Books, beware. I like to color in the pages with notes and fold the edges of a good tome—like someone who’s seen things—and can’t remember them. Hence, the graffiti and street-cred origami.
Actually, I’d really like to have nice things. Like books without creases or marks. It’s hard because my penchant for destruction is so strong. But here’s what helps:
Bookmarks. Not just any bookmarks, though. Not something with a quote or a platitude like “find your greatness.” I can never find my “greatness.” It’s somewhere with my glasses, which I can also never find.
I did once write a blog post about magnetic bookmarks—and don’t get me wrong, they’re wonderful, those cactus-shaped cuties. But they’re made of paper, so they don’t last long.
Instead, I found something refreshingly delightful at Barnes & Noble a few weeks ago. They’re soft, flexible silicone bookmarks in the shape of things—like leaves and plants. I chose some pink mushrooms, and they have changed my life.
Whenever I feel the urge to mark up a page or fold a corner into a ridiculously large triangle, I just place the slender plastic mushroom stalk into the crease and leave it alone—and marvel at its adorable little domed shape sticking up on top—perfectly marking where I’ve left off.
I highly recommend them, but be careful if you also have one of the following habits:
–Chewing things. (You might get a craving for sauteed mushrooms with just a bit of garlic butter toasted crostini. Not that I would know.)
–Misplacing things, especially mushrooms.
–Reading on decks/areas that have slits in them, where a slender mushroom-like bookmark might slip and disappear forever. (Buy four to a pack for good measure.)
–Dreaming up nightmares starring mushrooms. (You are what you read/bookmark.)
–Confusing bookmarks with items you might use in a salad. (Again, buy four to a pack for good measure + a bottle of syrup of ipecac.)
Your Turn: Do you prefer paper books or online books? What’s your method for marking your place?
Fixin' Leaks and Leeks 
I’d say I like both equally. My e-reader is easier to read in bed than a hard copy. I have more bookmarks of all varieties all over the house. How do I mark my place? I flip the open book upside down.
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Yes–upside-down book works!
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Paper books never crash or need rebooting or have the battery die at the most inconvenient times. I have a collection of bookmarks with Frodo on them and “Reading. Make it a Hobbit.”
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I love paper books, too! And that bookmark sounds super cute 🙂
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Those are adorable. And since you mentioned leaves, and I love leaves, I may need to look for those. I definitely prefer paper books to digital. Don’t we spend enough of our lives looking at screens already? My standard bookmark is a scrap of paper I pull from the trashcan or find lying around. One book has TP for the mark. I wonder where I cracked that book open….
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Ha! “Crack.” Love it!
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Heh heh. Thanks for catching that. 🙂
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E book all the way. If I read a physical book I use a real,bookmark with some cute saying on it
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Ebooks are definitely great at saving space–and you can get them immediately.
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Ha ha! I’ll try to remember not to mix up my mushrooms.
I prefer paper books, can’t stand to use the ebooks. My girlfriend gave me my favorite bookmark – it is sturdy has a pretty little tassel and says “Drink good coffee, read good books.”
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That bookmark has words to live by! I like paper books too. For some reason, Ebooks are hard on my eyes.
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I prefer paper books but I’ve transitioned to e-books to downsize. Booking e-books is still difficult. Oh for mushroom shaped bookmarks for e-books.
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They should make digital bookmarks!
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I still prefer paper books. The smell, the feel, the weight of reading. I love looking at my bookshelf so full of stories. I do listen to books in my workroom and I have a kindle, but that’s just not the same.
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Me, too! I love to keep the books as long as possible, and then donate them.
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I shifted to Kindle because I couldn’t get physical books in my town. And gave away all my beautiful bookmarks! Now I read both, the paper books during daytime and on the Kindle at night in bed. But the bookmarks are gone forever!
Your mushrooms do look good enough to eat!
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Oh, no! Sorry to hear about the bookmarks that are gone. But Kindle is a great solution for saving space and getting books faster.
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Kindle for me now, every time! Among the many other pluses, you don’t need bookmarks.
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This is true!
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I definitely prefer paper books, but e-books are more practical for storage. Still, I mostly use paper books. I like how tactile and tangible they are. I also like looking at a bookshelf rather than just scrolling.
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I love paper books as well. I like the weight of them in my hands-and turning pages.
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these are adorable!
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I couldn’t resist them–and now I have lots of reasons to buy more books. 🙂
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I personally love a paper book. When traveling, I will do audio books. Not a big fan of e-books, though I do understand the allure. I am ashamed to admit that I do occasionally dog-ear a book (no judgment, please 😉 ) if I absolutely can’t find anything with which to mark my place. Another reason to love paper hardback books is because those handy covers have sleeves to mark your place. 🙂
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No judgment from me! And yes, book sleeves are a great solution for when the bookmarks are hiding.
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I feel there are too much screen time for different devices that are out there so definitely paper book for me. Can’t beat the paper smell when your reading them. 🙂 As for bookmarks, I use those cardboard bookmarks, even my own children’s bookmark making of their vision. If I happen to be a spot where I didn’t have bookmark with me, I would tear a paper to mark it for temp but there has been time that I use it until I finished the book because it works. I always have paper with me because I use it to communicate with others.
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Scraps of paper make great improvised bookmarks 🙂
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I read both ebook and paper and love bookmarks, have a good fews spread around the house but still mark the page bending the corner of the pages 🙈
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It’s so hard to resist folding the corner over!
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At home, I prefer paper books, when I am travelling, online books are the solution. About bookmarks, I have a collection of cards with artistic reproduction, I use one of them.
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Ooh! Those cards sound lovely!
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I love this post!!
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Digging this post. Appreciate you peace
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Thanks so much!
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