Our Top Ten Bookish Pet Peeves

We all have pet peeves. Whether it's dogs dressed up, people cracking their knuckles or socks with sandles, there's something that gets you irrationally angry and winds you up. So, today we thought that we would address our top ten bookish pet peeves.

Movie Covers

Yes, this is one of our biggest bookish pet peeves. The movie cover goes on the movie, not on the book! We like the book cover – yes, we understand it’s for publicity and so the reader relates the book to the movie, but you really don’t need to do it this way. We’re not likely to forget that The Hunger Games book is related to The Hunger Games movie!

Folded Corners

This one might not bother some people, but it really winds us up. Whenever we see folded corners on books, it’s like the reader is harming the book – don’t do that! Anything can be a bookmark – a torn receipt, a bit of cardboard, it doesn’t matter. Just please don’t fold the corners.

Talking to Us When We’re Trying to Read

If someone is reading, then chances are, they want to be left alone. So please, don’t keep talking to them. As avid readers, we can personally tell you that it’s really frustrating when you’re trying to read through a great section of the book, and someone keeps chatting in your ear. You lose focus, and you can’t invest into either the conversation or the book.

Back-seat Reading

Any driver knows how annoying back-seat drivers are – the same can be said for back-seat readers. If we’re reading a book, do not sit there and read it over our shoulder! If you want to read this one, then borrow is from us when we’re done, or buy your own copy!

Book Stickers

It is beyond irritating when you buy a new book and it’s got a sticker on the front cover (like a ‘buy-one-get-one-free’ sticker). They claim that these are easy to peel off and get rid of…is this true? No! They leave a residue on the book, damage the cover, or just won’t come off. Please, stop doing this.

The Ending-Ruiner

This goes without saying – never spoil the ending of a book. It’s cruel and there’s no need. If we’re reading a book that you’ve already read, then don’t say anything. Don’t drop hints and little warnings about ‘not getting too attached to a character’ – let us find out for ourselves!

When the Movie Comes Out Before We’ve Finished the Book

Now, this isn’t anyone’s fault – it’s just irritating. When we’re reading a book, and the movie comes out before we’ve finished it, it’s all over. We’re going to see the movie and ruin the book for ourselves. You’ll hear people talking about the movie and ‘did you see that bit when…’, and it’s all over.

Cracked Spines

Nope. Can’t do it. Seeing a cracked spine is heart-breaking, even when it can’t be helped – you feel like you haven’t taken care of the book properly and you want to mourn because of the damage you’ve done. Sometimes, you’ll be reading a thick book and bending the page to see the words close to the middle…and the spine cracks. It makes us cringe to think about how many books we’ve done this to.

Changing the Layout of a Series Halfway Through

This just should not happen. If you start a series with a certain format and layout, then you should finish the series with that layout. Don’t change it halfway through! If we’re collecting the series, we want them to match – don’t mess with the system!

Long Waits Between Books

Again, we know that this one can’t be helped. But it is so annoying when you’re really into a book and it ends on a cliff-hanger…and you’ve got to wait a year for the next one. Don’t do this to us! We need to know what happens next!