Tuesday, March 16, 2010

kris' confessions: reading taboo # 2


My next confession will strike at the hearts of bibliophiles everywhere and I'm sure will gain me no friends.

However, I shall gird my loins in the hopes that you are all firm (to the power of infinity squared) believers in the concept of honesty being the best policy...

*gulp*

Kris’ Reading Taboo #2


My name is Kris and I am a Spine Cracker.

*hangs head*

I know! *wailing* I’M SO SORRY.

But it’s not all my fault!
I swear!

I’m 99.9999998% certain that my house has a gremlin with an unhealthy obsession for book marks, which means I HAVE to lay my book face down to mark my place because there’s NO WAY IN HELL will I ever, EVA be one of those Evil Page Corner Turners.

Recently discovered stash of book marks in house where owner died in suspicious tbr-pile collapse circumstances.

Erm. I don’t s’pose anyone out there knows of a support group for spine crackers, do they?

Hello?

Anyone??

You hate me now.

Don't you. :(

59 comments:

Jenre said...

*whispers*
I do this too. In fact, if you lay some of my books down page up, they automatically open up at my favourite pages.

I prefer to see it as 'well loved' rather than 'thoughtlessly ruined and mistreated'.

orannia said...

My name is Kris and I am a Spine Cracker.

*GASP*

*faints*

*revives*

You too Jenre? *faints*

I am going to collect some bookmarks and send them to you Kris. There is NO excuse. You could use a piece of paper!

*realizes hands are trembling and steps away from keyboard*

Kris said...

Jen: "I prefer to see it as 'well loved' rather than 'thoughtlessly ruined and mistreated'."

*carefully writes that down*

You'll stick close to me today, right, Jen?? I get the feeling we might need to make plans for a speedy escape...


Orannia: I told you it's not my fault! I have a Book Mark Gremlin, who steals anything that can be used for similar purposes including a piece of paper, a drink coaster, a boy kitten, etc, etc.

KC Burn said...

Spine cracking is inevitable with multiple reading, I find, and many of my books have been read more than once. So, my books do look well loved, and they are.

But, I have to admit, I turn down page corners, too. The way I figure, I own the book and if I want to shred it and turn it into confetti, that's my prerogative.

Ahem... I may have been told once that I "should never, ever do that", and I may have issues with people telling me what to do :)

Anonymous said...

I crack the spine of every book I own within hours of owning it. I love it, somehow it's very satisfying to me.
And I dog ear my book pages about half the time while I use a bookmark the rest.

:o)

MsM

Erotic Horizon said...

**My name is Kris and I am a Spine Cracker.**

My eyes, My eyes...

The horror of it, the tragedy...

Just kill me and be done with it, will you...

fie!!!! on all you spine crackers

Thank the lord you have a cool bookmark collection.. Cute..

E.H>

Kris said...

KC: "Spine cracking is inevitable with multiple reading, I find, and many of my books have been read more than once. So, my books do look well loved, and they are."

*carefully adds to list of excu- erm, reasons for spine cracking*

LOL. I may have issues with people telling me what to do too, KC, so I'll let go of the turning page corners down thing... just this once. ;)


MsM: The sound of a spine cracking can be so satisfying can't it... or so I've heard anyway... not that I would do it deliberately for any other reason but trying to mark my place...

I'll think I'll just stop now.


EH: "Just kill me and be done with it, will you..."

Okay! *beams* Where do you live again? I'll need that info for the hit.

Sean Kennedy said...

You are NEVER borrowing any of my books. You sound as bad as my father - he can wreck a hardcover in one sitting.

Patti (@TheLoveJunkee) said...

In general I try not to crack the spine but sometimes it's unavoidable, especially if it's a book I read over and over. Hubs on the other hand doesn't care and I find stuff I lend him facedown on the counter all the time. I'm pretty sure that's in the list of approved reasons for a divorce, LOL!

Kati said...

OMG! Come sit next to me. I beat the everlovin' crap out of my books. I spine crack (it's aggravating to have to angle the book so you can see the words closest to the center!), I dog ear, and I routinely lay my books face down to let the dog out. It's also possible that occasionally cheeto colored marks get on the pages, or chocolate, or whatever.

Kris said...

Sean, you won't even let me bloody visit you let alone borrow your books. *poutmope*


Patti: "I'm pretty sure that's in the list of approved reasons for a divorce, LOL!"

