My reading habits

by Zuky the BookBum, posted in Book tag, Bookish bits, Uncategorized

BOOKISH BIT BANNER - READING HABITS

Sometime ago I read a tag post called The Reading Habits Tag (created by The Book Jazz), which I thought was fun, but I’ve decided to do my own little twist on it and rather than answering the questions, just going through and talking about some of my reading habits.

I guess this will be a little bit of a discussion post, as to what your reading habits are. If you like this idea, feel free to do one yourself, I’d love to see how we all differ when it comes to how we read!

P.S. sorry this is such a physically unappealing post!

I’m a lazy reader

You would think that as I have this blog and dedicate a lot of my time to blogging about books, that reading would take up my entire life, but it really doesn’t. The main times that I read are on the train and in my lunch break. When I actually have the time to read, after work and at the weekends, I find myself wanting to do other things, like watching YouTube… and not bookish YouTube either!

This is why you’ll see my Goodreads go so quiet on the weekends, because I’m barely paying attention to anything book related!

 

I dog-ear my pages
Baloo
Baloo
Bear
Bear

No, not these kinds of dog ears! (Sorry, I just wanted to show off how cute my pooches are).

I hate bookmarks of any kind. Now I know you won’t hear many readers say that, but it’s true, I hate them. I find that they get in the way all the time and if they stick out of the top of a book they then get bent in my bag. I’m constantly losing the things and although some of them are seriously pretty, I just don’t give a crap about them.

I like to dog-ear my pages because you can never lose a piece of folded paper. Even if the fold somehow unfolds itself, you can find the last crease in the book and know that’s where you were. They’re easy to do and you’re never stuck with a piece of extra faff the next time you open your book.

I love dog-earing my books, it’s the only “damage” I will allow when reading. I have done it even since I can remember and I will continue to, because it’s just so quick and easy.

 

I’ll stop reading anywhere on a page

I’m not one of these people who read chapter-to-chapter. When I’m on my train, I often times don’t get to finish a chapter before I pull in at my stop, so I find the end of the paragraph I’m reading and I put the book down at that point.

Yes, sometimes it takes a couple of seconds to find the right spot to pick the book back up again, but it’s never a hassle. It’s takes 2 seconds. Even when I’m at home and I have all the time in the world to finish a chapter, I’ll still very happily put the book down mid-page if I’ve decided I want to stop reading. I feel like if I force myself to get to the end of the chapter, most of the writing won’t go in, because I’ve already told my brain it’s time to stop.

 

I never eat food when I’m reading a physical book

God forbid I get food on the pages! Eugh, grease or oily stains on books aren’t cute… plus, how do you even keep the book open and manage to turn the pages without 2 hands free? It’s impossible! I will happily eat over my Kindle though.

I do tend to have a cup of tea with me, when reading either a physical book or from my Kindle, but each time I pick up the mug, I will put down the book and take a pause.

 

I find it really hard to read when I’m not in almost silence

If there are noises around me when I’m reading I get really distracted. No, I’m not like a dog, it’s just that other words float into my head and so the words I’m reading get pushed aside. My poor boyfriend has to turn down his YouTube video or put in headphones when I go to read, otherwise I snap at him lol.

I don’t understand how people can listen to music with lyrics while reading. I physically can’t stop myself from singing along to songs so I definitely couldn’t read and sing at the same time. Sometimes, when I’m on the train and there are a group of idiots talking as loud as they can, I listen to Ludovico Einaudi’s piano pieces, here’s a playlist, because it’s not got any words, but other than that I need quiet.

 

I can read a couple of books at a time

I find it very easy to read 2 books at a time, as long as one is a physical book and the other is an ebook. I couldn’t read two of the same format at the same time.

 

I’m partial to a bit of skim reading and page skipping

If I’m getting bored with a book, I have no guilt in skipping a few pages to try and find out if anything interesting happens, or just skimming a whole chapter that I’m finding tedious.

I never read ahead before it’s time to, unless of course, it’s skipping a couple of pages but I wouldn’t jump forward whole chapters without at least skimming them. I used to read the last sentence of a book before I began reading, but I ruined one too many books for myself so I stopped doing that haha.

 

Damaged books are unhappy books

Like I said earlier, the only sort of “damage” I’ll allow on my books is dog-earing (I don’t class it as damage but I know others do).

I will never crack a spine, I will never read in the bath (God forbid my pages go crinkly), and I will never write or highlight in a book. I even have myself a little “Book Buddy” with me at all times, so keep my book covers from get scratched up and dented in my handbag when I’m travelling.

So there you have it, these are some of my reading habits, inspiration taken from The Book Jazz’s tag (linked above).

I’d love to hear your reading habits in comparison to mine! Leave me a comment letting me know if you share any of the same habits as me, or thoroughly disagree with me!

As part of The Well-Thumbed Reader’s Big Blogger, Little Blogger project, I’m introducing you to The Underground Bookdom, a fun blog full of YA book reviews, tags and more! Go check it out and follow!

