Ancient & Medieval Historical Fiction discussion
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What Are Your Reading Rules?
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Have not read this list yet but wanted to put my rules down before being influenced by te rest of you. This is slightly OCD so take it as it is:A bookmark is the only acceptable to keep your place.
-NO bending, crimping, laying open-faced, held open with paperweight etc.
-I only read real page-turning paper books. E-readers don't do it for me. Generally prefer hardback.
-If the book is part of a series I have to read the first one first and I have to own the whole set before I begin for fear of having to wait between each.
-Unless the book is for educational purposes NO marking, highlighting or making notes in the margins allowed. If you are a note-taker grab a spiral notebook and note the page number.
-No matter how awful the book is, if I get a quarter of the way through I MUST finish it.
-I make a personal rule to not read the same type of book back to back. For example: Cornwell now, a research piece next, lifestyle help, mystery thriller, then back to Hist. Fiction.
-I stop when there is a natural stopping point. Please do not ask me to get up and do something while reading because I'll more than likely be a few more minutes until I hit the end of a chapter or significant break in the plot.
Promise I'm not a jerk. Just very particular about how I go about my favorite hobby.
Oh, I missed catalouging them on GR and keeping them in alphabetical order on the shelf 1-604 with an excel sheet with their Title, Author Name, paper/hard and noted 1st editions.
Wow, very particular! Don't lend any books to Andy, he puts salt & vinegar finger prints all over them!
Wow, Jesse, you sound like me! Though I don't catalog my books in Excel, I do put them in Goodreads by ISBN. There are some older books without ISBNs from the 60's or 70's. It was very difficult for me to pick the book that seemed most likely in the listings. It wasn't exact! I also dislike E-readers. I got one for free recently and use it for reading pdf recipe guides in the kitchen. That's pretty much it.
At work, I read in my car during breaks and lunch. People call me anti social, then I comment that they're watching uninteresting news in the break room or browsing through their phones...how is that more entertaining?
My only other rule is that I don't talk about the book until I'm finished with it. My fiance reads the same books I do and we never know where we're at so we're liable to accidentally give spoilers away if we do talk about them.
I envy your mutual readership with your fiancee! If only my wife would decide that there are better things to read than tabloid magazines, we would probably do much of the same. Anyways, have to update the sheet, picked up another dozen hardbacks from the second-hand store this weekend!
I'm supposed to have rules? I must have missed that memo. Oh well, I probably wouldn't follow them anyway.I'm a catch and release gal. Unless I like the book so much that I will read it again. I don't have the space to keep everything. I get most of my physical books from thrift stores and when I'm done I donate them. I will lend (give) to anyone that asks and tell them to pass it on to the next person to enjoy.
I don't give the thrift store books the white glove treatment, but I am respectful. No marks, page folding, writing, etc. If it's a borrowed book, it does get special treatment. I am extremely careful with those.
I always read a series in order.
I only read one book at a time.
If I have to stop reading I read to the bottom of the page.
Well, look at that. I do have rules. Now which one am I going to break first?
Books that have been lent to me I am careful with. Books I own are something of another story. They get brought everywhere with me, tossed in bags, balanced on top of computers, even occasionally used as pillows. They sometimes get left open or marked with things that are not proper markers. If I'm bruised at the end of the day, chances are the book is a little sore too. In return however, the books get to stay with me forever. I almost never sell or give away a book once I have owned it. I get very attached to them and am a habitual rereader. Even if I'm not going to reread them I like having the physical copy around. One thing I can't do is write in them. Even textbooks I own or the like, where it's fairly accepted in my field, I just can't make myself mark. I will buy marked but I can't do it myself. I also don't fold, at least not on purpose.
I am strict about ebooks, probably because I don't like them very much. I'll only get them if they're either free, unavailable in print, or bundled. If I pay any money for them I am also stern about drm.
Of course on a grad student budget I have to get a lot of my reading from libraries, but I wish I could have them all to keep.
- I always read series in Order. I can get REALLY pissed, when I buy a second/third book by accident :D- I always read one book in german and one book in english. somethimes more then 2 at once :D
- When I read e-books then short ones (150-300 p.) . Mostly funny Fantasy, Porn & Thriller.
- In Germany e-books from publishers are abnormal expensive (just 2-3 € cheaper than the Hardcover/Paperback). I would never buy an e-book for 16.95€ NEVER!
- No spinecracking! I hate it! Bought my mother a book last week, first thing she did: Open it in the MIDDLE an crack the spine. I was: OMFG! What the hell are you doing?
- No writing in or on the book. Serously no ... when I want to mark a scene I use a tiny Post it.
- I always carry a book with me.
- Never lend books. My husband dropped my copy of "city of thieves" in the bathtub ... I was both heartbroken and furious.
