Probably a secret code…. If anyone comes looking for the book, for CHRISSAKES just GIVE it to them!! I’ve read enough spy novels to know that resistance gets you hurt.
Then they should keep it ? the book looked brand new. I got it from my local used bookstore. No creases on the outside and it’s a beautiful book. 30 pages in this person has started underlining things ?
@Nama it does. When your donating to a second hand bookstore and it’s not a college textbook if you wrote in it just keep it. The underlining is very random also… weird.
Sometimes they are used for school and writing is necessary to refer back to certain passages. And some people just get more out of it when they write out thoughts.
When I regularly bought and read paperback books, I’d often write corrections in the text (e.g., “they’re” for “there” or “their”) so that if anyone else read the book, they could see the correct spelling. It’s the teacher in me, I guess.
Or if you plan on letting it go ?. I understand things speaking to you but I wrote those things in a notebook.. I dunno it just feels destructive to me unless it a owned textbook.
Christle Boose that’s exactly how I feel. I don’t write in my books often(I own hundreds and donating some soon) but the ones I have written in, which is usually just underlined sentences that I really liked, I’ll still be donating. I know there are people out there who can’t afford new books and still appreciate it regardless of some minor writing.
@Megan Yup, I passed on a few of my old books…they’re in great condition, and she wanted copies…to my best friend for Christmas, and I know that if I had written in them or highlighted anything, she’d appreciate reading my notes. Think I highlighted in a book I lent to one of my cousins…though I know I’m never getting that back…and as soon as I get a new copy for myself, I know I’m going to highlight in that one, too, because some sentences I absolutely love, or I like going back and seeing them and rereading them with the information I now have.
@Christle my best friend and i PURPOSELY do that. Lol. Shell annotate something she thinks i need to pay attention to anf vice verse and we swap the books with each other. I never understood why people get so mad about marked up second hand books.
I just write pertinent sentences, words I may need to look up etc in a book journal. I can’t bring myself to write in a book that I didn’t use in college.
Ha ha! You’d hate my well read, very annotated copy of Bulgakov’s Master & Margarita! Without making notes along the way I would almost certainly have missed some of the deeper interpretations and satirical commentary. But more often than not I use sticky notes and tabs, here’s my current SK read, they are all for bits I want to refer back to as my Dark Tower journey progress. I have kept little notebooks with quotes, significant passages, characters, and references back to previous books etc – nerdy I know but it helps me focus my mind to retain details I might otherwise have missed. NB I would never make annotations in a book I don’t own, or in library books, and I always use pencil, written faintly so it can be easily rubbed out,(a hangover from high school where we had to hand back text books at the end of the school year with no margin notes etc left for the next person to use it). As a lover of second hand book shops, I must say I love coming across a note someone made, it’s like a little nod from a fellow reader. ?
I, too, love getting used books that have been underlined and written in. It’s like a little window into someone else’s mind, you see stuff that stick out to them.
I write in books when something speaks to me, when looking critically at a text, when I’m learning sonething new, to define words -particular foreign languages, and to leave notes to my daughter. One day, I won’t be here. I want her to know who I was as a person, not just het mother, snd I think you can learn a lot about people from what they read and how each person interprets it. No two people read a book the same.
I also look for these, characterization, and other literary devices that I think are cool, handled well, or set the book apart from other bools and note those, as well.
One day I will get around to HP including the new one written in script;/play type manuscript. My favorite author is collaborating and writing 4 new books each year (4 main characters) but, I have not caught up to 10 years ago, but, I am getting there. And that does not cover the other 50 or 60 of interest that are just waiting for me. I do not lend mine anymore. The one person who kept my book, does not allow me that anymore.
Favorite author that you are catching up on? I hope you do get a chance to read Harry Potter, if not for they wonderful works they are, but the significance they have made in the reading world.
