Booking Through Thursday

Are you a spine breaker? Or a dog-earer? Do you expect to keep your books in pristine condition even after you have read them? Does watching other readers bend the cover all the way round make you flinch or squeal in pain?

I’m most definitely not a spine breaker! I have some books that I’ve read over and over, some that are mass market paperbacks, and their spines are still unbroken. When I go into a used bookstore, I always search for the least used-looking book there. I think I have maybe only one or two books that have cracked spines, and only because I bought them used and that was the only copy of the book that I could find. I never dog-ear, either; I have about 500 bookmarks that they give out free with purchase at the Strand, McNally Robinson (now McNally Jackson), and other places. And it drives me nuts when the book I’m reading gets banged around. I know, that’s the price I pay for carrying books around in my handbag, but I’m very particular that way.

And yes, watching other readers bend the spines of their books drives me crazy. It’s almost as bad as knuckle-cracking, my other pet peeve; it gives me the heebie-jeebies.