*snort* Quite possibly. Along with asking about the guy version of girl crushes, etc, etc. ;)



Kati, yay! So you're a pull-the-pages-apart-and-give-that-spine-a-good-old-crack-to-see-the-words-better too. Awesome. :)

*whispers* My books have chocolate, corn chip and usually red wine on them. I feel the food and drink marks tend to reflect how much I enjoyed a book, which is a good thing, imo.

wren boudreau said...

Spine cracking, corner turning, coffee cup ringing, husband wacking...I've done it all and more.

The thing with e-books is you can't do any of that stuff! Is there an electronic equivalent to spine cracking?

Erotic Horizon said...


I feel the food and drink marks tend to reflect how much I enjoyed a book


You guys are one of the reasons I look at every book carefully that I borrow from the library..

You lot need a post or at least a tattoes (permanent reminder) on book care...

I dont believe you guys...

E.H>

Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

***gasp***

**Oh my**

**goes back to re-read**

Wow, when you come clean... you really come clean, don'tcha.

Well **in a hushed tone** when I first started reading, I crack the sh*t out of the books cuz I could not stand how closed the book wanted to stay. I mean, I was trying to read... Then I read under the covers in my bed.. and that makes it difficult enough.
But then I saw what I was doing to the spine.. and I frowned and vowed to try my hardest to never do that again.... I am not as bad as I use to be... now it only bends due to the hot handling cuz the book is just that good!

**come sit next to me my friend... I will protect you**

s7anna said...

Kris...don't you feel better now that the truth is out...*take a deep breath and let it out slowly* :)

I too am a fellow spine cracker...I prefer my books look read and loved rather than pristine & untouched. I also fold the corners despite having a gazillion bookmarks...all of which seem to disappear when I need them *sigh*

I'm slowly but surely trying to break my page folding habit but the spine cracking...that's here to stay and I say that proudly *shocking I know but I feel no shame* lol

Happy Reading (crack away)
Anna

Kris said...

Wren: "The thing with e-books is you can't do any of that stuff!"

I know! It's boring. :(

*ponders* Maybe changing the formats of an ebook is the equivalent of spine cracking. Way less fun though.


EH: "You guys are one of the reasons I look at every book carefully that I borrow from the library.."

Hey! The way I treat books is one of the reasons why I don't borrow from the library. You should be friggin' proud of me instead of bitchin'. :P

Kris said...

Cecile, what?! You're a born-again spine cracker? Say it ain't so. ;)

"now it only bends due to the hot handling cuz the book is just that good!"

O_O

*wonders if she wants to know what makes a book hot enough to want to "bend" it"

*no, probably not*


Anna! *takes deep breath and slowly releases* My new BFF! *g* I do feel better, but I'm pretty sure that EH is plotting my dismemberment. LOL.

"but the spine cracking...that's here to stay and I say that proudly *shocking I know but I feel no shame* lol"

It's the sound that a new book makes when you crack it for the first time. It's like a champagne cork popping or the rip of a wrapper off a chocolate bar. It's the sound of anticipation. *sigh* Sooo good. ;)

Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

Hey... at least I am honest... Well you know the great hussy stuff I read sometimes get the best of me... and I tend to get excited and what happens next is that they spine cease just a bit... and a little bit more... and more...

Kris said...

Cecile, you leave drool marks too, don't you? Geez, hun, you're hopesmuttless.

Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

Now that I do not.... Look... I am a disgrace cuz I crack, but I do not drool... that is for my cookies only...

speaking of which... i have to go get a fresh glass of milk...

Sullivan McPig said...

I once had a collegue who would just rip off the pages she already had read. She said she never read a book more than once and tearing out the parts she already read made her bag less heavy.

I fainted after she told me this!!

Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

****faints****

***recovers after 15 minutes***

**re reads**

**faints again**

Kati said...

Kris - If it makes you feel any better, I did a blog posting about this not too long ago called "Love your books, just don't loooove your books" and Meljean Brook stated that she squashes bugs with her books.

Also, when I met Meredith Duran at RWA this summer, I'd been reading Bound by Your Touch, and I asked her to sign it. I was, of course, totally mortified by the beat up state of the books (spine cracked, food stains, pages bent from being carried in my work tote), and she wrote in my book "To Kati, I love a good book cracker! -Meredith Duran"

I'm just saying. Authors do it too! :o)

Lily said...

Hi, my name is Lily and I'm a Spine Cracker.

Wow, that felt almost liberating. :D

It's almost inevitable that the spine will crack, edges may be turned over and even some food may get on a much loved and much read book. I do try to be careful of my books but they definitely don't look new once I've read them, just 'well loved'.

