I make buying used books a priority not because they’re less expensive but on the off chance that I get to see the impact the author had on someone else as I read along. To give back, I give my marked-up copies to someone else so they see the impact it had on me. It’s one of the (many) reasons I don’t listen to audiobooks: you can interact with sound waves in the same way.
"one of the (many) reasons I don’t listen to audiobooks" --> This is definitely true. I only listen to the audiobooks that I'm pretty sure I won't need any notes or markups from. Fluffy stuff.
And I totally agree that finding someone else's notes is part of the magic of used books!
No matter the genre, I annotate every book that I read. My reason is simple: The more senses you engage, the more likely you are to retain something you perceive/take in (reading out loud is a bride too far, however). And yet, “I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.”
Totally agree with all of this! The very act of underlining or writing something helps encode it your brain and memory a bit better. Even if you never act on it or do anything with that material.
So, I developed a system for taking notes while reading library books. I had started with pocket notebooks, but there were a bit unwieldly, and I still needed a bookmark so I didn't dog ear the pages. Enter the notecard bookmark. I make a card for the new book (title, author, start & end date, etc.) and use that to mark my place and take notes. I make sure to jot the page number down in case I ever need to reference it later (which has been helpful as I've been working on a manuscript for a potential book about my time in ministry - but I won't bore you with that now). As I fill up a card, I grab a new one and keep going. The cards get filed in a small card box that I grabbed from the throwaway pile at an old job of mine. For the most part, this system has taken over how I read.
That said, when I'm reading for my monthly book club (mostly non-fiction), I always buy the book, and it gets absolutely littered with notes, annotations, underlines, etc. The Bic four color pen is my best friend for these reads, as I frequently highlight back to back lines, but for different reasons.
Okay...I think that's enough book nerd speak for now!
Marvelous — I like the idea of a notecard system! I actually have a pack of notecards that I meant to develop a system with, and I just haven't done it. :)
I use the highlight feature on my Kindle but I NEVER mark paper books. If I like a quote I'll copy it into a notebook or take a picture. I think heavy note taking or annotating make me feel like I'm in an English literature class and that's not why I read!
I don’t, I’ve never got into the habit of doing that. Maybe because I grew up in socialist Poland where books were not easily obtained and treated carefully. Writing in them was not done, dog-ears either. I always want to make notes while reading, but I never do. I was thinking about having a dedicated notebook for it, to be able to scribble my thoughts, but I keep forgetting to use it. I read a lot of library books so I need to have something that will allow me to take notes no matter where the books come from.
I write on books! I underline and speak to the author on the marginalia. my bookmark is a pencil so that I can readily write on my book. Sometimes I argue with myself on the marginilia after multiple rereads. Sometimes I get ashamed when somebody borrows my copy esp those books I know have heavy writing 😂 But that’s also why I always insist people return the book they borrowed because I have left a part of myself in that book.
Sometimes, if a book is physically beautiful, I have to buy two copies because I bend and mark the crap out of one copy. I have a large stack of multicolored post-it book flags available at all times, with different colors for different types of notes. Sometimes I used to feel little bad about my violent treatment of books, but then I read that Darwin would straight rip entire sections out to file with other relevant notes. He was definitely using them for information, not for show. That said, books are truly the only item where I have a bit of a shopping problem, and I buy some of them because I think they're excellent decorations.
I fully support buying multiple copies, especially when they have pretty covers! I've been using flags more and more and really enjoy them. I'm going to lean even more into that for sure.
Another lovely piece, Jeremy. I always enjoy the questions you pose.
I underline in nonfiction. I dog-ear corners of novels (but don’t write in them). If I’m really studying a novel for my book club or as a comp for my own writing, I will use color post-it’s flags and then write notes on those.
You're not the first one to mention that dichotomy between non-fic and fic markings. I definitely mark both fairly regularly, unless the fiction is something more in the realm of entertainment. My own tastes, though, just lean heavily towards heavy/philosophical fiction. :)
Yes! I went back and read through some of the comments after I had written mine and I was pleasantly surprised that others have approached non-fiction and fiction note-taking differently!
I read heavy philosophical fiction vicariously through you, haha.
Non-fiction -- yes. Fiction -- never. Hubby, though, highlights and uses little Post-It stickers. One book which he's read dozens of times has probably fifty stickers. It's a book chock full of great stuff.
