How does everyone feel about books?

[Tessar]

Originally Posted by durinsbane2244

I believe I once read in someone's quote here something along the lines of "When a government burns books, they will soon burn people."

Very true.

I'll get you, my pretties! And your little bookies, too!

[OldHippie]

I have box upon box of books that no one wants. Drives me nuts. You think some day care would love to have the 150 or so perfect condition Dr. Suess books I can't get rid of.

[IronParrot]

Whenever I lend paperback books to people, I make sure I have their solemn word that they will not crease the spines.

[Mari]

Originally Posted by Tessar

I'll get you, my pretties! And your little bookies, too!

NOOO! Stay away from my books you hear me!? Evil Tessar! Down boy, down!

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I move a lot, and I find throwing away books to be rather a necessity. It doesn't bother me.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Tessar

I'll get you, my pretties! And your little bookies, too!

Hear that folks? Tessar burns your booking agents.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

I move a lot, and I find throwing away books to be rather a necessity. It doesn't bother me.

Hear that folks? Gwai actually moves his big lazy loaf around the house...which means that he is constantly tossing the books

[Lotesse]

I - no way in hell can I ever throw away a book, just - never, no way. If I have to get rid of them (which rarely happens, only twice in my life when I had to make major moves, and I STILL pine for my old long-gone books) then I give them away, to anyone, friends, a used-book store, anyone, but never would I throw a book away. Same thing with clothes, I hate to throw away clothes, won't do it.

I don't know why, but there it is. I really do love books.

[BeardofPants]

I make a distinction between nice books and *****y paperbacks. I've no compunction about throwing away *****y paperbacks (by recycling of course). There're some books where reading once suffices, and I really don't need yet another bookshelf of overflowing books.

[tolkienfan]

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

Tolkienfan, very sentimental with that LotR volume eh?

Here's my story: I carried a Dostoevsky book around with me (The Idiot) during work, which is land surveying. On a particular day it rained, and the book got comepletely soaked. I was really mad about it, and about to throw it away...but the sentimental feeling came over me, and I decided to dry it out etc...and I actually finished the book finally.

Oh yes, and it's not just that one book. I feel that way about practically all of my books. In theory I guess I agree with katya that they are just things, and as long as it isn't a rare book it doesn't matter. But when it comes to it there's no way. I feel like Lotesse does... and I can't even let them out of my room. I only let my siblings take them one at a time and they must be properly taken care of at all times or I'll freak out. That's just how I feel, they really are my friends.

[Mari]

Originally Posted by tolkienfan

I only let my siblings take them one at a time and they must be properly taken care of at all times or I'll freak out. That's just how I feel, they really are my friends.

I completely freaked out when I saw The Hobbit, which is mine, without it's cover plainly lying on the table, opened, with the inside to the table! My sister had borrowed it without my permission... Not to mention she doesn't even have permission to enter my room.
I was glad though that I finally got her to read something more... intellectual then the Dutch equivalent of Teen Magazine or something. (Hmm, I'm not quite sure if Teen Magazine was actually an American magazine, but you get the point)

[Rían]

Books? Love 'em! I just laughed when people said (years ago) that electronic books would replace "real" books. Riiiiiight! Nothing like curling up in a comfy chair with a good book!

And people will prob. freak out at this, but I actually underline in books, and even write comments in margins. Not fiction books like LOTR, but books in subjects that I'm studying. It took awhile to do it the first time, but now I do it all the time - helps you to find things again. Also, it's fun to borrow a book from someone and see what THEY have underlined! Does anyone else underline?

I had to throw out a bunch of books in our recent move, but they were mostly old uni textbooks that we really didn't need anymore, and wouldn't even be good for a used book sale - who wants a 25-yr-old book on the Fortran programming language? But I still felt sad when they hit the trash can

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by RÃ*an

I just laughed when people said (years ago) that electronic books would replace "real" books. Riiiiiight! Nothing like curling up in a comfy chair with a good book!

So right, Rian...hahaha...nothin' like staring at a lighted screen for hours and hours reading Dostoevsky, eh?

[Rían]

I read Crime & Punishment in the REAL BOOK version, NOT the electronic!

*sticks nose in air and tongue out at hector*

(finished it last night - stayed up WaaaaaaY too late - great book!)

[brownjenkins]

I've read many books online. Most of the classics are available, as well as a lot of stuff that is out of print or very hard to find. Electronic books will never completely replace printed ones any more than cars have replaced horses, but they will change the dynamic quite a bit as to what is and isn't available.

