Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Jana's Top Ten Most OCD Bookish Habits




 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week we will post a new Top Ten list  that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to us on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers' lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.
Future topics can be found here.

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Hi all! It's Jana, here with another lovely TTT post! It's freebie week, so I got to sit and think about all the things I could write about. I finally decided on doing a post inspired by a post I did back in December on my own blog (That Artsy Reader Girl) called Bookish Bad Habits. It spurred quite a discussion over there, and even inspired other bloggers to write about their own bookish habits! It was a lot of fun, and now that I've been blogging even longer, I've come across more wacky habits of mine that I thought you might get a kick out of reading.

1. I HAVE to finish a book, even if the process is grueling and terrible.

2. I can't read a book with the dust jacket on, because it slips out of my hands. 

3. The books in a series always have to be the same format, and they have to sit in order on my shelf.

4. I can't quit reading unless I'm at a chapter break. However… the Kindle has killed me, because now I have to be at a chapter break AND a good percent number, like 10% or 35%. Quitting at 37% drives me nuts!

5. If I buy a book on Kindle that has a really pretty cover, I usually end up buying the actual book for my shelf. Unless I hated the book.

6. If a book has a really ugly cover, I'm less excited to post a review because then that image is on my BLOG.

7. I have WAY too many shelves/categories on Goodreads so I can organize my books. I'm serious. WAY too many. 

8. I absolutely HAVE to read a book's back cover summary before reading it (even if I read it before I bought it) because I can't stand going into a book blind, with no idea about what's going to happen. 

9. Even if I didn't like the book, or never plan to read it, I can't bring myself to get rid of it. It's painful!

10. I can't read library books. I just can't. Who knows where they have been? I am NOT taking them to bed with me. So germy! 

So, do any of you share these with me? Are there any that I'm forgetting? I'm so excited to see what your creative minds have come up with for today's freebie topic! Make sure to link up, and I'll be around to see them!



84 comments:

  1. Hey guys I am new to the Top Ten Tuesdays - but I love the idea and decided to start on today's!! I will definitely be doing more Top Ten Tuesdays as they come along. Great idea!

    Here's my link to this week's Top Ten Tuesday! http://rachelwritesthings.blogspot.com/2012/07/top-ten-books-youd-like-to-see-made.html

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  2. I know what you mean about dust jackets! I'm also paranoid about wrinkling them.

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  3. I was right there with you up until the library books thing. My world would be a sad place with no library books, since I have no money to feed my habit :-) But the thing about finishing all books, even if they suck? Yup, I do that. I get frustrated and yell at them for sucking, and my husband comes in and gives me weird looks and tells me to stop reading, but I have to tell him I can't stop reading. Who does that?

    I love the idea of freebie week. I was like a kid in a candy store. It was so hard to choose a topic, and so fun once I settled on one.

    Here's my Freebie TTT!

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  4. I think nearly all the bad habits above apply to me (except no.10 - I love my library!).

    Here's my top 10 - modern Australian literature
    http://booksaremyfavouriteandbest.wordpress.com/2012/07/10/top-ten-tuesday-australian-modern-literature/

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  5. I like your pick today!! I have a bad habit of skimming ahead in books and finding out what happens so that I can go to bed.... it's a super bad habit and kind of ruins a lot of books for me, but once I started doing it I couldn't stop!!

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  6. I"m so with you on numbers 1 and 2. 6 Had me totally laughing and even though I read library books it took me a while and most of the time I take wet wipes to them haha. Love your list

    Marissa
    here's my TTT

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  7. I'm guilty of 1 and 3...there are only rare cases where I'll leave a book unfinished. If the style of the cover designs change midway through a series, I'm furious. Plus, I like all the books in a series to be the same height. I'm even picky about the format when dealing with library books - I bought the other four books in the Time Quintent instead of checking them out from the library, because the versions at the library didn't match my copy of A Wrinkle in Time.

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  8. I struggle with number one. If it's a short book (less than 300 pages), I'll finish it even if I don't like it. Longer books I'll ditch easier because that's a lot of time to waste on a book I don't like. Number 10 doesn't bother me at all. I love library books. They are almost exclusively where I get my books.

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  9. I, too, feel compelled to finish a book, even if I'm not enjoying it. I can count on one hand the books I've not finished reading. In fact, only one comes to mind. And I could probably count on the other hand the number of books I've given away. My library is part of my legacy to my kids, so I don't like to give books away. That's my justification anyway! :)

    For this week's Top Ten Tuesday, I posted the top ten books I plan to read this summer (at least these ten).