Before this year, I never wrote in books. I did keep a notebook/commonplace book, where I recorded quotes I liked for one reason or another, and I frequently used the highlight feature in e-books, transferring those into my digital reading journal in Evernote when I finished.
However, much to my husband's dismay, this year I started buying paperbacks again, as a direct result of the group readings I participate in here on Substack. I highlight in them and write quick plot notes and notes from posts and comments. I am also now using transparent page flags to track themes, images, etc. I still don't write much in the way of my own notes, but I'm hoping to get there eventually.
I would only write in it if I owned it, but even then it is unlikely. I rarely, if ever, re-read anything, so there is not much point, and I don't want to taint the next reader's mind with my own thoughts. I will confess I get a little thrill when I buy a used book and someone else has written in it! Definitely a plus. Did they get the same feelings I did? Were they affected by the same plot point or phrase? Etc. But for me, writing in a book is borderline criminal (full disclosure: I'm a librarian, so...). I do like to copy my favorite lines from books onto Post Its and put them around my house. That's my preferred way of interacting with a book after the last page has been read.
"I rarely, if ever, re-read anything, so there is not much point" --> Ya know, I think there's actually something in the action of marking/highlighting that helps embed it more into your memory (even if somewhat unconsciously).
However, sometimes I don’t have the pencils on me. For very difficult texts, like philosophical ones, I write a summary of what I think I read at the top of the page and then all the sentences put together will be a bit of the summary of the book.
I never used to write in books but now I find myself with pencil in hand at every opportunity and trying to come up with a sensible system of annotation for every read that isn't just asterisks and exclamation points!
I’m still pretty Neolithic when it comes to tech. How does this image to text thing work?
Let me add that I use highlighters for books I own & stick ‘em things for library books. This entails copying the good stuff into another document I keep open called “Quotable Quotes.”
Definitely write in books, but I’ve developed a different habit of late that’s been pretty effective: when I do buy paper books (I buy a lot of books on kindle now just to save money and space) I log it into the app Library Thing so I know that I have it and in what form (physical book, kindle, audiobook).
When I start reading a book I log it into Reading List to track my progress. As I read and start marking important material, I’ll take a pic of the page, underline the part I want to save (I think I’m the last person in the world that realized that you can take a pic of a text and then copy the info?), and dump it into my Day One app. In that way, whenever I need that information, all I have to do is a quick search in the app using a keyword and will find it immediately. The beauty of kindle is you simply underline the material you want to save and drop it right into Day One without the intermediate step
Although this sounds laborious, it’s pretty quick once you get the hang of it and it’s a great way to access the info from all these books we read!
I got this idea from Ralph Waldo Emerson. He was excellent at retaining info and had a whole system of copying info from books into his journal and categorizing it for easy access. What took him hours only takes minutes now!
You can still see his journals at the Concord Museum. They transferred his whole study to the museum from his home that is right next door.
Old English Class habit of writing and underlining in my books. Favorite quotes or impactful passages get marked with a Book Dart so they can be found easily. Always thought I’d go back and do some sort of quote archive but yet to happen. I save books I found really impactful or interesting or “classic” and hope that it’ll be a connection for my kids when I’m long gone and they hopefully get my love of reading.
I make buying used books a priority not because they’re less expensive but on the off chance that I get to see the impact the author had on someone else as I read along. To give back, I give my marked-up copies to someone else so they see the impact it had on me. It’s one of the (many) reasons I don’t listen to audiobooks: you can interact with sound waves in the same way.
"one of the (many) reasons I don’t listen to audiobooks" --> This is definitely true. I only listen to the audiobooks that I'm pretty sure I won't need any notes or markups from. Fluffy stuff.
And I totally agree that finding someone else's notes is part of the magic of used books!
It’s amazing, and a little sad, when I find a copy that has a personal inscription in the front of it.
I love when I find old notes in used books! Feels like a conversation with some unknown person in the past. It makes reading feel more communal
💯
No matter the genre, I annotate every book that I read. My reason is simple: The more senses you engage, the more likely you are to retain something you perceive/take in (reading out loud is a bride too far, however). And yet, “I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.”
I also can’t remember the books so I keep a list on Goodreads.
Totally agree with all of this! The very act of underlining or writing something helps encode it your brain and memory a bit better. Even if you never act on it or do anything with that material.
