Are you a true bibliophile?

I consider myself a bibliophile--a lover of books. Actually, an avid, passionate lover of books.

So when I ran across this list of 75 Signs You're a True Bibliophile, I had to check it out.

Frankly, I don't have all the signs, according to this list--which seems like it was created for college students who pride themselves on being intellectual. And although I've read widely, I didn't "get" a lot of the references and literary allusions. I guess I'm just not edjamacated enough. :)

However, many of the signs DID strike a very real chord with me. Here are some of the ones that did:

14. You’d read in the car if you could.
Some of the more daring bibliophiles amongst us are probably guilty of sneaking in a page or 2 at red lights…

26. You actually know the difference between you’re/your, they’re/their/there and it’s/its.
And you deserve a pat on the back for it! Just don’t get cocky and start correcting everyone else in a condescending tone, OK?

30. You think Kindles, Nooks, iPads and other electronic books take a little something away from the reading experience.
Just kidding! That actually makes you a Luddite.



40. You actually read the included supplementary material.
To you, the forwards, afterwards and essays included in a volume deserve careful perusal just as much as the actual novels themselves.

42. You love incorporating books into your home décor.
Some of the more intense cases among you may pick out tomes you love with covers that convey the specific aesthetic you desire. The bibliophiliac community is split over interior designers who construct furniture and other decorative items out of old books.

45. Broken spines seem almost like injuries.
More serious bibliophiles tend to anthropomorphize their collections on occasion, and breaking the spines of books almost makes them weep in empathy for its pain.

47. You hate moving.
Not because you’re antisocial or agoraphobic, but because packing and unpacking hundreds – if not thousands – of books is a real pain in the patootie.

49. You consider dog-earing a sacrilege.
Though a venial sin compared to the mortal offense of breaking a book’s spine, dogearing still compromises its delicate structure.

50. You never walk out of a bookstore empty-handed.
Even if you walk into a bookstore with no particular purchase in mind, you always seem to throw down the debit card for something that popped out. Always. Invariably.



57. You can tell the difference between British and American English…
It’s a lot more than just “colour” vs. “color,” and you know it! Bonus points for any readers able to pick out Canadian English without any external hints.

60. You didn’t join a book club…you started one.
And you actually set up said book club so participants actually read rather than guzzle down wine, gossip about how Betty’s wife left her for a nubile young flight attendant and discuss why Mr. Darcy is OMG HOT and why every man ever should just drop everything and be him. [Note from Cindy: My actual book club isn't in existence anymore, but it was sure fun while it lasted!]

65. Someone always gives you a fancy bookmark as a gift every year…
Bibliophiles are actually quite easy to shop for, provided you don’t actually buy them books (they’re particular, you know). Just buy them a lovely, fancy bookmark for their birthdays and watch the gratitude unfold.

66. …and you usually use 2-4 at a time.
Many bibliophiles suffer from a particular form of ADD unique to their kind. Rather than reading 1 book at a time, they often have a multitude of different books going simultaneously. Usually this has to do with a read corresponding to a particular mood, though not infrequently do literature junkies simply grow too excited to wait.

75. You really, really, really, really, really, really, really like books.
At the end of the day, isn’t that more or less the literal definition of “bibliophile” when translated from the original Greek?

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