how do you read a book?

[tds]

i dont read A book. i read several books in same period of time. and read absolutely randomly. book 1, pages 24-40, book 5, page 6-19, book 2, page 69-end, book 3, page 2-6, back to book 1, page 102-130 etc. thats how i roll naturally. tds

[tds]

oops i shouldve posted it in 'anything but piano'. how can i move it there?

[general disarray]

oops i shouldve posted it in 'anything but piano'. how can i move it there?

You're losing it, pal!

Look, just change the subject line to "How do you read a book while performing Chopin Etudes?"

That'll fix it and you'll save nils a lot of trouble.

[slobone]

i dont read A book. i read several books in same period of time. and read absolutely randomly. book 1, pages 24-40, book 5, page 6-19, book 2, page 69-end, book 3, page 2-6, back to book 1, page 102-130 etc. thats how i roll naturally. tds

I do something that goes even further than that: reading the pages in completely random order. But I've only done it twice.

What happened was, I bought an old whodunnit (by John McDonald) at a thrift shop about 5 years ago. When I got it home, I saw that it was falling apart. So I detached all the pages, cut off the page numbers at the bottom, shuffled them, and read the book that way.

It was really fun! I found out who done it almost immediately, but it was quite a while before I found out what it was she did.

Then I did the same thing just recently with a Rex Stout. Not quite as much fun, cause his books are kind of predictable. I guess I'll do it every 5 years or so.

Or, I might get 5 completely different books that are roughly the same size and shape and shuffle their pages together. Say a romance novel, a Stephen King, a mystery, a how-to book, and a biography.

[pianochick93]

Hmmm...well I read books the normal way...and I really don't like to think of people pulling apart books 
I read mostly fantasy or historical fiction...use a bookmark, and usually I only have one book going at a time.

[Bob]

I tend to go by topic and read snippets of things about a topic.

I find it a lot more satisfying and there's definitely some kind of pull to read the whole book though.  I always feel like I missed out on something when I only read part of it.

Fiction books, whenever I do that, straight through.

[slobone]

Hmmm...well I read books the normal way...and I really don't like to think of people pulling apart books 

That's why I stressed that it was an old paperback that was already falling apart. Give me a break, please.

You should only know how many millions of used books are discarded -- put in the trash -- by libraries, used bookstores, and just regular people every year. These books have literally no value and take up a lot of space. Not to mention unsold new books returned to the publisher and yes, pulped. Save your compassion for living things.

[pianochick93]

That's why I stressed that it was an old paperback that was already falling apart. Give me a break, please.

I wasn't aiming my comment at you, I was just stating that it disturbs me.
If it's already falling apart there isn't really a problem with it.

[piano_ant]

I'm a dangerous speed reader. Dangerous, in that I read faster than I should, because a good book should be savored, not inhaled. Still, I don't find enough time to read....hm.

I'm bad at reading too many things at once, when I'm reading.

[tds]

I do something that goes even further than that: reading the pages in completely random order. But I've only done it twice.

What happened was, I bought an old whodunnit (by John McDonald) at a thrift shop about 5 years ago. When I got it home, I saw that it was falling apart. So I detached all the pages, cut off the page numbers at the bottom, shuffled them, and read the book that way.

It was really fun! I found out who done it almost immediately, but it was quite a while before I found out what it was she did.

Then I did the same thing just recently with a Rex Stout. Not quite as much fun, cause his books are kind of predictable. I guess I'll do it every 5 years or so.

Or, I might get 5 completely different books that are roughly the same size and shape and shuffle their pages together. Say a romance novel, a Stephen King, a mystery, a how-to book, and a biography.

wild wild..

my way has slightly a different purpose. it is never meant to test myself, but rather it was just the most natural way to better understand the content of the book and to keep myself in that reading mode. if read the conventional way, i will not pass page 5. but with randomization i go far. and if i get more interested to know more, i will keep reading, still in random order, till i finish the book.  randomization also helps me grasp whole idea much faster. chronology can work itself out for me. tds

[slobone]

He cradled the book almost lovingly on his lap. It looked up at him, shyly but appealingly, through its battered but still attractive cover.

