Writing in books is something many readers feel passionately about, whether they choose to do it or not.
I’ve always felt strongly about not writing in my books. I prefer to keep them pristine.
But not only that: when I read, I never feel the urge to take notes. Even when I read on the Kindle, I don’t pause to highlight a particular phrase that I find meaningful.
Sometimes I’ll hunt a quote out later, if it sticks in my mind. But while I’m reading, I’m too caught up in the flow of the words to stop and write something down.
Taking notes reminds me of my days studying English, which is no bad thing. At university I read more intensely, more in depth, and I was more conscious of the underlying meaning in a book, searching out themes and motifs to discuss in my essays.
There are times now when I wish I still read that way. Sometimes I finish a book and I know I haven’t scratched the surface; I’ve read for entertainment and if it’s been lacking, I’ve persevered, but I haven’t peeled back the layers to understand what makes the book tick.
At times I envy people who enjoy taking a pen to their books and highlighting the sections they find most meaningful, so that they can return to them again and again. Perhaps the meaning will change over time, perhaps not, but they’ll always know that here is a sentence that struck them, once. They found it powerful enough to note something in the margin, or underline it.
It’s not something that comes naturally to me.
I remember studying The Handmaid’s Tale for my A-Level in English Literature. We weren’t allowed to take the book into the exam, but we would need to quote from the text. I spent months searching for the perfect quotes to convey my arguments, printing them out and sticking pieces of paper around the house in an effort to aid my memory.
I wish I still had that list of quotes.
For me, nothing beats opening a novel and drawing a finger across a smooth unmarked page. I enjoy discovering someone else’s world contained within the pages of a book, my own thoughts kept separate.
Sometimes I find it curious to see the passages that others have marked on their Kindles while I’m reading a book. At other times I find it a distraction.
But I understand the impulse to write in the margins and capture the moments that make a story personal.
Chris Everest says
I never write WORDS in books but I do underline, draw patterns and collect quotes in my journal. The journal contains the list of books that I read, runs that I do, pictures, photos – anything that make an impact on me. It records my thinking like a 19th century Commonplace book.
The worst thing about a kindle is that it speeds my reading up. Okay for trashy books but for the goodstuff, the meaningful – I need PRINT .
Amy Lord says
I used to keep a journal of quotes and bits and pieces of poetry that I found interesting. It’s nice to look back at sometimes and find it all in one place, rather than hunting through novels looking for things!
Katie says
I’ve never felt the urge myself, but this is something that I do like seeing. It’s interesting to see what people thought about certain lines or paragraphs. The only time I’ve done it is when studying a poem anthology in English class at school haha!
Amy Lord says
Definitely, that’s how I feel too!
Sara Strauss says
In a way, I really like reading ebooks because I love that I can highlight (and then un-highlight) passages. I don’t like writing in my real books unless it’s to underline passages I really, really love!
~Sara
Amy Lord says
I love that Kindle has that function, but I’m often mystified by the phrases that it points out to me as having been frequently highlighted by other readers! It shows that everyone finds different things interesting or memorable, I guess!
Natalie K. says
I don’t normally write in my books, either, though I have embraced the highlight function in Kindle. I highlight sentences or passages I like. If I’m reading something that’s not in English, I’ll often highlight stuff that I want to come back to and translate or examine later.
Amy Lord says
I like the idea of highlighting things you’re translating, it would be interesting to look back and track where you came across a particular word or phrase.