If you guys and gals can read and write thousands of posts on the 'moot, surely you can also read a book online.

As far as unwanted books, a few years back a girl who use to work for me started this thing where we put a few bookshelves in the lunchroom here at work for people to put books they don't want anymore but don't want to throw away. It's become a kind of free library over the years.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by RÃ*an

Books? Love 'em! I just laughed when people said (years ago) that electronic books would replace "real" books. Riiiiiight! Nothing like curling up in a comfy chair with a good book!

And people will prob. freak out at this, but I actually underline in books, and even write comments in margins. Not fiction books like LOTR, but books in subjects that I'm studying. It took awhile to do it the first time, but now I do it all the time - helps you to find things again. Also, it's fun to borrow a book from someone and see what THEY have underlined! Does anyone else underline?

I had to throw out a bunch of books in our recent move, but they were mostly old uni textbooks that we really didn't need anymore, and wouldn't even be good for a used book sale - who wants a 25-yr-old book on the Fortran programming language? But I still felt sad when they hit the trash can

I underline sometimes in books I am studying for school, but not really otherwise, unless something really jumps out and grabs me.

I do have a story to tell about underlining, though.

I bought a book by H. P. Lovecraft on eBay once; when it got here, I flipped through it. I noticed that the previous owner had been underlining, and was rather amused to see what he had been underlining.

If any of you don't know H. P. Lovecraft, he was an old-time master of horror fiction in the true sense, a lot of stuff dealing with ancient terrors which drive men mad to think of, things like that. Anyway, the previous owner had been underlining the kinds of woods burned in a sort of magickalritual in the book, what metals were powdered and used to make a circle, names invoked by some occultist, things like that. As we go further in, he starts underlining more, and more, until finally he starts underlining whole paragraphs, and then he eventually starts scribbling furiously in the margins pseudo-mystical mumbo jumbo about Keys and what-not, which culminated in "Illusioned Reality or Real Illusion? The Gate holds the answer."

The moral of the story is, if you want a good laugh, buy your Lovecraft used.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by brownjenkins

I've read many books online. Most of the classics are available, as well as a lot of stuff that is out of print or very hard to find. Electronic books will never completely replace printed ones any more than cars have replaced horses, but they will change the dynamic quite a bit as to what is and isn't available.

If you guys and gals can read and write thousands of posts on the 'moot, surely you can also read a book online.

As far as unwanted books, a few years back a girl who use to work for me started this thing where we put a few bookshelves in the lunchroom here at work for people to put books they don't want anymore but don't want to throw away. It's become a kind of free library over the years.

I actually have difficulty with reading on a computer for an extended period. I've only read two books on a computer, Story of a Soul, and Dracula.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by RÃ*an

I read Crime & Punishment in the REAL BOOK version, NOT the electronic!

*sticks nose in air and tongue out at hector*

(finished it last night - stayed up WaaaaaaY too late - great book!)

Well I didnt do that EITHER. So there, missis smarty-pants

[katya]

I have been reading the short stories we've been assigned in English class online because I can't afford to buy the real book. :/ It's worked out well. I want the real one though just to have though because there's a lot of good stuff in it. It's a Norton anthology. Online books are fine, I mean, it's not like I have a problem with reading that way, but I still vastly prefer paper copies.

I don't underline much. If I do it's in a not-that-nice non-fiction book. I don't look back over stuff that often.

[GrayMouser]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

I underline sometimes in books I am studying for school, but not really otherwise, unless something really jumps out and grabs me.

I do have a story to tell about underlining, though.

I bought a book by H. P. Lovecraft on eBay once; when it got here, I flipped through it. I noticed that the previous owner had been underlining, and was rather amused to see what he had been underlining.

If any of you don't know H. P. Lovecraft, he was an old-time master of horror fiction in the true sense, a lot of stuff dealing with ancient terrors which drive men mad to think of, things like that. Anyway, the previous owner had been underlining the kinds of woods burned in a sort of magickalritual in the book, what metals were powdered and used to make a circle, names invoked by some occultist, things like that. As we go further in, he starts underlining more, and more, until finally he starts underlining whole paragraphs, and then he eventually starts scribbling furiously in the margins pseudo-mystical mumbo jumbo about Keys and what-not, which culminated in "Illusioned Reality or Real Illusion? The Gate holds the answer."

The moral of the story is, if you want a good laugh, buy your Lovecraft used.

We'll see who laughs last when the previous owner shows up with Great Cthulhu and the rest of the Elder Gods in tow!

http://www.hello-cthulhu.com/?date=2003-11-30