Anell wrote: "- I always read series in Order. I can get REALLY pissed, when I buy a second/third book by accident :D- I always read one book in german and one book in english. somethimes more then 2 at once :..."
So true. Had some similar experiences myself.
And to me no ear marking the pages either or flopping it down in the page last read.
Unfortunately, a lot of the paperbacks these days are hard not to put cracks in. I always try, but the spine cracks every time.
I haven't cracked a spine since I was 12. I have had a book disintegrate in my hands when I went to Panama. I suspect it had to do with North American glue and Meso-American humidity
How do you avoid the cracks? Do you not open you book much when you read? I try and try. Always use a bookmark, never lay the book down open.The closest I can get to crackless *snicker* spine is just the one little wrinkle down the spine from when I read the middle of the book. But no cracks at all. Impossible for me.
I try not to open the book all the way, I'm hopeless. See this is why I'm better off with ebooks, people don't see my OCD's in public then. I've already confessed to wrapping them in contact. Here goes: I also then place it in a special little "book bag" one of my special, equally ocd'd friends made for me. Bahahahaha omg I can't believe I just put that out there. HAhahaha. Need more coffee.
I'm sorry, did you just say you wrap your books in Contact?? omfg *faints*Book bag is nothing to be ashamed of. But Contact. omfg *faints some more*
Oh dear, yes contact, religiously. Won't touch it till its wrapped! I confess. It's true. I buy it, leave it in the bag, wrap it, then I can read it! :)))
1. I try to bookmark at the end of chapters if I can.2. Use bookmarks, but not really specific ones.
a. Correct, no dogearing.
b. Only if it can't be helped.
3. I read between 2 and 10 books at once. Depending on what I am in the mood for/ got at the library. For a few books, I have a bookshelf copy and a reading copy.
4. Yep, no writing in books. Ever!
5. Re-reads sometimes happen while traveling or when I am unable to get anything at the library.
Personal rules-
Always carry a book (even just to post office.)
Read at meal times if possible.
If I only have one copy of the book, be very careful to get fingerprints or bending, etc.
Lisa wrote: "Oh dear, yes contact, religiously. Won't touch it till its wrapped! I confess. It's true. I buy it, leave it in the bag, wrap it, then I can read it! :)))"Repressed 'back to school' OCD I would guess. The best part of going back to school each year was Contacting the new school books and textbooks. :)
It's probably because of the school books I nicked, hahahaha!Lariel I can tick nearly all of those boxes, except maybe the multiple reads. I don't like doing that. I'm weird but.
I forgot. I can read a paperback without cracking the spine, but the cover will crack.For example. The new Bernard Cornwell that I am reading. It has that waxy finish on the cover. The spines don't crack. The cover near the spine does though. Which is uglier than a spine with wrinkles in it.
It happens on all my large paperbacks. The waxy paperbacks are the worst for it though.
I think we could be related!!!!So much of what you wrote is true for me too. And don't dog ear the pages either. Another reason to have a Kindle or other reader-books that can be loaned come back with in the x same shape!
Anell wrote: "- I always read series in Order. I can get REALLY pissed, when I buy a second/third book by accident :D
- I always read one book in german and one book in english. somethimes more then 2 at once :..."
Terri wrote: "How do you avoid the cracks? Do you not open you book much when you read? I try and try. Always use a bookmark, never lay the book down open.The closest I can get to crackless *snicker* spine is j..."
I just open the book as wide as I can until I feel it resisting. I guess I don't open it all the way, but then again, I like small font and reading at half-light (or 'in the dark' as my mates and father call it), so maybe I'm a weirdo.
I've never had that issue with any kind of paperbacks (waxy or not), but I've seen them wrinkle a bit. I have had an issue with some books from the UK though, that have a sort of film on them, and that curls up where I hold the book. Bugs me no end.
I use a bookmark while reading. Any passage I wish to go back to or remember on my books I make a tiny check mark next to the line in the margin. I do not underline or highlight. I like medium font, say 14-16 pt. if possible, serif font like Times New Roman. On some of my paperbacks I've had the edge of the laminate curl up on the covers back or front--annoying, but it's not earthshaking.
I have to be enlightened by the book. Nothing about race,religious superiority,or implying anything other than peace and love for all. Mainly Sumerian,Akkadian,i.e. mesopotamia. I write notes when I read and how much I read differs.
Wow, this is an old thread. I had totally forgotten about it.
Me too. And you were the one who started it, Dawn! :-DWhen I saw the title come up in my notifications I thought someone had started a new thread.
Ancient & Medieval Historical Fiction
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Twilight (other topics)Authors mentioned in this topic
Bernard Cornwell (other topics)George R.R. Martin (other topics)
I absolutely love that quote!