clockwork frog

TWO book marks in one book!! Poor thing must feel like it's wearing a straight jacket...

Jenmck, Don't be embarrassed. Welcome to a subversive, dark, hidden but exciting world, where books are play things, they get read, they get damaged, they change owners... THEY LIVE!!!!!! Come on, there must be more people that are part of this dark, underworld, enjoying an intimate but frowned upon relationship with their current book, but just haven't shown themselves yet..

[i want to keep them all in as good condition as possible...they're like my best friends!] And just like your best friends, they should have their faults and little idiosyncratic features. It's why you love them so much!

WRATHOFKUBLAKHAN, You're absolutely right about the quality of a book. A brand new, expensive hard back is a significant object and should be treated with the relevant respect. I guess my point of view stems from the fact that I very rarely buy new books. Almost all of my books come from friends, junk shops, charity shops, etc. and all are in some way worn/well used. (And my library contains a few more than 8 titles ) When people buy me new books as gifts it's invariably on a subject I am passionate about and do, almost, revere these books, I think because of the content and it's relevance to me and out of the pleasure of the gift. The rest of my book collection are a little like good leather boots, in many ways. New ones are nice but a little stiff and awkward. I much prefer the comfy old worn ones! Yes, it would be great if book shops could give away their unsold copies to hospitals, etc. but the large, commercial machine that is book publishing/selling would, no doubt, loose revenue and everyone in the chain, I guess, wants their piece of the income pie. Regards.

Because people pay money for them. Simple as that, I think! In my humble opinion, books of this ilk are nothing more than elaborate and lenghty 'Hello'/'OK' articles.

I usually get a feeling, fairly early on if I am not going to get on with a book, but will usually give it to about half way through before throwing in the towel and putting it back on the shelf. It's not a decision I take lightly but if I'm not enjoying it by half way, it's not going to get any better. I wouldn't then go back to it, as (and it's already been said), there is too much else to read. Yesterday I closed Stephen King's 'Cell' and put it back on the shelf, half way through. A promising start but I felt it quickly went downhill and I lost interest in the characters/plot.

I must admit to getting a wobbly lip every time I read Tony Parson's 'Man and Boy'. The main character's relationship with his father strikes me deeply, it makes me feel very nostalgic and I often, self indulgently, re-read the book to lose myself in the empathy I have for this character.

My wife used to work for the Marriot Group and we were lucky enough to get the occasional free weekend with them. If I remember rightly, in Portsmouth, it's just out of town, just off an elevated dual carriage way!?

Tah-dah!! Thank you Pp, I really like that.

Hi Fiona and thank you. Portsmouth is a cool town. I got really drunk there once, staying at the Marriot Hotel! My original home town is an hours drive north of you.

PurplePoppy, Thank you and superb picture! I like that a lot. If you don't mind, I might just pinch it and use it as an avatar. The user name was inspired by my son. When he was a tiny baby (he's only just 1, now) he would lie on his back and his little legs, spread, would bend and straighten at a rapid rate, for ages. We would cry with laughter and it made him look like a little wind up frog! The nik name 'Clockwork Frog' has stuck, since.

Good boy!

I usually have two or three books on the go at any one time but they are normally quite different types of books and I will read them at different times of the day and in different places so confussion is not really an issue. If I have more than one novel on the boil then I sometimes sit for a couple of minutes with the book closed and just run through, in my mind, a brief re-cap of the story so far to remind myself of the characters and what they are up to, etc..

As a light hearted and slightly tongue in cheek way of adding fuel to an interesting debate, aimed at nobody in particular, please allow me to quote Professor Trefusis from Stephen Fry's 'The Liar', talking on this very subject. ["Books are not holy relics"] ["Think how many children are put off reading by people ticking them off whenever they turn a page carelessly. The world is so fond of saying that books should be "treated with respect". But when are we told that words should be treated with respect?"] He-he. Go on... I say again, fold a corner! Let the next person to own your book enjoy it all the more, for the life YOU have added to it.

1. My favorite colour is blue 2. I can ride a unicycle. 3. If I had to choose a last meal it would be home made steak and kidney pie, roast potatoes and mashed swede with thick gravey and horseradish. 4. I sometimes cry with joy, watching my baby son sleeping. 5. I have never watched a football match.