My best books of all time: https://www.tomwhitenoise.com/bookshelf
So, I developed a system for taking notes while reading library books. I had started with pocket notebooks, but there were a bit unwieldly, and I still needed a bookmark so I didn't dog ear the pages. Enter the notecard bookmark. I make a card for the new book (title, author, start & end date, etc.) and use that to mark my place and take notes. I make sure to jot the page number down in case I ever need to reference it later (which has been helpful as I've been working on a manuscript for a potential book about my time in ministry - but I won't bore you with that now). As I fill up a card, I grab a new one and keep going. The cards get filed in a small card box that I grabbed from the throwaway pile at an old job of mine. For the most part, this system has taken over how I read.
That said, when I'm reading for my monthly book club (mostly non-fiction), I always buy the book, and it gets absolutely littered with notes, annotations, underlines, etc. The Bic four color pen is my best friend for these reads, as I frequently highlight back to back lines, but for different reasons.
Okay...I think that's enough book nerd speak for now!
Marvelous — I like the idea of a notecard system! I actually have a pack of notecards that I meant to develop a system with, and I just haven't done it. :)
I use the highlight feature on my Kindle but I NEVER mark paper books. If I like a quote I'll copy it into a notebook or take a picture. I think heavy note taking or annotating make me feel like I'm in an English literature class and that's not why I read!
"I think heavy note taking or annotating make me feel like I'm in an English literature class" --> Ha, you definitely have a point there!
I don’t, I’ve never got into the habit of doing that. Maybe because I grew up in socialist Poland where books were not easily obtained and treated carefully. Writing in them was not done, dog-ears either. I always want to make notes while reading, but I never do. I was thinking about having a dedicated notebook for it, to be able to scribble my thoughts, but I keep forgetting to use it. I read a lot of library books so I need to have something that will allow me to take notes no matter where the books come from.
I write on books! I underline and speak to the author on the marginalia. my bookmark is a pencil so that I can readily write on my book. Sometimes I argue with myself on the marginilia after multiple rereads. Sometimes I get ashamed when somebody borrows my copy esp those books I know have heavy writing 😂 But that’s also why I always insist people return the book they borrowed because I have left a part of myself in that book.
"my bookmark is a pencil so that I can readily write on my book" --> Love that. I also do that sometimes, though not consistently.
"I get ashamed when somebody borrows my copy" --> ha! Ditto! I usually just don't lend out those copies. :)
haha maybe I should get another copy for a book I love just for lending to people
Someone else in this thread mentioned doing just! I've done it a few times too. :)
on it 💯
Sometimes, if a book is physically beautiful, I have to buy two copies because I bend and mark the crap out of one copy. I have a large stack of multicolored post-it book flags available at all times, with different colors for different types of notes. Sometimes I used to feel little bad about my violent treatment of books, but then I read that Darwin would straight rip entire sections out to file with other relevant notes. He was definitely using them for information, not for show. That said, books are truly the only item where I have a bit of a shopping problem, and I buy some of them because I think they're excellent decorations.
I fully support buying multiple copies, especially when they have pretty covers! I've been using flags more and more and really enjoy them. I'm going to lean even more into that for sure.
Another lovely piece, Jeremy. I always enjoy the questions you pose.
I underline in nonfiction. I dog-ear corners of novels (but don’t write in them). If I’m really studying a novel for my book club or as a comp for my own writing, I will use color post-it’s flags and then write notes on those.
You're not the first one to mention that dichotomy between non-fic and fic markings. I definitely mark both fairly regularly, unless the fiction is something more in the realm of entertainment. My own tastes, though, just lean heavily towards heavy/philosophical fiction. :)
Yes! I went back and read through some of the comments after I had written mine and I was pleasantly surprised that others have approached non-fiction and fiction note-taking differently!
I read heavy philosophical fiction vicariously through you, haha.
Ha! Fine by me!
Non-fiction -- yes. Fiction -- never. Hubby, though, highlights and uses little Post-It stickers. One book which he's read dozens of times has probably fifty stickers. It's a book chock full of great stuff.
I think fiction can offer just as much highlightable material!
Definitely. I just like to preserve my fiction books in the best condition possible.
Now I want to know what the book with the 50 stickers is… please.
“Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand
Haven't read that one yet. :)
A bestseller, published in 1957.
