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Just for Fun > 19 Quirky Conundrums Only Book Lovers Understand

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message 1: by Joseph (last edited Jan 13, 2014 03:07PM) (new)

Joseph  (bluemanticore) | 1866 comments Mod
How many of these fit you? :-)


1. Finding a comfortable reading position is a never-ending quest. Chair or bed? Side or back? In a box? With a fox?


2. On airplanes, you hesitantly flick on the overhead light while everyone else is napping.


3. Paper cuts may look like minor injuries, but the pain can be excruciating.


4. Walking and reading at the same time requires hand-eye coordination only professional athletes have been endowed with.


5. What on earth are you supposed to do with the jacket on a hardcover while you're reading it? Keep it on and risk damaging it? Take it off and store it in a weird nook, never to find it again?


6. Deciding what to read is a choice that presents you with an embarrassment of riches.


7. The typeface and page length of a book can seriously impact your reading experience, sometimes for the worse (sans-serif font is a huge no-no).


8. A book can be composed of the worst drivel you've ever laid eyes on, you're still afflicted with major guilt when you banish it to the "I Will Never Ever Ever Finish This. Like, Ever." shelf.


9. You lament time that you've wasted in the past; all of those hours scouring celebrity Twitters could have been put towards finally reading Moby Dick!


10. Some people count down the minutes until their lunch hour; you count down the minutes until your favorite authors release their next books.


11. Finishing a book you loved is like saying goodbye to a good friend. You've been through so much together! And while you may see each other again, it won't be quite the same.


12. Forget finding roommates; the most stressful thing about moving is figuring out a way to transport boxes upon boxes of heavy books.


13. You're constantly rethinking your bookshelf strategy. Should you color-coordinate, or take a more practical approach, such as publication date or alphabetization? Or, if you're feeling ambitious, should you tackle the autobiographical bookshelf, à la Rob Gordon from High Fidelity?


14. Your mood is directly impacted by the mood of the book that you're reading; your friends have learned to avoid you during Dostoyevsky months or Bret Easton Ellis weeks.


15. You take found books home like abandoned puppies,
chirping, "Can we keep it?!" That'd be well and good if it didn't happen once a day.


16. One does not simply walk by a bookstore. One must poke around, at the very least, and one usually ends up filling one's tote bag with more books than one can carry.


17. "I don't read" is a relationship death knell, akin to "I loathe my mother" or "I enjoy upsetting kittens."

18. You may or may not own two (or three or four) copies of a beloved book. You can't help it, the redesigned covers are irresistible!


19. Laundry day and other important obligations get
completely overlooked when you're in the middle of a great, un-put-downable book. "Same shirt Saturday"? Sorry? You're not sorry.


message 2: by K (new)

K | 286 comments A note re. #10. I count down the minutes until my lunch break so that I can continue reading! :D


message 3: by Michelle (new)

Michelle Gilmore | 510 comments Love it! Especially #15 :)


message 4: by Rachel (new)

Rachel Hogan | 8 comments I like number 17 :)


message 5: by Joseph (last edited Jan 13, 2014 04:53PM) (new)

Joseph  (bluemanticore) | 1866 comments Mod
16 and 18 are me. :-)


Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* (erinpaperbackstash) lol love it, a lot of those are me as well. Especially thought 19 was cute


message 7: by Melissa (new)

Melissa | 363 comments Love #15!


message 8: by ASP (new)

ASP | 61 comments nbs. 1, 2, 6, 9, 13, 16 and, yesss... 17 !
Great, thank you Joseph, I have had fun!


message 9: by Lynda (new)

Lynda (lyndizzle) | 3 comments This is basically my life.


message 10: by [deleted user] (new)

11, 16, 19 I figured at least one would describe me.


message 11: by Paulfozz (last edited Jan 18, 2014 12:43AM) (new)

Paulfozz 1. I do suffer from this but have a dedicated 'library armchair' at home. Bed reading I find problematic because usually reading will lull me to sleep.

3. I've never had a paper cut while reading. I've 'had' paper cuts but they're only moderately painful.

4. I'd never read and walk at the same time - not only dangerous but inconsiderate of other people (though they all seem to be tapping away on mobiles and bumping into everyone anyway!).

5. I take off the dust jacket while I read and put it in the slot vacated by the book, or on top of the gap where the book goes. I've never lost one, it's really not difficult to keep track of them.

6. always… every time I look at my shelves I spot another 'must read next' book. It causes some anxiety at times that I have so many fascinating books clamouring to be read.

7. certainly in the case of some classics the typeface, size of the text and printing makes reading a very trying experience. Other books have widely spaced text and clear fonts that make reading a dream and the pages just zip by (though this probably increases the likelihood of paper cuts if you're prone to those!).