This was the part he always enjoyed the most. Tearing out the first page. The surprise, then shock, then pain, on the book's trusting face.

Slowly he tore the pages away from the binding. He couldn't hold back a sadistic laugh as the formerly innocent book learned the true meaning of eeee-vil.

The first book now ravaged forever, he turned to the next. But as his fingers reached for the first page, something made him stop in his tracks.

Not Jane Austen -- you can't do that to Jane Austen!

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bolt of lightning. Bitter tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in remorse and self-loathing.

From that moment on he vowed never to harm a book again.

Except maybe The DaVinci Code...

[tds]

He cradled the book almost lovingly on his lap. It looked up at him, shyly but appealingly, through its battered but still attractive cover.

This was the part he always enjoyed the most. Tearing out the first page. The surprise, then shock, then pain, on the book's trusting face.

Slowly he tore the pages away from the binding. He couldn't hold back a sadistic laugh as the formerly innocent book learned the true meaning of eeee-vil.

The first book now ravaged forever, he turned to the next. But as his fingers reached for the first page, something made him stop in his tracks.

Not Jane Austen -- you can't do that to Jane Austen!

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bolt of lightning. Bitter tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in remorse and self-loathing.

From that moment on he vowed never to harm a book again.

Except maybe The DaVinci Code...

hahaha..

[G.W.K]

He cradled the book almost lovingly on his lap. It looked up at him, shyly but appealingly, through its battered but still attractive cover. This was his first time.

This was the part he always enjoyed the most. Kissing the book lovingly. Wanting it. Needing it. Having it.

Slowly he caressed the pages and the binding. He couldn't hold back a sensous laugh as the formerly innocent book learned the true meaning of love.

The first book now ravaged forever, he turned to the next. But as his fingers reached to caress the first page, something made him stop in his tracks.

Not Jane Austen - you can't do that to Jane Austen!

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bowl of lightning. Sweet tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in a lovingly and selfish way.

From that moment on he vowed never to love a book in that way again.

Except maybe The Da Vinci Code...

Hmm...maybe he should be referred to a mental asylum.

G.W.K

[db05]

sometimes i read up to 4 books, at least 2 are fiction (because library in high school allowed that maximum), sometimes none (like nowadays). Haven't found much time to read since I started music 3 years ago, but I have a music history course now so I HAVE to read sooner or later. History is NOT my favorite subject.

I don't use bookmarks, most are so thick they crease the spine over time. I hate that, and for new books I am extra careful with turning pages. I don't know if you have them, but I use thin, flexible used phone cards, so it saves money too.

I find it most efficient to switch books every few minutes, before you get tired of one, and find that you read more at the end of the day than if reading just one at a time. But HOW I read really depends on the book:

1. for studying - study one topic. underline and highlight as i go, write comments on the margins or notebook
2. fiction - just read from start to finish, visualizing the story as i go (dreaming of it at night too)
3. music books - just throw them out the window

[Essyne]

He cradled the book almost lovingly on his lap. It looked up at him, shyly but appealingly, through its battered but still attractive cover.

This was the part he always enjoyed the most. Tearing out the first page. The surprise, then shock, then pain, on the book's trusting face.

Slowly he tore the pages away from the binding. He couldn't hold back a sadistic laugh as the formerly innocent book learned the true meaning of eeee-vil.

The first book now ravaged forever, he turned to the next. But as his fingers reached for the first page, something made him stop in his tracks.

Not Jane Austen -- you can't do that to Jane Austen!

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bolt of lightning. Bitter tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in remorse and self-loathing.

From that moment on he vowed never to harm a book again.

Except maybe The DaVinci Code...

Sheer Genius  .

