first i signed the inside covers of my books, then i discovered rubber stamps. now i stamp the inside covers. i always add a written blurp in books i give as gifts.
I only write in my textbooks, since we have to buy them for my school, and they’re really expensive, so it’s nice to have your stuff marked.
General reading books? Not in the least.
I put my name in textbooks and the like, because, back in my class-taking days, we often studied in groups, and texts often ended up in a big pile, and it made it easier to sort them out, and nowadays because I loan that stuff out all the time to the young 'uns–and since there are probably twenty copies of Griffith’s E&M in the building, it seems a prudent precaution.
I also put my name into my “real” books when I loan them out. I borrow books all the time, and I often have many books from various people sitting on my “Poddy Must Read” shelf, and whenever I borrow a book, I always ask, “Do you mind if I write your name in this?” so I can remember a) that I borrowed it and b) who it belongs to. I figure that others might also appreciate a gentle reminder.
Oh, yes, and I’m female. So, Trion, finished cooking your statistics yet? Is there a significant gender bias?
Trion,
Sorry, I forgot to mention, I’m male.
Yes, I write my name in books, but only ones I really like and I know I won’t be giving away.
I also gasp highlight or underline phrases or passages that mean a lot to me. I even write in the margins my comments if needed. I think I only did these last few things in a couple treasured books like my complete works of Edgar Allen Poe and one of my Bibles (it has my full name written in gold on the cover, so I doubt it will have a ton of value any time in the future).
I think it’s neat to get used books that are really used. I can look back on the comments and pencil marks and wonder about what kind of person they were based on their scribblings.
Thinking of the phrase, “Never lend your books” reminds me of my visit to the shrink today. Since diagnosing me with manic depression, he kept mentioning this huge black book on his shelf called Manic Depressive Illness. He kept referring to this book fondly. Then he asked, “Would you like to borrow it for a while?” I was so shocked that I couldn’t even say anything. He had just met me this day! I was touched that he would lend this favorite book to me, some silly, laughing teenager. I consider it a big compliment when someone finds me worthy enough to borrow their books. Must be something about me… looks shyly to floor
Well, people stopped mentioning their gender so I haven’t finished (gotta check to see if the unknowns are on the pictures web site). But I promise to post some unscientific findings later in the weekend.
However I did notice early on that the people who claimed they didn’t write in their books were mostly male (yojimbo, Phobos, Ike and myself). I’ll have to check the numbers to be sure.
I think that what we have here is people who value books as OBJECTS and people who value books as a means of communicating. I’m not going to say that one set of people is superior to the other set, I’m just going to say that there are (at least) two different sets. I, personally, will write my name in my books, both for identification and cataloging purposes (a while back, I took the notion to catalog my books, but I don’t do my own any longer). I hope to get my books back if they’re ever lent out or (horrors!) stolen.
I have a pb copy of Good Omens by Terry Pratchett. It’s inscribed “To Lynn Get well soon!”, and signed. I also have a first edition hb copy of the same book, unsigned, in pristine condition. Guess which one I value more?
Yes, in monetary terms, a signed book is worth more than an inscribed book, but if it’s inscribed to me, I value the book much more highly. And since I don’t buy books as investment vehicles, but because I enjoy books, I’ll do what I darn well please with them.
I used to write my name in books when I was a kid. Now, if I loan a book, I use those bookchecks you get at Barnes and Noble. They’re great. If you haven’t seen them, the check is basically a really cool bookmark with a space at the top where you write your name and the date the book was borrowed, to remind the borrower who it belongs to. Then you have a stub where you write the title of the book, the date it was loaned, and the name of the person you loaned it to so you know who to kill if you don’t get your book back.