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  10. I am SO with you on #3! If book one is paperback, you better believe I'm waiting until the next one comes out in paperback before I buy it. I'll buy it on my NOOK or get it from the library (no worries, I got my cootie shot in kindergarten). ;) And don't even think of putting them out of order or we will have some serious issues.

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  11. I'm the same with #1 and #8! But I love library books :)
    I posted my Top Ten Bookish Memories.

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  12. #2 YES! I always take the jackets off. So annoying!
    #3 HECK TO THE YES! They must be in order.
    #6 made me chuckle! I HATE ugly book covers, and have cringed a few times at having them on my blog. No apologies.
    #8 I thought I was the only one. Sometimes I have to read the back a few times until I feel ready enough to start reading. I hate not knowing every detail before entering in.
    #10 Yes and no. Sometimes I think I spy a booger, or something, and I'm so over library books. Other times? Free is free, lol!

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  13. Laughing about the Kindle percentages!! Totally with you on the jackets. Besides, it's important to keep them pretty. But I LOVE library books! I love the feeling that others have shared the book with me.

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  14. I definitely can't stop unless I'm at a break in the chapter or something. I can't stand it when someone tries to converse with me before that! I'm not putting it down just because you're talking to me.

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  15. I'm funny about finishing books... If I'm having trouble with a book (and sometimes if it's just stressing me out), I will read the end to see if I feel the book is worth the pain it's putting me through. I know I should really never admit to this, but I do.
    We did Characters We'd Name Our Children After this week and love it!

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  16. Love your Top Ten! I'm new to the book blogging community, but I can definitely see why this was such an inspiration! The three I recognized myself in the most:

    1. Me too, isn't is terrible sometimes? I had it last Friday. I even started skipping parts and I've never ever done that before!

    3. There are two series on my shelves that aren't the same size and it's driving me insane (and other people as well, because I keep telling them).

    8. I didn't do that once and it was such a weird experience, because I thought the book would be totally different.

    My TTT

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  17. BAHAHAHA! I'm so laughing at this post. I identify with much of it. My mother is always urging me to DNF a book but I just can't. I've got to read it. I think I've DNF one book in the last 3 yrs and I gave the book away. I actually think about buying just so I can finish it. What's wrong with me?!

    I also can't read with the dust jacket on. What's that for anyway?! I like my books to look perfect and I don't want to crinkle it. I also need to read the summary before I begin reading. No matter how many times I've read it, I need to read it just before I begin. Get my brain straight and know what I'm in for.

    I usually stop reading in my Kindle where ever I fall asleep at. Hahaha! I wake up in the middle of the night with my kindle on the screen saver. Who knows how many pages I actually read. This is a reason I love my kindle. No lost bookmark!

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  18. I totally agree with your points 1, 4 and 5. I always force myself to finish a book off, I don't like leaving it as a did not finish. And with my kindle too, I can't stop reading unless I'm at the end of a chapter or on a number in the 10's or 5's I actually hadn't realised I was doing this until you pointed it out! Thanks for sharing a fantastic top ten with us Jana :)

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  19. Oh man, I have some OCD book habits of my own. I used to need to finish a book, even if the story wasn't living up to my expectations or something in the book was disturbing me (or boring me) beyond my limits, but I don't really have as much time to read as I'd like these days, so I've sort of... undone this habit. I always try to do my best to finish a book though because there's always the possibility that it'll win me over in the end, and I feel like I owe it to the story and the author to continue.

    I take the dust jacket off the book when I read hardcovers too, but only because I don't want to damage it. I value them too much.

    It drives me insane when I'm given books in series that aren't in the same format as the books I already have in that series. I need the uniformity too!

    I try not to, but I always end up judging books by their covers. Unless I hear from a reliable source that the book is really good or I'm incredibly intrigued by the summary, I probably won't pick it up. (though titles can reel me in too, ugly cover or not)

    ...Oh wow, I didn't even realize I had that many book OCD peculiarities. Great top ten!

    Here's my list:
    Top Ten Ships That Broke My Heart (Just A Little).

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  20. Hahahaha, great list :)

    I do #1 (I rarely give up on books - last year I gave up on only one - but it was galley - if I bought it, I wouldn't have gave up on it); #2 - but only because I don't want to rip it or damage it accidentally; #3 #8 & #9 :)

    I didn't even realise I have so many :)

    I laughed the most on #6 & #10, although yeah, I quite agree with #10 :)

    Other thing I can think of is that I do borrow books from people to read, but I rarely borrow my books to people, even my family - I'm afraid they'll damage them...