47 thoughts on “My reading habits”

    1. I like having two books on the go in case I get stuck somewhere without my physical book 🙂 I’m always reading in queues and while travelling so having them both to choose from 🙂

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  3. Note to self: never lend Zuky a book, she dog-ears pages 😂 What about a magnetic bookmark, then it’ll not fall out the book or get bent in your bag?? And what kind of person just stops anywhere on a page 😱 This post is not showing you in your best light 😝🤣

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    1. It’s still unnecessary faff that you have to move around though! I have a super serious dislikes for bookmarks of all kind haha!
      I can’t wait till the next chapter to stop reading my book on the train, otherwise I’ll miss my stop, I gotta stop where I gotta stop 😛

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      1. That’s a fair point, when I used to get the train to work, I’d always read on my kindle and check the time remaining in each chapter and decide if I can fit it in before my stop and if not I’d just stand on the platform and finish it because I was getting off at the last stop haha. I’m fascinated, a bookworm who doesn’t like bookmarks, not even the ones you can write notes on, they’re handy?

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      2. If I’m closeish to my station and I get to a chapter, I stop so it’s at a normal place, but I’m so not bothered about where I stop on the page that I don’t tend to do that so much anymore.
        Haha yep, I don’t like any. I’ll admit some are seriously cute but I find them really irritating and for as long as I can remember, haven’t liked them 😋

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  4. I physically recoiled at the dog-earing bit! How could you?!! 😂 I also don’t understand being able to stop in the middle of a page. It has to at least be a section break for me! (Unless I’m on public transport and I’ve misjudged how long I had to my stop. 😆)

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    1. I love dog earing my books haha
      I don’t stop dead in the middle of a sentence. I get to the end of a paragraph before I stop reading haha – I can’t control where I have to stop reading when my train pulls in haha 🙂

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  5. Your dogs are adorable!!!!! ❤️ I don’t have a problem stopping mid page. I prefer to finish off a chapter but I don’t force myself. I never used to be able to read multiple books at the same time. Until recently. Now I usually have 2-3 on the go

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  6. Loved this post! 🙂 Can relate to a lot of these points. Especially: I don’t eat or go near food when I’m reading, I need near to no silence when reading, and I treat my books like they’re made of glass (any damage is a BIG deal).

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  7. Great post Zuky!! I think I might do a post on my reading habits so I don’t want to go into to much detail of what I do but I will say I used to dog ear my pages when I was a kid with no problem but now I can’t see myself doing that.

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  8. Haha I love this post! Although I love my paperbacks, they are all well worn in one way or another. Sometimes I dog ear them, sometimes I write in them, and sometimes the spine breaks. I’m with you on reading a few books at once too – I usually have both a physical copy and an ebook on my phone, along with an audiobook for my drive to work and back. PS- your dogs are adorable! 🐶

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  9. What a great post! Most of my habits are pretty similar, except the dog-ear bit. But I’m also not a huge fan of bookmarks, so I just memorize the page number I’m on so I know right where to go

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  11. Oh, gosh, I can’t read a couple of books at a time or stop anywhere on a page! Every time I’ve attempted to read two books, I end up reading one way more than the other, so I gave up on that. XD And I just need to finish a chapter! It’s my weakness; I’m a perfectionist.

    I totally skim over a page sometimes when I’m just completely out of it or if I’m getting bored with what’s happening!

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  12. Our reading habits are quite similar! I don’t mind stopping mid-page as well, although most of the time I prefer finishing at the end of a page, or a chapter. I also read two books at the same time, one ebook to bring wherever I go so it’s convenient and light, and another one (usually paperback or hardback) for me to read next to my bed.

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  14. Cute post! I actually can tune out the world pretty easy. I can even appear as though I’m listening when I’m actually not. The one thing I can’t do while reading is listen to music. I have the same problem. If music is on then I want to sing!

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  16. I DEFINITELY DOG EAR MY PAGES
    And I rarely read 2 books at oncy because my brain could just die. I’ll stop reading anywhere on my page, BECAUSE TIMEEE and like i’s takes like 1 second to find your spot again. I eat books while I eat, am I weird???

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  17. No to be bookmarks?¿? No, no!!! I can only use bookmarks!!hahaha
    Once again, I am one of the chapter-to-chapter readers! IN fact when reading on transportation sometimes I may have to stop at some random page but I try to finish as soon as I can!

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  18. Oh dear I totally cringed at the “dog ear” section. For some reason, I feel it’s totally okay to write and drop food in my books but folding pages and I’m gone! I feel the same way with “noises”. Even if I’m not trying to, if there are conversations or any sort of jabber going on around me, it instantly makes its way into my book and I begin to confuse what I’m reading. Instead, I usually listen to piano pieces ( I love listening to the Amélie soundtrack as I read) as I read and that helps me enter the story world wholeheartedly 🙂

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    1. Haha, I can’t think of anything worse than getting food in my books! Eugh!!
      Yes, conversations make their way into my head too and I get totally distracted! Piano music is the best for zoning out with a book 🙂

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  19. Pingback: Sunday Summary | 4th – 11th June – BookBum

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