[confession] I used to write curses in books I was loaning. Something to the effect of, May whoever steals this book, or borrows it and doesn’t return it, suffer unending misery until the book is returned. The idea was to let people know that I really did expect to get the book back (I’d gotten fed up with loaning books, never to see them again.) Anyhow, I wrote some such curse in the cover of a book I loaned to a coworker. After a reasonable amount of time, he failed to return the book. Soon after that, the owner of the shop hired the Manager From Hell, who repeatedly wrote Tommy up for trivial offenses, such as (gasp) talking to his coworkers during working hours. Not long afterward, Tommy was fired. I never did get my book back, but I haven’t written a curse in a book since.[/confession]
This is going to make me sound like a mercenary bookcreep, so I just wanna point out first that I don’t buy ANY book unless I’m planning to read it. I know a lot of book collectors who accumulate volumes which are immediately shelved, purchased only for the collector value. I don’t do that shit.
Okay. As a professional editor, I always am delighted when my authors write personal notes in the books on which we’ve worked together. I like to have that additional taste of their creativity and affection.
And when I’m old and riddled with disease and need money for pills and chesty young nurses, the book dealers will be standing in line to buy my collection.
Buying an old Arkham House book, for example, can be an expensive proposition. But if it turns out to be August Derleth’s copy, the collector value is multiplied twentyfold.
Depends. Go on a sensational murder spree, and it’ll become DAMN valuable!
I used to write my name in them, until one year when we were really broke at Christmas, and I boxed up every collectible book I owned and took them to Shorey’s. The guy who appraised the books said he’d have paid a lot more for them if they hadn’t been written in … on, whatever.
Thankfully, I haven’t been that broke since.
And it’s always felt like I was defacing the book anyway. Hangover from school days, maybe.
Obviously books can serve two purposes:
Artifact vs. means of communication.
As a librarian this is an issue I used to face all of the time. We would get a book that was valuable as an artifact and yet, to properly use it as a tool of communication it would have to be completely defaced. Defacement won out every time.
But if it is possible to get both uses out of a book why not do so? I never intended to sell my books, not until I was dirt poor anyway. And I got a whole lot more for them than if I had been writing my name in every one.
If a book is particularly important to you and you want to highlight the best passages that is fine. But there are many ways to get the values described in this thread without defacing the book. If you have an edition that MIGHT appreciate over time, but want to mark it up with highlights and stuff why not invest in a second copy that is worthless - such as get a paperback or a second printing (I did this with Heinlein’s Rumbles from the Grave? If you want to make sure you get a book back, keep a list of books loaned out and then persue them if they don’t get returned. If you want to keep purchase dates as a form of diary use a Post-It Note inside the front cover, use a large one if you want to write a quick assessment.
As for inscriptions, obviously if I know the author of a book personally, I will much more value a book inscribed to me personally, and I have several of these, but if I am at a book signing with some author who doesn’t know me from Adam, of how much value is that inscription over an autograph? To me, none.
But I am not trying to tell people what they must do with their books, but if it is possible to get full meaning out of it at the same time you are maximizing its value as an artificat, why not do so?
[As a side note for anybody who does want to maintain the value of their books, probably 80% of the value of most first editions is tied to the dust jacket. If you are reading a hardcover, remove the dust jacket and set it aside while reading to avoid tears and chipping.]
Not only do I not write my name in books: I also do not read them, open them or remove them from the bookshop bag.
Because you asked for it! (Well, because Podkayne asked.) The unscientific results.
Keep in mind that in some cases a judgement call was made. For instance if someone used to write in their books and no longer do so (like AuntiePam), that’s a no. I’ve considered Lunatic13 because she marks up her books with notes and such even though she doesn’t write her name. If I couldn’t figure out the gender, that person was left out of the results. A few of the genders are what I consider reasonable assumption (for instance - AuntiePam doesn’t say she’s female but I figure that it’s a safe bet that she is).
And so the results:
Females who write in their books - 13
Females who don’t write in their books - 5
Males who write in their books - 3
Males who don’t write in their books - 5
There ya go.
Oops. The above should read:
I’ve considered Lunatic13 a yes because…