add: "Hating a book that everyone loves, tell me about loneliness.""Yes! Also, loving a book that no one you know has read."
I hated Gone Girl but it seems everyone liked it but me. Didn't even think about seeing the movie.
Lora wrote: "I don't know why they get so up in arms, after all it was my parents, grandparents, and siblings that created the monster that is me when I was little... they read to me! I can think of a lot worse addictions to have than that of the written word! "So, so true.
Morgan wrote: "A cat who believes she is more important than the book. And she is, but I can't read her :-("
Cats, so bossy! (I no longer have this problem, and all this time later still miss it.)
Vera wrote: "Being scared to die before I have finished every book on my 'I want to read that book' list. There are still so many books to read and every day new books are published, I can't keep up with the pace."
I get this way with particular books, especially series. "I can't die before X book comes out!" (Finishing the whole TBR is a lost cause; I'm just trying to prioritize now.)
Elisabeth wrote: "i want to add when you really love the novel but hate the ending :("
Oh, yes. I have a shelf for those too.
Stephanie wrote: "All of the above, along with strength to carry the 3-4 books that you're currently reading (ebook readers require power). Being unable to go into a book store (budget and literary self-restraint is..."The last time my husband let me go into Waterstones I bought £83-worth of books. I'm no longer allowed in Waterstones.
Reshma wrote: "Elise wrote: "When you loan a paperback book to a friend and you get it back with the spine creased and you want to kill them, but they are still your friend, so you are torn (so you just hit them ..."SO not overreacting! I once lent a book to my mother. It was returned with a page that was torn (!!!) and a couple of pages that were folded. I was livid! Never lending her another book ever again!
Have not enough many to buy all the books you want to read.
Cathy (cathepsut) wrote: "3 and 18: ebooks, people, ebooks!!!"Nah, is not the same though. NOTHING like the feeling and the smell of a book!
Laura wrote: "Nah, is not the same though. NOTHING like the feeling and the smell of a book!"True, but when space and money restrain what you can have in tree book form, nothing is like being able fit most of your library in your purse, either.
Michelle wrote: "People who want to borrow books you own but haven't read yet, or pick them up and flick through them. Especially if it is a new book rather than second hand. Those are MY words and I get to read th..."
So true!!
So true!!
Loved this list. So many in fact most are me. It makes me feel a little less quirky.Here's one:
Being asked, "So what's the title of the very best book you have read?"
Reading a series from the start of publishing, following it through the years, AND THEN SUDDENLY THEY CHANGE THE COVER (or worse still, the size)
Judy wrote: "i am 61 years old and have read since i was 4. i lost the centaral vision in my left eye about 10 years ago, now i am losing it in the right...i read never less than a book a week, usually 2, but n..."I teach visually impaired kids. I might have a solution for you - there's a service called Bookshare (bookshare.org). If you can prove to them that you're visually impaired (just a note and signature from your regular doctor), you can get books through the internet on your computer and you can blow the font up to like 90 pt, if that's what you need. You can also invert colors. Anyway - it's like $50 a year plus $25 to set it up the first time, but it's unlimited books. They have a ton and they're always adding more. Not sure if this will help, but it's the best things I can suggest. They also do audio versions (and trust me, I hate audio books too) and they're not that bad. Hope this helps!
That's exactly what happen to me with the books! I'm glad I'm not the only one! :)
Ava wrote: "My reading list is longer than my lifespan"mine too..... and I feel so sad about it. The struggle is real.
"4. "Getting interrupted when you are on the last few pages of a book"This is the worse!! I now read the last 2 chapters only when I'm sure no one will interrupt.
For travel and sometimes at home I read on my Samsung tablet. I use MoonReader and I made some beautiful backdrops for my books (winter, medieval, spring, gloomy etc) and strangely that makes the enjoyment of reading on a digital device sooooo much greater. I hate reading digital on plain white/sepia/black or whatever now.
Serewyn wrote: ""4. "Getting interrupted when you are on the last few pages of a book"This is the worse!! I now read the last 2 chapters only when I'm sure no one will interrupt.
For travel and sometimes at hom..."
I know, right? MoonReader is actually the best. It's what I use, too. You can also fix the settings to your liking unlike other readers.
Thank God for Kindles! Eliminated the need to be sure I grabbed enough books before work or whatever else was going on. With the right case, reading in the bath is super easy! Not having to worry about the light bothering anyone. Freed up all kinds of space in my 900 sf apartment. I could go on and on. But the biggest one is that nobody every ruins the story for me because they can't see the cover. But my biggest reading problem is that my want to read list is much larger than my bank account!
hahahahaha This list it's just so true, I'm having serious case of number 3 right now. People keep saying that I should stop buying books, they obviously don't understand the pain.
Argh, the movie poster cover... I recently got a new Kindle, and when I re-downloaded Room by Emma Donoghue, it gave me the movie cover. I was not pleased.
Letting someone borrow a hardcover and having them lose or wreck the paper outer cover.
I totally agree with number 18 - I often find myself in a mild state of panic over this when traveling. Do I have enough books to read? What if I don't like the books I packed or I'm not in the mood to read them? What if my iPad dies and I can't access the 100+ books I have on there or download any more? What if my luggage gets lost and I'm only left with the ONE BOOK IN MY CARRY-ON?!?!?!?!? AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
I can see my own personality in this list.. except for the reading in the bath part.-- now I have to go., I have a book to finish!
