I just can’t get into the Kindle. I’ve read a few books on it, and I see the appeal, but for me, nothing beats an old fashioned paperback. And the gold standard of books will always be those big, gorgeous hardcovers.
Reading lots of physical books means I need lots of bookmarks. Fortunately, bookmarks seem to come into my life without much thought. Many authors and stores give out free bookmarks as promotional materials—I have a great one from the Library of Congress in D.C., and another from Raven Used Books in Harvard Square. These serve as souvenirs as well as bookmarks.
Then there are the bookmarks I buy from Barnes and Noble and other bookstores. And when you’re a known reader, you get a lot of bookmarks as gifts.
Not all bookmarks are not created equal. Readers out there, please tell me you’re with me on this.
First, let’s catalogue my bookmark deal breakers:
- Too heavy – Bookmarks should be made of cardboard or paper. I carry my books in my purse everywhere, and those heavy metal bookmarks inevitably fall out and I lose my place. Kind of defeats the purpose.
- Too thick—No bookmark, no matter how pretty, is worth damaging the spine of a book.
- Too long—My bookmarks cannot stick out of either end of the book, unless I want Blinker the Cat to chew the corners to bits and pull them out of my book. It’s possible this is a niche issue.
- Post-It Flags—See above. Cleaning up cat vomit with shredded pink post-it flags in it is a mistake you only make once.
- Anything that clamps/leaves impression on the page—I rarely write in my books, and never dog ear them. I don’t want the bookmark damaging them.
No bookmark is safe in my home.
So what makes a great bookmark? I love the cheap, standard 6 x 2 inch bookmarks you can find just about anywhere. They usually come with a tassel that I remove immediately—for Blinker reasons outlined above. I can’t have her eating the tassels, which are apparently made of catnip.
I prefer a seasonally appropriate picture and an inspirational or cute message. I’ve got beach bookmarks for summer, a gloomy city street bookmark for winter, and lots of bookmarks with cats and books to be used all year round.
I don’t know why so many bookmarks feature cats, but I like books and cats, and apparently a lot of other people do too.
And coffee. Readers, cats, coffee—the essential trio.
Small, simple, light, and with a bit of whimsy.
As far as bookmarks go, nothing else will do.
You got ALL the trimmings when you got your whiteboard! Marker AND proper eraser!
One of your bookmarks looks like a flattened cat. Is Blinker worried?
I thought the whiteboard might be excessive when I bought it, but now I couldn’t live without it!
That flattened cat used to be a 3-D stuffed animal until Blinker tore it apart….all you see now is what’s left of the poor fellow…..
A 3D stuffed animal? It’s not a stuffed animal is it? And aren’t all animals 3D?
No I’m just teasing. It’s a little cloth bookmark. But she did attack it the minute I had my back turned….
Can’t blame Blinker. Fair game, surely.
She eliminates all potential rivals with ruthless efficiency!
A furry bookmark would be a clear threat to Blinker’s dominance; emergency powers would be justified to repeal such a threat.
Yes, can’t say I blame her. I’ve never even used that bookmark and I’ve promised to find it a new forever home as soon as possible.
Blinker is boss of all!
Anybody who knows me knows that…!
Fab collection! I get sent book marks from the National Trust and they’re nice thin leather, but they do tend to be longer that the book. Mostly though I done use them and remember the page number I was on. I like your cat on the books one best.
I’m really impressed that you can remember what page you are on…..!
The Blinker on the books photo was unplanned. I set the bookmarks out, took my photos, and stepped away for two seconds and there she was, pushing them all on the floor.
Hah, cats. I have a pusher-of-things too.
I tend to use my business cards as bookmarks. They are just the right thickness and stay in place. Plus, they just tend to sit around unused so it feels good to get some use out of them. There are dozens of books around my office with my business card peeking out from the pages. I do like regular bookmarks, too, but I prefer cheap ones that come from used bookstores. I still have several from the Iliad Bookshop when it was still in its North Hollywood location, as well as from Dangerous Visions bookshop in Sherman Oaks.
Business cards meet all my criteria for bookmarks….I approve!