I didn’t realize so many people wrote and underlined in the books they read for pleasure/enjoyment until I read this post. I only ever did it in college and even then I hated too but if u tried to take notes in a separate notebook too u lost ur place in the lecture. But I’ve never ended up with a used book marked up too bad but I would personally find it distracting as I read the book myself if there was a lot of underlining and highlighting in it. But even getting greeting cards where someone has underlined a bunch of words bothers me ?…not really sure why though, just always had.
I bought my copy of A Handmaid’s Tale when the book was first published. I have read it for “ pleasure”, for classes both as a student and instructor. When I had to read it a third time, and saw what I had written the other times I read it, I decided to annotate in a different color. Each time I reread it, I try to use a different color to highlight passages or ideas that are new for that reading. I find it enlightening to see my different reactions over the years.
I hate when people do this too! I always use page markers or post it notes if I want to remember a quote or a definition. I see books as sacred and should always look in perfect condition.
Need more context…
They have random things underlined it’s bizarre.
Probably a secret code…. If anyone comes looking for the book, for CHRISSAKES just GIVE it to them!! I’ve read enough spy novels to know that resistance gets you hurt.
Annotations? Becuase some people like to annotate even if they aren’t doing it for notes. Idk why though lol
Then they should keep it ? the book looked brand new. I got it from my local used bookstore. No creases on the outside and it’s a beautiful book. 30 pages in this person has started underlining things ?
@Jennifer Ugh that would drive me crazy!!
@Nama it does. When your donating to a second hand bookstore and it’s not a college textbook if you wrote in it just keep it. The underlining is very random also… weird.
Sometimes they are used for school and writing is necessary to refer back to certain passages. And some people just get more out of it when they write out thoughts.
helps me focus….
When I regularly bought and read paperback books, I’d often write corrections in the text (e.g., “they’re” for “there” or “their”) so that if anyone else read the book, they could see the correct spelling. It’s the teacher in me, I guess.
I agree with u. But there r people who certain sentences speak to them. And that’s all I’m going to say so not to offend anyone. ?
I dont write in my books, but i do have little sticky notes that im gonna start marking things with and a journal where i can write stuff
Because some people like to? Lol I never understand why people get mad if it’s not their book they lent to someone or a library book.
YES. If it’s your book, do what you want with it. If it’s someone else’s, or it’s a library book, leave it in the condition you got it in.
Or if you plan on letting it go ?. I understand things speaking to you but I wrote those things in a notebook.. I dunno it just feels destructive to me unless it a owned textbook.
Not even if you plan on letting it go, you should page through a used book before you buy it for that stuff!! Always a possibility with used.
Thankfully I’m a book hoarder lol
Christle Boose that’s exactly how I feel. I don’t write in my books often(I own hundreds and donating some soon) but the ones I have written in, which is usually just underlined sentences that I really liked, I’ll still be donating. I know there are people out there who can’t afford new books and still appreciate it regardless of some minor writing.
@Megan Yup, I passed on a few of my old books…they’re in great condition, and she wanted copies…to my best friend for Christmas, and I know that if I had written in them or highlighted anything, she’d appreciate reading my notes. Think I highlighted in a book I lent to one of my cousins…though I know I’m never getting that back…and as soon as I get a new copy for myself, I know I’m going to highlight in that one, too, because some sentences I absolutely love, or I like going back and seeing them and rereading them with the information I now have.
@Christle my best friend and i PURPOSELY do that. Lol. Shell annotate something she thinks i need to pay attention to anf vice verse and we swap the books with each other. I never understood why people get so mad about marked up second hand books.
@Tiffany Me neither. I bought a used copy of The Odyssey that was annotated, I think it’s fun to see what the previous owner thought was interesting.
I just write pertinent sentences, words I may need to look up etc in a book journal. I can’t bring myself to write in a book that I didn’t use in college.