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  21. I find it difficult to put a book down and not finish it, even if I don't like it - the only one I did it to in recent memory was a Stephen King novel that I just found painful. For some reason though, I always imagine things will get better, so I power through to the end!

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  22. I can't quit too unless there is a chapter break. I hate it when I'm in the middle of a chapter and I need to get out at the next stop. (Train) Usually I will read faster and forget everything (because I'm reading so fast), just because I have to get out and I don't want to quit in the middle of the chapter.

    Liking this topic.

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  23. Ha ha, you have some very funny quirks! Some of them I share: I also have to finish a book, no matter how much I'm hating it. And I take the dust jackets off hardbacks. I hate to stop reading in the middle of a chapter, too, but I will settle for whatever you call it, when there is a block of space in the text before a new scene.

    However, I have to steer you right about library books. You do know where they've been - in the hands of other readers, of course! You know we're a cool bunch!

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  24. I love freebie posts :-D. And hahah, I love the topic you chose. I hear ya on the shelving and keeping books even if you hate 'em!

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  25. I hate dust jackets too. And, now that I think of it, I had a percentage problem with books even before ereaders. I didn't have to stop at a chapter break, but I'd do this thing where I'd glance at the end, see the last digit and then keep track every time I read 10 pages. So if a book ends with page 296, I'd notice when I passed the 16-pages mark, the 26-pages mark...the 156-pages mark. Those would also *the* places to stop. Thank God for ereaders, I now have slightly less weird reading habits :)

    Our list: 10 Literary Places to Visit

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  26. I love your list! I agree with so many of your habits! Although if I really hate a book I will put it aside though it does pain me to do so. As an alternative, I might just skim the rest of the book.

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  27. #1 is totally me. Even if I hate a book, I will read the whole thing. I can't just quit a book in the middle.

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  28. I can't deal with dust jackets either and I like my series in my bookshelves to be in order, but really, you can't read library books? That must suck. 99% of my books come from the library. I couldn't afford to read all the books I wanted to read if I bought them all.

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  29. I decided to go with a covers one, since that's the one that first alerted me to Top Ten Tuesday. This is my second week of TTT on my blog and it was SO MUCH FUN!

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  30. The website Library Thing really helped me organize my books! It was so much easier than goodreads. I still use goodreads all the time to keep track of what I want to read, but for my own book inventory -- Library Thing! I was upset when I found out I had to pay after I got 200 books into the site, but it was totally worth it. I paid $25 for a lifetime membership.

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  31. These crack me up... mostly because I recognize myself in your list! I so agree with reading the back cover, but then if the book doesn't live up to the blurb I get upset. I swear, some of the summaries are written by people who have no idea what the book is about!

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  32. You make me laugh - number 10 is kind of true for me, but since I'm a librarian and my mother was a librarian, I just shrug and get over it. I'll never forget opening a book to find the band-aid used as a bookmark .
    Here's my TTT (actually, Top 11)

    http://wp.me/p1vzzU-i5

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  33. Thanks for a freebie Tuesday, it is a lot of fun. I can totally relate to some of your bookish OCD things, I find have more than a few of those myself.

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  34. Shoot! I linked up twice, I think, and the first one goes to the wrong post. Sorry about that! Could you remove that first one if there are two? Now it's only showing one, so I'm pretty confused.
    But yeah, great topic! I share many of your habits, but I think it's so sad that you can't take advantage of libraries!

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  35. Same on the dust covers! They may be pretty, but they drive me insane!

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  36. This might almost have been written about me (except for number 10). Excellent list!

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  37. It's hard for me to stop in the middle of a chapter, too...but then it's hard to stop reading at any point if I'm really interested in the book.

    No library books? I don't know what I'd do without them! I usually never buy a book unless I've read it and know I like it enough to re-read. I love it when I get an old first edition—but I have to handle the really musty ones carefully because of allergies in the house.

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  38. I'm with you on point 2.

    I used to do/feel the same about points 1 and 9, but then I decided (for point 1) that life is too short to read shitty books, and as for point 9, it has become a survival thing for me to be able to cull books. I have no more space for bookshelves and I refuse to keep books on the floor, so I regularly cull books I no more use for. Fortunately I have a good outlet for them: a charity shop. I feel a lot better about getting rid of books now that I know that by giving them away I am supporting good causes.