[rc]

Well I'm not a very original reader.  Maybe I'll start out with a couple books on the go, but eventually I wind up reading only one at a time, each page in order. I usually get back to the others, I can't sleep at night if there's something I'm not finishing.

I'm a bit rough with my books. They look read.  Probably because I use the floor as a bookmark, sometimes they get walked on, and it's a pretty big bookmark.  One time I was looking at a girls book and put it down using the table as a bookmark and she nearly lost it! yeesh.

Hmm...maybe he should be referred to a mental asylum.

G.W.K

Oh no, he's been reformed to do good!  He only wants to hurt the Davinci Code now.

[G.W.K]

Oh no, he's been reformed to do good!  He only wants to hurt the Davinci Code now.

It doesn't look like that to me...

G.W.K

[tds]

It doesn't look like that to me...

G.W.K

he alrite, g.w.k, he alrite.

[G.W.K]

he alrite, g.w.k, he alrite.

Are you all there? Or are you deliberately posting weird comments? 

G.W.K

P.S. No offence meant of course...

[tds]

yupper...he repented already

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bolt of lightning. Bitter tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in remorse and self-loathing.

From that moment on he vowed never to harm a book again.

[G.W.K]

He cradled the book almost lovingly on his lap. It looked up at him, shyly but appealingly, through its battered but still attractive cover. This was his first time.

This was the part he always enjoyed the most. Kissing the book lovingly. Wanting it. Needing it. Having it.

Slowly he caressed the pages and the binding. He couldn't hold back a sensous laugh as the formerly innocent book learned the true meaning of love.

The first book now ravaged forever, he turned to the next. But as his fingers reached to caress the first page, something made him stop in his tracks.

Not Jane Austen - you can't do that to Jane Austen!

Suddenly the true enormity of what he had done hit him like a bowl of lightning. Sweet tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried out in a lovingly and selfish way.

From that moment on he vowed never to love a book in that way again.

Except maybe The Da Vinci Code...

I still don't see what you are on about? THIS is what I am on about!

G.W.K

[tds]

I still don't see what you are on about? THIS is what I am on about!

*sighs*...i am sleepy...what time is it over there? its 1.40 am here...i cant read that much with the accuracy that it so requires. my deepest apologies! tds

[G.W.K]

*sighs*...i am sleepy...what time is it over there? its 1.40 am here...i cant read that much with the accuracy that you so require. my deepest apologies! tds

LOL. It's 6:45pm here.

G.W.K

[tds]

LOL. It's 6:45pm here.

G.W.K

omg!! u the best, u know?!!

[concerto_love]

I read so many "ancient" books!! Hahahaha!! I really don't like teenlit, but my manga collection is more than 2 cupboards!! ^^ I start from the very beginning until the very last.. I don't like to skip anything, but sometimes I do it ^^

[pianochick93]

I really don't like teenlit

Neither...I got sick of that before I actually got into my teens. Now I tend to read a lot of adult fiction and adult historical fiction.

[concerto_love]

Neither...I got sick of that before I actually got into my teens. Now I tend to read a lot of adult fiction and adult historical fiction.

Agree!

[zheer]

I like reading when I'm in a train, bus or any other form of public transport. I usually pick a subject I like, then I read one page at a time. However I can only read a text book  (eductional) in a library or at my desk.

[tds]

oh sorry i forgot to mention. here is my initial way to get myself familiar with a book and to quickly guess what the book is all about: look and read the front cover, and skim thru pages very quickly by reading the chapter's title, some random text, and looking at pictures (if any); and read the back cover.

[gyzzzmo]

I often tend to read books over and over. I cant really read new complex books since i have a pretty severe form of epilepsie 
Gladly i can still enjoy reading them, although i know pretty much where its going to :p

[a-sharp]

Left to right, top to bottom... but very rarely.

[tds]

I often tend to read books over and over. I cant really read new complex books since i have a pretty severe form of epilepsie 

yes, i tend to read them over again. i never not pick up something even after reading them for the nth times