Jessica said...

I don't know whether to laugh or cry...you guys and your confessions crack me up.

I try not to crack the spines of books because I read and then re-read them so much, the pages start falling out. I do admit to laying a book face down at times. My cats like to play with my bookmarks so, they are not always at hand. Or they are in another book. Or I just lost the stupid things, again.

lbgregg said...

Spine cracker and end reader. No problemo, love, I snack sometimes as I read so...perhaps there is a little salsa splatter on the page? These things happen. Life is messy.

(But I LOVE to crack a good spine.)

Chris said...

*sobs quietly in corner*

s7anna said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

**revives after someone uses smelling salt to wake me up**

Oh sh*t, I did read right....

*brings Chris a tissue*

Agrees with s7anna... so wrong... sniff sniff... those poor pages... sniff sniff....

*joins Chris in the sobs**

s7anna said...

*sobbing quietly*

I can't believe the cruelty to her poor books...those poor poor books

Cecile Smutty Hussy said...

s7anna...

**pats seat on the side of me and chris**

come sit with us honey.. here is a tissue...

sniff sniff... blow... sniff sniff...

I have never heard of anyone doing that to their books before... I am still shell shocked at even the thought of ripping any page out of any book...

**new burst of tears**

nichem said...

I spine-crack, turn down corners, and get food on my pages. My daughter is much more particular with her books and had a fit the other day when I wanted to borrow a new book I'd just bought her. So I waited and read it while she was at school, heh.

I'm much more particular with my ebook reader. I won't eat anything messy while I'm using it, and I've been known to obsessively clean the screen.

The Romance Girl said...

I can't really hold it against you since I will dog ear if I don't have a book mark handy...

and how is it I never seem to have one handy?! I have about a million of them!

Sweet Vernal Zephyr said...

OMG - Tears out the pages after she reads them! *gasp* That reminds me of my mother. She would get so mad at a rape scene in her romance paper backs that she would immediately tear the book in half!

As for spine cracking, I get an particularly evil high from the tiny bits of ink that flake of a newly cracked spine. Kinda like blood on your hands... ;)

And my husband benefits greatly from my spine cracking! He says all he has to do is let the book fall open and the spine is cracked at the most smuttiest parts!

Janna said...

Oh boy, I hope I don't lose a few friends with confessing that I'm guilty of all the above... BUT... it's all in my past now!
And I only did it while travelling, the worst part I mean. Ever since I have my ereader there's no need anymore to tear out pages to save space (and weight) in my handluggage.
Okay, stop throwing tomatoes now! I stopped doin it, even the spinecracking and staining! Thank god for ebooks! :)

Tam said...

I do this too. My daughter gives me hell for it. Oh well. It's a book, not the holy grail. If it gets damaged I can buy a new one.

Anne said...

I don't crack spines or turn down corners. I have a basket full of book marks that I pick from everwhere -ie RT, book fairs library etc. So my stash of bookmarks is never empty. My friends help me out with free books and book markers, plus if I don't have one I remember the page number--numbers I never forget for some odd reason.

Jess (The Cozy Reader) said...

I do it too! Must use a bookmark! I usually stuff something in there to hold the spot or just turn it over flat. :( Oh wells!

Unknown said...

*raises hand* Not only am I a spine cracker, but sometimes I read in the tub and the pages get waterlogged.

Chris said...

*curls into a small ball in the corner and continues to sob*

Kris said...

Cecile: "I am a disgrace cuz I crack, but I do not drool..."

Sure, sure.


Sullivan: "I once had a collegue who would just rip off the pages she already had read. She said she never read a book more than once and tearing out the parts she already read made her bag less heavy."

O_O

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Kris said...

*gasp*

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Kris said...

Sullivan, NO! Please, please tell me that was a make believe story otherwise I might have nightmares for the rest of my life... and look it's scarred poor Cecile, Anna and Chris for life too.

We'll never be the same. Our innocence is shattered.

Oh, the humanity!


Kati: *perks up* Really?? Phew. It is true that sometimes only a hard cover will do for a good bug squashing. Not my Terry Pratchetts though as they are sacrosanct. :)


Lily: "Wow, that felt almost liberating. :D"

Good. That means you owe me now. ;) I think it must be a reflection of how much the Mumma put the fear of God about treating books like babies (only better) that the entire 'well loved' argument seems to have passed me by. Needless to say that I'm so glad that I did this post. LOL.

Tracy said...

I'm totally a spine cracker. When were all posting pictures of our bookshelves someone even mentioned it and gasped! lol

I take really good care of borrowed books, but my own? Cracked baby, cracked.