    As for point 3, I am incredibly irked that all BUT ONE of my Discworld books are hardcovers with more or less intact dustjackets, and that one single book has become too expensive for me to remedy the situation.

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  39. Hahaha it totally made my day to read your book pet peeves! Thanks for sharing! I agree with you on #1, 4 and 6. THanks for giving me a laugh!

    ~Shelby
    http://gobsandgobsofbooks.blogspot.com/

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  40. Great Top Ten! I pretty much agree with you on all of your habits! You sound a little OCD like I am:)

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  41. This is a great list! I completely understand #8 about reading the summary right before you read the book even if you've read it before. It is all about not going in blind. I feel the same way with movies and tv shows I watch. I always have to re read the summary so I can be aware of the narration that will happen. I hate thinking, "Wait! I thought something else was supposed to happen!" the whole way though :) Have a good rest of the week!

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  42. I'm with you on needing to stop reading at a chapter break! And having too many shelves on goodreads. Great list!

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  43. I'm like the complete opposite on #8. I can't stand knowing too much about a book when I pick it up. I mostly read books based on recommendations or whether or not the first couple of sentences in the synopsis appeal to me. Sometimes I just read it because I like the cover and title.

    As for #10, I would die without my library. As a future librarian and current library worker I do know where the books have been, but it doesn't concern me. Germs don't really hang out on books, plus there is no way of knowing where a book from the bookstore has been either (especially second hand books). Library books aren't very good environments for pathogens to survive in. They are kept very dry and at a temperate temperature. Germs like warm, moist environments. Going to the doctor is probably riskier than going to a library.

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  44. I read library books all the time. Constantly!

    I agree about the dust jackets though, I always take them off while reading.

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  45. Number 4 I can definitely relate to. I need to finish on a new chapter or either a per cent number like 10%. I can't even end on something like 15% or 25%. It has to end in '0'.

    Also, on my kindle I have to go right to the front cover and start there and finish properly on 100%. I can't just start at chapter one and finish as soon as I get to the end of the final chapter.

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  46. I agree about dust jackets. Drive me crazy! I adore libraries though.

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  47. Haha, I love your list. I think we all have our strange bookish habits like that. I'm not really a big fan of dust jackets either, but I do love library books!

    My list this week is a helpful one. I made a list of ten tips for reading poetry. Hopefully it makes some people who usually just read prose more interested in picking up a poem or two.

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  48. Heehee, nice list! Totally with you on the matching-format series - I waited MONTHS to get "Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest" because I needed to have it in paperback!

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  49. I used to be the same way about finishing a book and finishing a chapter. Nowadays, I just have to get through the books I enjoy any way I can...and I only waste time on the books I don't if I'm being asked nicely to review them by my editor!

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    1. I guess my Wordpress profile doesn't quite work...so, voila!

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  50. I identify with all of those except the last. I can read a library book. fun list today. kaye—the road goes ever ever on

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  51. I list the top 10 books I read in the first 6 months of 2012 :)

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  52. Ah, so many of these are on my OCD book list!! I think the only exception is library books. I'm okay with those. :)

    Great list!

    My Top Ten

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  53. SO funny that you have to stop at a "nice" number on your kindle. I never thought that about Library books before! Eeek!

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  54. Ha, your post is hilarious! And I can relate to almost every point! Except for number ten, because - really - I've never thought of the gers until now. Mhm...looks like I'm going to be a bit more picky about my library books... :)

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  55. Great choice for list topic--and I totally sympathize with so many of these! 1, 2, and 9 especially.

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  56. This week I wrote about the books I can't wait to share with my hypothetical children. I would love for people to stop by and share their choices!

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  57. Great post! I have to finish books, too -- even if I'm hating them! Usually I end up skimming, but I can't just stop and not finish. I also have to read without the dustjacket on AND can't stop until a chapter break (unless I've fallen asleep -- times like that can't be helped!). I also have a very hard time getting rid of books -- even if I didn't like it!

    Hm. Maybe I do have a little bit of OCD!

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  58. Listed my top books that involve a school/training setting- love those! Which books would you guys recommend for me? http://paigedanielsnguyen.blogspot.com/2012/07/weekly-meme-hosted-by-broke-and-bookish.html

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  59. Oh, YES on number 8!!! Seriously, I'm so glad I'm not the only one! I cannot stand to go into a book blind and when I went away for the weekend recently I printed out a list with summaries of the ebooks I was planning to read so I could check even if we wouldn't have access to the internet...
    And I can't bring myself to get rid of a book either, even if I absolutely hated it...