Ha ha! You’d hate my well read, very annotated copy of Bulgakov’s Master & Margarita! Without making notes along the way I would almost certainly have missed some of the deeper interpretations and satirical commentary. But more often than not I use sticky notes and tabs, here’s my current SK read, they are all for bits I want to refer back to as my Dark Tower journey progress. I have kept little notebooks with quotes, significant passages, characters, and references back to previous books etc – nerdy I know but it helps me focus my mind to retain details I might otherwise have missed. NB I would never make annotations in a book I don’t own, or in library books, and I always use pencil, written faintly so it can be easily rubbed out,(a hangover from high school where we had to hand back text books at the end of the school year with no margin notes etc left for the next person to use it). As a lover of second hand book shops, I must say I love coming across a note someone made, it’s like a little nod from a fellow reader. ?
If it words or notes it may not bug me so much. But this person just underlined random things that make no sense as to why they would have been lol.
I haven’t read the Dark Tower series yet, I like your concept of sticky notes.
I, too, love getting used books that have been underlined and written in. It’s like a little window into someone else’s mind, you see stuff that stick out to them.
I write in books when something speaks to me, when looking critically at a text, when I’m learning sonething new, to define words -particular foreign languages, and to leave notes to my daughter. One day, I won’t be here. I want her to know who I was as a person, not just het mother, snd I think you can learn a lot about people from what they read and how each person interprets it. No two people read a book the same.
I also look for these, characterization, and other literary devices that I think are cool, handled well, or set the book apart from other bools and note those, as well.
You would hate my working set of Harry Potter. It was for a college course so deep reading, annotation and marking was a must.
Have you thought of buying a second set, just for personal reading ?
I have my nice set. My working set and a set for people that are always wanting to borrow one lol
One day I will get around to HP including the new one written in script;/play type manuscript. My favorite author is collaborating and writing 4 new books each year (4 main characters) but, I have not caught up to 10 years ago, but, I am getting there. And that does not cover the other 50 or 60 of interest that are just waiting for me. I do not lend mine anymore. The one person who kept my book, does not allow me that anymore.
Favorite author that you are catching up on? I hope you do get a chance to read Harry Potter, if not for they wonderful works they are, but the significance they have made in the reading world.
Clive Cussler Adventure, and some historical sites visited. James Bond type characters. The newest is even husband and wife
I like to read the marginalia written by former readers it connects me to the community of readers.
I do the same, found one the other day with underlines. Trying to understand why that underlined the sentences. Makes a book within a book
The writer Oscar Wilde read voraciously and wrote copious notes in his books. When his library was reassembled after his death they were like a diary.
I have the book that was written about that – somewhere on my never-ending TBR list. 🙁
The one I have is a biography called Built of Books. It’s great.
@Kathy Yup – that’s it. I may have to move it up. 🙂
well i review books on my youtube channel but I flag my books or write notes in a notebook.. never write in them
I do it all the time to my one books. Themes or just funny things that I want to remember.
I didn’t realize so many people wrote and underlined in the books they read for pleasure/enjoyment until I read this post. I only ever did it in college and even then I hated too but if u tried to take notes in a separate notebook too u lost ur place in the lecture. But I’ve never ended up with a used book marked up too bad but I would personally find it distracting as I read the book myself if there was a lot of underlining and highlighting in it. But even getting greeting cards where someone has underlined a bunch of words bothers me ?…not really sure why though, just always had.
Dang?
I bought my copy of A Handmaid’s Tale when the book was first published. I have read it for “ pleasure”, for classes both as a student and instructor. When I had to read it a third time, and saw what I had written the other times I read it, I decided to annotate in a different color.
Each time I reread it, I try to use a different color to highlight passages or ideas that are new for that reading.
I find it enlightening to see my different reactions over the years.
I hate when people do this too! I always use page markers or post it notes if I want to remember a quote or a definition. I see books as sacred and should always look in perfect condition.
I was taught at a very young age by my mother and teachers alike that you never ever write in your books! This may be why I feel that way =D