10. I rarely actually look at book release dates, the only exception being when new New Naturalist books are being released (just noticed that the volume on Owls has finally come 'in stock'… hopefully will get my copy soon!)

13. constant shelf reorganisation is something I do tend to do, though I've never considered colour or autobiographical organisations… those are WAY too problematic and since most of my books have been bought in the last couple of years and autobiographical structure would be difficult!

16. I do find it difficult to pass by a bookshop, though I am quite good at only buying if I find something of particular interest and don't really come out with lots of books at a time - the only exception being when Castle Bookshop in Colchester was closing and sold off their stock half price. I kept going there and bringing back huge bagfuls of books as they were stuffed to the gunnels with the most fascinating range of non-fiction books I've ever seen in a shop and I knew I might never see some of them again elsewhere, certainly not at the prices they were offering them at!

17. I don't mind when people don't read… living in Essex it's something that is pretty normal. I do meet plenty of people that do though.

18. I don't really keep multiples of a book, though I do re-buy if I find a better edition. The replaced copy usually is given to relatives or charity though.


message 12: by Thom (new)

Thom Swennes (Yorrick) | 592 comments Opposites attract is a truism that has been proven time and time again. While growing up I noticed that the best looking girls always had a homely counterpart as best friend. I can´t say that my best friends were (or are) illiterate but they seem to be proud of stating, I haven´t read a book since college. The fact that they don´t share or understand my love for books and the written word or that I can´t understand how someone can go through life without their nose in a book or a book in the hand doesn´t seem to affect our relationships. I suppose at some given time in my life I have experienced all of the opening suppositions.


message 13: by Ashley Marie (new)

Ashley Marie 18 so much. I have an enormous need for the newly-designed set of Harry Potter books.


message 14: by Lin (new)

Lin | 266 comments I am one of those who tracks new releases months in advance. I use FictFact to follow. I keep a notebook with month by month lists. I update the list weekly. Right now I have lists thru May 2015. Yes, I do realize I am compulsive, lol


message 15: by Lára (last edited Feb 11, 2015 01:39PM) (new)

Lára  | 175 comments Applicable to me:

1. Finding a comfortable reading position is a never-ending quest. Chair or bed? Side or back? In a box? With a fox?

3. Paper cuts may look like minor injuries, but the pain can be excruciating.

4. Walking and reading at the same time requires hand-eye coordination only professional athletes have been endowed with.

5. What on earth are you supposed to do with the jacket on a hardcover while you're reading it? Keep it on and risk damaging it? Take it off and store it in a weird nook, never to find it again?

6. Deciding what to read is a choice that presents you with an embarrassment of riches.

7. The typeface and page length of a book can seriously impact your reading experience, sometimes for the worse (sans-serif font is a huge no-no).

8. A book can be composed of the worst drivel you've ever laid eyes on, you're still afflicted with major guilt when you banish it to the "I Will Never Ever Ever Finish This. Like, Ever." shelf.

11. Finishing a book you loved is like saying goodbye to a good friend. You've been through so much together! And while you may see each other again, it won't be quite the same.

12. Forget finding roommates; the most stressful thing about moving is figuring out a way to transport boxes upon boxes of heavy books.

13. You're constantly rethinking your bookshelf strategy. Should you color-coordinate, or take a more practical approach, such as publication date or alphabetization? Or, if you're feeling ambitious, should you tackle the autobiographical bookshelf, à la Rob Gordon from High Fidelity?

14. Your mood is directly impacted by the mood of the book that you're reading; your friends have learned to avoid you during Dostoyevsky months or Bret Easton Ellis weeks.

15. You take found books home like abandoned puppies,
chirping, "Can we keep it?!" That'd be well and good if it didn't happen once a day.

16. One does not simply walk by a bookstore. One must poke around, at the very least, and one usually ends up filling one's tote bag with more books than one can carry.

18. You may or may not own two (or three or four) copies of a beloved book. You can't help it, the redesigned covers are irresistible!

19. Laundry day and other important obligations get
completely overlooked when you're in the middle of a great, un-put-downable book. "Same shirt Saturday"? Sorry? You're not sorry.


message 16: by Karen M (new)

Karen M | 418 comments 3. Paper cuts may look like minor injuries, but the pain can be excruciating especially when you keep forgetting that you are cut.


4. Walking and reading at the same time requires hand-eye coordination only professional athletes have been endowed with and yet I keep on trying.


5. What on earth are you supposed to do with the jacket on a hardcover while you're reading it? Keep it on and risk damaging it? Take it off and store it in a weird nook, never to find it again? Middle of the dining room table.