Before this year, I never wrote in books. I did keep a notebook/commonplace book, where I recorded quotes I liked for one reason or another, and I frequently used the highlight feature in e-books, transferring those into my digital reading journal in Evernote when I finished.
However, much to my husband's dismay, this year I started buying paperbacks again, as a direct result of the group readings I participate in here on Substack. I highlight in them and write quick plot notes and notes from posts and comments. I am also now using transparent page flags to track themes, images, etc. I still don't write much in the way of my own notes, but I'm hoping to get there eventually.
Nice, it sounds like you have a system that works for you, which is all that really matters! I've been using more flags too.
I would only write in it if I owned it, but even then it is unlikely. I rarely, if ever, re-read anything, so there is not much point, and I don't want to taint the next reader's mind with my own thoughts. I will confess I get a little thrill when I buy a used book and someone else has written in it! Definitely a plus. Did they get the same feelings I did? Were they affected by the same plot point or phrase? Etc. But for me, writing in a book is borderline criminal (full disclosure: I'm a librarian, so...). I do like to copy my favorite lines from books onto Post Its and put them around my house. That's my preferred way of interacting with a book after the last page has been read.
Also, I love the post-its! What a great idea.
"I rarely, if ever, re-read anything, so there is not much point" --> Ya know, I think there's actually something in the action of marking/highlighting that helps embed it more into your memory (even if somewhat unconsciously).
I sure get where you're coming from though!
That is a good point. Writing things down definitely helps you remember them. Maybe I will be more flexible in the future...hmmm. 🤔
Yes, I absolutely write in my books. For very close reading I often use the colored pencil system that can be found here: https://circeinstitute.org/product/a-circe-guide-to-reading/
However, sometimes I don’t have the pencils on me. For very difficult texts, like philosophical ones, I write a summary of what I think I read at the top of the page and then all the sentences put together will be a bit of the summary of the book.
What a system! Sometimes I'll jot a one-sentence summary at the end of each chapter.
I never used to write in books but now I find myself with pencil in hand at every opportunity and trying to come up with a sensible system of annotation for every read that isn't just asterisks and exclamation points!
SO many asterix and exclamation points!
haha ditto!
I’m still pretty Neolithic when it comes to tech. How does this image to text thing work?
Let me add that I use highlighters for books I own & stick ‘em things for library books. This entails copying the good stuff into another document I keep open called “Quotable Quotes.”
My favorite magical iPhone feature: https://support.apple.com/en-al/guide/iphone/iphcf0b71b0e/ios
Just simply take a pic of the page and save it to photos. Then underline what you want to save with your finger and save it!
Definitely write in books, but I’ve developed a different habit of late that’s been pretty effective: when I do buy paper books (I buy a lot of books on kindle now just to save money and space) I log it into the app Library Thing so I know that I have it and in what form (physical book, kindle, audiobook).
When I start reading a book I log it into Reading List to track my progress. As I read and start marking important material, I’ll take a pic of the page, underline the part I want to save (I think I’m the last person in the world that realized that you can take a pic of a text and then copy the info?), and dump it into my Day One app. In that way, whenever I need that information, all I have to do is a quick search in the app using a keyword and will find it immediately. The beauty of kindle is you simply underline the material you want to save and drop it right into Day One without the intermediate step
Although this sounds laborious, it’s pretty quick once you get the hang of it and it’s a great way to access the info from all these books we read!
I got this idea from Ralph Waldo Emerson. He was excellent at retaining info and had a whole system of copying info from books into his journal and categorizing it for easy access. What took him hours only takes minutes now!
You can still see his journals at the Concord Museum. They transferred his whole study to the museum from his home that is right next door.
"I log it into the app Library Thing" -- Ah, interesting! I haven't heard from many folks who use that one.
And I'm glad to hear you're a Day One user! Sounds a lot like how I use my notes system with Google Docs.
Old English Class habit of writing and underlining in my books. Favorite quotes or impactful passages get marked with a Book Dart so they can be found easily. Always thought I’d go back and do some sort of quote archive but yet to happen. I save books I found really impactful or interesting or “classic” and hope that it’ll be a connection for my kids when I’m long gone and they hopefully get my love of reading.
I've never used Book Darts, but you aren't the first one to mention those. I'll have to check 'em out.