Do you mind writing in books?

[Night Elf]

Dd14 was actually upset that she has to annotate Farhenheit 451 for English class (public school). I finally had to buy her two copies, one to annotate and one to keep clean. She doesn't even know if she will like the book well enough to keep it but she is so bothered by marking up the book that she needs a clean copy to feel better.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

I hate that. There is only one book in my entire life I have underlined. I use sticky notes. You can fit so much more info on the sticky note without ruining the book. And I color code the sticky notes.

Edited August 14, 2012 by theYoungerMrsWarde

[Susan C.]

You could get Nook or Kindle, you can annotate there. We don't like to mark up books either.... but learning annotation last year gave me several reasons why its needed. Ds (English degree) didn't mark his books in college either, but put post-it bookmarks on pages he needed for papers (and I guess remembered what he would have annotated).

[kitten18]

I don't mind at all. I find it very useful. I make notes in almost all my teacher's manuals.

I guess this is why I don't buy non-fiction ebooks for my Nook.

[Plink]

Depends on the book.

 

I love writing in teachers manuals, inspirational, how-to, and really difficult to understand books, because the notes help me to go back and find the information that I need.

 

I dislike writing in fiction or history books because it breaks the flow of thought when I re-read it.

[Parrothead]

Depends on the book.

 

I love writing in teachers manuals, inspirational, how-to, and really difficult to understand books, because the notes help me to go back and find the information that I need.

 

I dislike writing in fiction or history books because it breaks the flow of thought when I re-read it.

:iagree:Me, too.

[Night Elf]

She has no choice but to write in the book. It's turned in for a grade.

[stripe]

I have no problem writing in books. I was raised by a mother who writes all over hers. For what it's worth, she once took her well worn, well annotated copy of a novel she uses often in her classes to a talk by its author in order to get it autographed. The author was deeply touched and wrote an inscription noting how loved the book was.

[Night Elf]

That's bizarre. LOL

 

I thought so too! Imagine how many of those books the teacher is going to have to grade!

[bettyandbob]

ds had to do a lot of annotating in public high school. For novels that were issued by the school he used post it notes. For books we purchased he wrote in the book for some and used post its for others. I don't think he was bothered by writing in the books for purposes of annotation. I think he began to prefer the post it approach because that was the first thing his English teacher introduced.

 

He graduated this spring. Of the books that we purchased and he wrote in, he has asked for new copies of a couple of them.

 

In your situation, in the future, I would ask her to wait until she finishes with the book before you purchase a clean copy. She is not going to love every assigned piece of literature.

[ocelotmom]

I don't write in my books, but it doesn't bother me if others have unless it obscures the text or is stupid or objectionable enough to detract from my enjoyment of the book. In fact, I kind of like seeing other's thoughts.

[LaxMom]

I would have a problem with that. I actually have a problem that hundreds of book will be destroyed this year because this teacher wants them to write in the books. In a climate when many schools do not even have student copies of textbooks (just classroom copies), I find that extraordinarily frivolous.

 

Plus, I just can't stand defacing books.

 

My grandmother would take a sharpie to all the bad words in books she was reading, then return the redacted books to the library! :svengo:

[Ellie]

Not if it's a book that I bought specifically to be a study text. If it's a library book, whether the public library's or my own, it stays as spotless as I can keep it.

 

I mark up my Bible, too. :-)

[Georgiana Daniels]

I don't like getting books that OTHER people have marked in, but I LOVE marking up my non-fiction books. It really helps to clarify my thoughts and bring my own perspective to the text.

[elegantlion]

I write in everything, which is one of the reasons I hate using the library.

 

I think it's weird that it's required, sticky notes can be just as effective. However, those can get lost or fall out.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Depends on the book, I happily write, annotate and underline in almost everything except my leatherbound LOTR. :D

[Georgiana Daniels]

Not if it's a book that I bought specifically to be a study text. If it's a library book, whether the public library's or my own, it stays as spotless as I can keep it.

 

I mark up my Bible, too. :-)

 

My Bible is marked, highlighted and packed with Post-Its! For Scripture reading, I even have a system to my highlights, though I'm not that organized for any other book.

[Robin M]

Nonfiction all the time. Fiction not so much. I did take a couple literature classes and both professors encouraged writing notes in the margins, marking up the book with your thoughts. I just can't.... Rather stick a post it note on the page and go back and make notes later. I hate dissecting fiction - just ruins the read.

[ladydusk]

I like to write in my books (drives my husband mad).

 

I like to re-read books I've written in. I'm often amazed by both how dumb and how smart I was the first time I read it.

 

I like to read books that have been written in by others (it's like a conversation).

 

I can't imagine assigning and grading annotated books.

[Irene Lynn]

Dd14 was actually upset that she has to annotate Farhenheit 451 for English class (public school). I finally had to buy her two copies, one to annotate and one to keep clean. She doesn't even know if she will like the book well enough to keep it but she is so bothered by marking up the book that she needs a clean copy to feel better.

I am with your dd. I would not like reading in a book with markings. I could see reading the clean copy and forcing myself to mess up the other book. Maybe I am too distractible, but markings grab my attention and I have trouble concentrating properly.

[Stacia]

Dd14 was actually upset that she has to annotate Farhenheit 451 for English class (public school).

 

:lol: Our dds really need to meet. My dd had the same reaction (as this is the same assignment she has had in her high school). She kept telling me that she didn't want to write in a book. I told her that she's going to have to get used to it.

 

Annotating seems to be the norm for our local high school; looking at posted assignments, it looks like she'll be annotating multiple books every year. (Annotations are written in literature books that the students/parents buy, not books provided by the school or the library.)

 

I never did much annotating while growing up or even now, as an adult. However, last year, trying to prep dd a bit for heading out to a brick & mortar high school, we used IEW's Windows to the World & it covered annotating. It helped me (& dd) a lot to understand the benefits of annotating. Personally, I still don't really annotate (but I'm not writing lots of literary analysis just for fun either ;)), but I can understand the benefit of doing so, esp. for high school & college students.

[TravelingChris]

I hate it. I had to do it in high school and once at a bible study. I haven't done it since. Can I say I really, really hate it?

[Night Elf]

:lol: Our dds really need to meet. My dd had the same reaction (as this is the same assignment she has had in her high school).

 

Oooh.. email me and let me know how her first day went. :)

 

I have no idea how many books she'll be reading in English this year. They weren't mentioned on her syllabus! And the kids don't get their own textbooks, but there is a classroom set. Yesterday they read a story by taking turns reading aloud. Good grief! That means that when she's doing her homework, she can't refer back to the story unless she can find it online.

 

And yes, we had to buy Fahrenheit 451. The school doesn't have them for the students.

[Night Elf]

That's what I thought. Better him/her than me! That's a lot of reading.

 

I have a feeling he's going to flip through them and see how much they annotated, a good amount vs. one note scattered here and there. I think I read somewhere you shouldn't have more than 5 pages between notes. Hopefully the teacher will give them clear directions.

[mommymilkies]

My kids and I LOATHE writing in books. Sometimes I mark up my Montessori training guides or notes, but I consider that different. I actually have 3 copies of the Egypt Game because of this.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

I would have a problem with that. I actually have a problem that hundreds of book will be destroyed this year because this teacher wants them to write in the books. In a climate when many schools do not even have student copies of textbooks (just classroom copies), I find that extraordinarily frivolous.

 

Plus, I just can't stand defacing books.

 

My grandmother would take a sharpie to all the bad words in books she was reading, then return the redacted books to the library! :svengo:

 

:lol::lol: