A quick thought

-
This is following on from the previous post. Coping with a hardback whilst reading in bed some of us find tricky, but the problem I have is reading at the table. Hardbacks I can cope with by propping them up on other books to get the slant, and the book then generally stays open of its own accord.

Paperbacks though are a totally different matter. You can't get the dratted things to stay open - or at least I can't, unless I deliberately break the spine, which I can't bear to do. Usually I resort to a peculiar arrangement of jam pots on their sides, propped over the bottom edge of the pages. This is fine until I want to turn the page (and I am a very fast reader) as then the whole thing has to be dismantled.

Does anyone have any better suggestions?

Comments

Vanessa said…
I break the spines.... Oooh, I can hear the sharp intake of breath from up here!
29 November 2007 at 17:21
Jane Badger said…
Sharp intake of breath! It was a shriek, my dear, a shriek!
29 November 2007 at 18:12
Vanessa said…
And I turn down page corners... sometimes I even leave books open and face down. A rebel that's me!
30 November 2007 at 14:01
Jane Badger said…
Alright. I'll come clean. I admit I do sometimes leave paperbacks open and face down.
1 December 2007 at 10:30
Jodie Robson said…
I bought two things called Gimbles - you can check them out here: http://www.gimbleuk.com/

They work okay, though I only use them when my hands are really sore; I get a bit impatient with them because I read fast and I'm always having to stop to turn the page, but they are definitely better than breaking the spine!

I also got something more expensive with clear clips and a prop at the back that will take a hardback - think they sell them in Waterstones - but had to give it to my stepfather so I don't know how useful it is. Had the same stop-start problem. There's also something called a bookchair, which I haven't tried: http://www.bookchair.com/Book-Holder.php
1 December 2007 at 18:20
Jane Badger said…
geraniumcat- thanks very much for that. I'll post that link to my nearest and dearest and see what surfaces in my Christmas stocking!
6 December 2007 at 12:44
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rollkur and the blue tongue

-
I've been meaning to write about this all week, but reading the exclusive in Horse and Hound about the controversy tipped me over the edge. For my non-horsy readers, rollkur is a training/warming up technique used by some dressage riders. It basically involves riding the horse with its jaw pulled in virtually to its chest, in order to increase suppleness. Patrik Kittel , a Swedish competitor in Odense was videoed riding his horse in this way. If you watch the video , you'll see the horse's tongue hanging out - blue. It takes a while before the rider notices this. When he does, he stops, puts the horse's tongue back in, and carries on. There are two things which bother me about this. Firstly, I am fully aware large sections of the dressage world, and some of its brighest stars, consider rollkur perfectly ok, but the FEI guidelines state this practice should only be for short periods, allowing the horse to rest. Patrick Kittel apparently rode the horse for two hou...
Read more

Michael Morpurgo: War Horse

-
Image
It's been a shamefully long time since I did a review. My fellow reviewer will not be contributing to this. I made the fatal mistake of buying her the first two Georgia Nicholson books, and so all hope was lost as far as horsey book reviewing went. Added to that, she is now off in Germany on her school trip, wildly excited as this is the first time she has been Abroad. She was so full of whoomph she managed to get up effortlessly at 3.00 am on Wednesday so we could get to Kettering in time for the 4.15 am start. Although I am definitely a lark, and usually wake at 5.00 am at this time of year, 3.00 am was pushing it a little, particularly as I didn't sleep well, being too petrified of oversleeping and missing the off..... despite having own mobile, son's and husband's all set for a 3.00 am alarm call. When son did this trip (though it was France in his case) one of his friends did miss the coach, and so his mother chased it down the M1 before finally catching up at...
Read more

Dick Sparrow - 40 Horse Hitch, and Neil Dimmock's 46 Percherons

-
Image
Here's a clip of Dick Sparrow driving 40 horses. It's an amazing sight, particularly when the shot changes to show the team from the rear and you get the great incongruity of modern American corporate architecture as a background to the wagon and horses. I love the anticipation in the video: the sense of something amazing being just round the corner is palpable. Thanks to Christina Wilsdon for telling me about this world record 46 Percheron hitch (alas just stills) but you get the idea.
Read more