Living With B

Something that doesn’t get talked about enough in the bookish community? The red flags we readers have. I’ll scroll through Booktube or Bookstagram and see people with their perfectly tabbed books, filled with gorgeous notes—and I get jealous. Like, deeply jealous.

But then I think… are these people totally innocent? Do they never commit any “reading sins”? Because I definitely do. I’ve been committing these since childhood, through college, and even now. So let’s talk about it—confession time.

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Dog-Earring Physical Books

I can hear the screams already: “WHY would you do that?! Noooooo!”

Well, because it’s my book, and I’ll do what I want with it. I love when a book looks lived in. I’ve dog-eared textbooks, plays, novels—just about everything. It makes the book feel mine, not just something sitting pristine on a shelf. Sorry, not sorry.

The only exception to these are library books or books I’ve borrowed, but if it’s mine… It’s mine.

Skimming Long Chapters

If a chapter is dragging or if the book is boring me, I will skim. I try not to, but sometimes I just want to know what happens without slogging through walls of text. Does this come back to bite me? Yes. Do I go back and reread when I get confused? Also yes. Balance.

Starting Too Many Books at Once

Hi, I’m Rebecca, and I start too many books at once.

Right now, I have four books in progress and one on pause. I know. I’m a fool. But I’m a happy fool. I read pretty quickly, and two of those books are audiobooks—so it’s not that bad… right?

Judging Books by Their Covers

If a cover is pretty, it’s going on the TBR. Every. Single. Time.

Do I get burned? Yes. Do I still do it? Also yes. On the flip side, if a cover is ugly, I have a really hard time picking it up—unless the premise totally grabs me. Even then, I’m skeptical. A bad habit? Sure. But I stand by it.

Forcing Myself to Finish Books I Hate

I used to (and sometimes still do) force myself to finish books I’m not enjoying. I always think, maybe it’ll get better. It doesn’t always. I’ve gotten a little more comfortable with DNFing lately, but I still feel the guilt. I’m working on it, okay?

Using Books as Coasters (Yes, Really)

Look… I don’t do this often anymore. But back in college? Oh yeah. Books were decor, stacked on desks and side tables. And yes, sometimes they doubled as coasters. These days, most of our books live on shelves, but I do have one on my nightstand that’s holding my water bottle. It’s fine. We’re all fine.

Never Finishing Books

Sometimes I pause a book and never return—not on purpose, it just happens. I don’t want to call it a DNF, but maybe it is? A prime example: One Last Stop. I started it over a year ago, haven’t touched it since. I didn’t hate it! It was fun! But… I haven’t felt pulled back. Yet.

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And in his name, amen. Whew! My conscious is cleared! My bookish sins are out in the open.

Now it’s your turn—what are the reading red flags you commit? Be honest!

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