6. Deciding what to read is a choice that presents you with an embarrassment of riches. Every time.

8. A book can be composed of the worst drivel you've ever laid eyes on, you're still afflicted with major guilt when you banish it to the "I Will Never Ever Ever Finish This. Like, Ever." shelf. Fool that I am I will finish reading the book anyway.

11. Finishing a book you loved is like saying goodbye to a good friend. You've been through so much together! And while you may see each other again, it won't be quite the same. I find myself reading slower as I near the end of a really good book. Just hate to have it end especially if it is the last in a series.

16. One does not simply walk by a bookstore. One must poke around, at the very least, and one usually ends up filling one's tote bag with more books than one can carry. So few bookstores to distract me nowadays. Too sad.

19. Laundry day and other important obligations get
completely overlooked when you're in the middle of a great, un-put-downable book. "Same shirt Saturday"? Sorry? You're not sorry. TRUE!!


message 17: by Lupe (last edited Feb 12, 2015 12:10PM) (new)

Lupe Dominguez (lupedominguez) 1. Finding a comfortable reading position is a never-ending quest. Chair or bed? Side or back? In a box? With a fox?--Book worm problems


2. On airplanes, you hesitantly flick on the overhead light while everyone else is napping.--no hesitancy with me...am I a bad person??


3. Paper cuts may look like minor injuries, but the pain can be excruciating.--OMG YES


4. Walking and reading at the same time requires hand-eye coordination only professional athletes have been endowed with.---Ha!


5. What on earth are you supposed to do with the jacket on a hardcover while you're reading it? Keep it on and risk damaging it? Take it off and store it in a weird nook, never to find it again?--Hence why I try to always get paperbacks.


6. Deciding what to read is a choice that presents you with an embarrassment of riches. --- E.G. Buying and Reading 50 SoG


8. A book can be composed of the worst drivel you've ever laid eyes on, you're still afflicted with major guilt when you banish it to the "I Will Never Ever Ever Finish This. Like, Ever." shelf.--SO. MANY. TIMES.

11. Finishing a book you loved is like saying goodbye to a good friend. You've been through so much together! And while you may see each other again, it won't be quite the same. ---HARRY POTTER


12. Forget finding roommates; the most stressful thing about moving is figuring out a way to transport boxes upon boxes of heavy books. ----Story of my life. Pretty sure my family hates me because of this.


13. You're constantly rethinking your bookshelf strategy. Should you color-coordinate, or take a more practical approach, such as publication date or alphabetization? Or, if you're feeling ambitious, should you tackle the autobiographical bookshelf, à la Rob Gordon from High Fidelity? ----ALL THE TIME


16. One does not simply walk by a bookstore. One must poke around, at the very least, and one usually ends up filling one's tote bag with more books than one can carry.---OH GOD. Why does this describe my life (and bank account) perfectly??


17. "I don't read" is a relationship death knell, akin to "I loathe my mother" or "I enjoy upsetting kittens." ---YEP

18. You may or may not own two (or three or four) copies of a beloved book. You can't help it, the redesigned covers are irresistible!---Oh, I am starting to be just like this.


19. Laundry day and other important obligations get
completely overlooked when you're in the middle of a great, un-put-downable book. "Same shirt Saturday"? Sorry? You're not sorry.---Well, I usually just take it with me to the laundry mat, so there's that


message 18: by Rene (new)

Rene | 27 comments #16 is and has always been my life.

#17 brings pity to my heart for these people. You do not like to read? Really, how can that EVEN be possible.

#19 is true to a point, I do wear clean clothes and love a clean house but the older I get the more I seem to delay these necessary acts to read one more chapter!


message 19: by [deleted user] (new)

I have a paper cut and yes it is painful.


message 20: by Ashley Marie (last edited Apr 15, 2015 06:15AM) (new)

Ashley Marie Ashley wrote: "18 so much. I have an enormous need for the newly-designed set of Harry Potter books."

back to #18 again, I now own 3 sets of Harry Potter books and 2 sets of Hunger Games books and I adore all of them. THEY'RE SO PRETTEH.

and #1 is a CONSTANT struggle. it's ridiculous.


Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* (erinpaperbackstash) Tammy wrote: "I have a paper cut and yes it is painful."

Me too, it came out of nowhere too, not sure when and how I got it, but it's been annoying me all week >:(


message 22: by sonya (new)

sonya marie madden  | 411 comments That is one thing you can't get with an reader. Found my nook today


message 23: by sonya (new)

sonya marie madden  | 411 comments I like. 10


Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* (erinpaperbackstash) I don't think I got it from a book, happened at work sometime. Annoying though.


message 25: by Joanne (new)

Joanne Moyer (catwoman56) | 8 comments LOL great list .. I can relate to pretty much all of them


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