I knew I liked you for more than one reason. ;)

Tracy said...

Oh and I'm with you Kris. I will NOT dog ear a page - isn't that just doing damage to a good book? *snort*

Kris said...

Jessica: Probably cry after reading Sullivan's comment. :(

"My cats like to play with my bookmarks so, they are not always at hand. Or they are in another book. Or I just lost the stupid things, again."

Wow. I just got deja vu. LOL. The Gremlin constantly steals my bookmarks and the ones already inside books get destroyed by one of my boy kittens. Do you ever get the feeling that something is not meant to be??


LB: "But I LOVE to crack a good spine."

Me too! Like I said to Anna, it's the sound of anticipation - that start of a book, the building up to the climax and the (hopefully) satisfying end. Nothing beats it. :)


Richelle: "So I waited and read it while she was at school, heh."

LMAO! That's too funny.

"I'm much more particular with my ebook reader."

*flips open ereader and sees smudges and dust and... what the hell is that...*

Oh. Yes. *cough* I am too.

Ingrid said...

OMG!!! No, no, no! I would never deliberately crack a spine.

I need a drink.....

very: submiz I can see some girlz that need to put in line!

Kris said...

Miranda: "As for spine cracking, I get an particularly evil high from the tiny bits of ink that flake of a newly cracked spine. Kinda like blood on your hands... ;)"

Shush! You're not meant to reveal that, Miranda. That's one of the Sacred Spine Cracker Secrets. Geez.

"And my husband benefits greatly from my spine cracking! He says all he has to do is let the book fall open and the spine is cracked at the most smuttiest parts!"

Now that's funny and very cool. We'll talk off line about the books he finds particularly inspiring. *waggles eyebrows*


DL: "and how is it I never seem to have one handy?! I have about a million of them!"

Maybe you have a Gremlin too! They're such evil bastards. I think mine steals pens and tampons too. I hatez it.


Janna: "Oh boy, I hope I don't lose a few friends with confessing that I'm guilty of all the above... BUT... it's all in my past now!"

You. Did. WHAT?!

I'm not sure I even want to talk to you any more...

Kris said...

Tam: "Oh well. It's a book, not the holy grail."

See, I tried to use that argument with the Mumma when I was young. I was accused of sacrilege and made to wear a sackcloth. I kid you not.


Anne: "So my stash of bookmarks is never empty."

O_O Okay, I need to know your secret from keeping the Gremlins away. Please share it. I'm begging here.


Jessica K: *pats on head* Don't worry, hun. There are so many of us that we can organise our own support group.

Hmmm... I wonder if rubber band therapy would work?

Kris said...

Stephani: "Not only am I a spine cracker, but sometimes I read in the tub and the pages get waterlogged."

You are sooo going to hell! ;) My stepmum used to borrow my books, read them in the bath and get them waterlogged. After making her replace about 3 books, I decided enough was enough and banned her from Kris' Library. I'm tough, not mean.


Tracy: "I knew I liked you for more than one reason. ;)"

True. More than spine cracking unites us.

"I will NOT dog ear a page - isn't that just doing damage to a good book?"

Exactly. That's just wrong. :)


Ingrid: Geez. Over react much. You're as bad as EH.

Janna said...

I'm not sure I even want to talk to you any more...

Ouch! In my defense, it were only category romances from the nineties I did the tearing pages off to.
And please don't mean to me, I have to say goodbye to my baby tomorrow when I send him to kitty heaven :(
I feel like Chris when she wrote:
*curls into a small ball in the corner and continues to sob*
for a whole different reason...

Janna said...

Forgot the word 'be' before 'mean'...

Kris said...

Janna, oh hun. I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty. (((HUGS))) And you know I would never stop talking to you... for long. :)

Janna said...

Pheww :)
Thanks for the hugs, Kris!
And for making it short this time ;)

Estella said...

No spine cracking for me!

Kris from Mumma's said...

Estella: You sure the we can't tempt you? Just a little?? ;)

Sullivan McPig said...

@janna: *hugs*

And sorry to all those people who I traumatised by my story, which is true even though I want to tell that it's not.

Renee said...

Its funny that I'd NEVER bend a page corner either, but I don't think twice about cracking the spine.
And, I also have bookmarks galore scattered throughout the house.

Kris said...

Sullivan: It's your fault I had nightmares last night. :(


Renee: Snap! *snort* Obviously actually damaging a page by turning the corner is just one step too far even for us.

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