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  60. Oh my gosh, I'm guilty of so many of these.
    #2-Seriously! Plus then they get all wrinkled and creased and not as pretty. No thank you.
    #3-I totally get this one. I have a series on my bookshelf right now, the first 2 are paperback and I bought the 3rd used online thinking it was also paperback. It wasn't. It's a hardcover and then the 4th I bought paperback again. That 3rd book drives me crazy up there. It sticks out. I don't usually care if a book is paperback or hardcover but if it's a series, they all need to match.
    #4 Yup
    #5 Totally
    #8 Me too
    #9 Ah, I can't get rid of them either. They're like my babies. I don't care if they take up a ton of space, I'm keeping them forever. How will I ever get my Beauty and the Beast library if I get rid of my books?
    #10 My main problem with the library is not the germs (never thought about that) but with the fact that I can't keep them. (See #9)

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    1. I used to be the same way with the library, i hated that i couldn't keep the books, but I hated being behind in current books more.

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  61. Great list!!! I toooootally have to finish a book too - even if it takes ages!

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  62. I have a bad habit of skipping to the ending. Sometimes I just can't wait!

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  63. I completely understand with not being able to leave a book unfinished! I also have a really bad habit of flipping through the book to the end before I read... really bad, I know!

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  64. I definitely share a bunch ofthese with you! I gotta finish books, too, even if I think it will be time I wish I could get back. I also have to have matching books for a series. In fact I took a book back because, even though the books was paperback like the rest of the series, it was a different kind of paperback! I am super protective of my books and I even scan them into an app I have on my phone so I can keep track of which ones I have :)

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  65. I decided to do this as my topic this week too. I love it! I didn't know there was someone else out there as OCD about reading as me =)

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  66. Great list Jana! I had to LOL at #6. They could start a whole new sub-specialty in psychology, Bibliophile OCD :)

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  67. I can relate to SO many of these habits! Haha! Wonderful list, now I'm going to be paying attention to all of my own bad habits.

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  68. Wow! I've never met a reader who couldn't borrow books from the library! I just got 3 books out yesterday, and now I'm freaking out!

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  69. Great list! I have lots of OCD reading tendencies as well, although the inability to read library books is not one of them. I understand that sometimes they're gross, but there's no way I can afford to buy all the books I want to read (and I don't think that every book I read is good enough for me to spend the money on it anyway). Otherwise I agree with nearly all of your other habits.

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  70. I love your list Jana! I can definitely relate to some of them :) I decided to list my top ten book boyfriends in this week's list!

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  71. I love your list. Probably because I have a ton of OCD reading tendencies as well, especially #1, 8 and 9.

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  72. I can identify with too many of the things on this list! My worst OCD reading thing is that I can't finish on a page where the numbers of that page add up to 6 or 13. Sometimes I do, but always am left with a feeling of uneasiness. I have no clue how or when this started, but it is just a part of me now.

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  73. A HUGE yes to number 3. I hate it when they totally change the covers so they don't match too. I'm looking at you Curse Workers series!

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  74. I'm so excited to start Top Ten Tuesdays. I'm going to work on my list right away.

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  75. Numbers 2, 4, 6, and 8 completely describe me as well lmao. Its weird how you develop OCD habits over books. You would never think you would. Another one of mine is I had to use a book mark. Fold my page corner, I kill you!! And if the dust jacket gets messed up it drive me insane and its all I think about.

    Good list!!
    http://bookbitereviews.blogspot.com/2012/07/top-ten-authors-i-fan-girl-over.html

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  76. I can't do dust jackets, either. Ugh! But I have started giving up on books. There's just so much out there to read!

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  77. I am exactly the same when it comes to Kindle books with nice covers, I feel I need to have them on my self :) I also can't stop reading till I reach the end of the chapter, my body physically can't cope with it lol

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  78. I guess I'm better late than never! Thanks for hosting :)

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  79. I think that this is one of the most fun Meme's outthere! And I have to say that I do enjoy participating (at least when I can think of something over @ Thoughts & Musings ;-))! Thank you for getting such a wonderful idea :-)

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  80. I AM EXACTLY THE SAME WITH BOOK QUITTING.

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