Jules2

You naughty people, you don't know what you've done! I'm now trawling the house for all my books to add to librarything and loving seeing all my precious books displayed on the screen. I was really thinking of getting a little notebook (yes, call me old-fashioned) but I'm loving the way I can play with my books and see what my own library looks like. Off to find more books now! Jules

For some time now, I've thought about keeping a record of the books that I read (if only to remind myself that I do actually finish some of them) so that I can look back at how many I get through in a year, whether my taste in books changes etc. I just can't decide whether to add comments about the books or just use it purely as a list though. I have so many books waiting to be read that I think it might spur me on to read more and be interesting to look back on in future years. Does anyone else keep a record of the books they read and if so, what format does it take? Jules

I think I must come into the obsessive category! I can't bear the idea of anyone folding over the corners of pages and spines should remain crease-free if at all possible. The only exceptions are books that have come from charity shops (and even then I'm quite selective) and books I've had for absolutely ages and have been read several times over. I even have a problem when I'm buying new as I can take ages selecting a book that has an absolutely pristine cover. I have been known to pick up 5 or 6 copies of the same book to ensure I get the most perfect one. If only I was this fussy when it came to doing the housework! Jules

The only one I really want at the moment is a wedding cake book by Martha Stewart. I don't want to read it particularly, just look at the beautiful pictures for inspiration. As it's quite pricey I might ask Santa to pop one in my stocking, or I have a wedding anniversary coming up soon.... Jules

I don't know if this has already been discussed, but I wondered how much you are influenced by the cover of a book. It occurred to me that I was maybe a bit shallow as I tend to be very swayed by a nice cover - for example, I only bought my latest read as I loved the pretty cover and now I can't wait to finish the book so I can get onto something else. I also bought a second copy of Tess of the D'Urbervilles because I didn't like the cover on the first one. The second one definitely made me want to read more. Jules

I must admit, I don't really think about how many books I buy, but it is rare for me to go into tesco's without buying a couple of books (well they get lonely on their own!) and then there is the Friday wind-down at Borders when I find myself buying at least one more. I would say, I must buy about 7-8 a month but I am trying to cut down a little as I can't read that fast and I'm running out of room to keep them. Jules

I know there have been books that have made me cry but nothing springs to mind at the moment other than the time I read Sara Payne's account of her daughters death and the way it affected her family. I sobbed while my husband slept, completely oblivious to my distress.

Almost - I started Not Without my Daughter by Betty Mahmoody late one afternoon and read all evening, had a couple of hours sleep and finished it the next day at around 7am. I don't do that very often though as sleep deprivation is not really me!

I only loan books that I don't love! These tend to be ones that I've bought from a charity shop and don't really feel mine in the same way as a pristine new book would and those that I wouldn't ever want to read again. That way if they don't come back I'm not worried and if they do, it's a bonus. Having thought about the difficult situation of someone asking to borrow a book that I don't want to lose, I think I'd say that it was on loan from someone else - preferably someone that they are never likely to meet! Of course very close family are allowed to borrow but as someone else has already said, I do ask for regular updates as to how the book is doing and they understand that creased spines are very much discouraged!

There are approximately 80 next to the bed - I gave up counting the other smaller piles around the house.

Now and again I'll come across a book that I enjoyed the first time round and before I know it, I'm engrossed in it again. I once came across Savages by Shirley Conran in the loft which I had read many years ago and couldn't remember how it ended so I read it again and my memory must be appalling because the end was still a surprise second time round.