Things that book lovers do best

Read, read, read, read and read again… no, book lovers don’t just know how to read. On the contrary, they possess a series of talents and skills that they can use better than many other people, to the point that has identified thirteen things that book lovers know best. Beyond the irony that partly animates the following, the fact remains that reading can really help us develop certain skills

Note all the differences between book and film

Although the film adaptations are to our liking, most book lovers notice every scene, character and dialogue line that is different from the book. We may forget birthday dates or where we put the keys, but we will always remember everything that happens in a book when we deal with its adaptation on the big screen.

Being late every night

If the book is really good, book lovers can get on with reading for long periods of time without eating, sleeping or leading social life. All we need is a source of light and a novel, and we will be happy until dawn. Sure, we may have some trouble getting to work on time the next morning, but we’ll never let a little thing like sleep deprivation stop us from reading.

Concentrate while on a train/bus/airplane

What happens if we skip a stop once in a while? Book lovers know very well how to close themselves off to the so-called “real world”. We would prefer peace and quiet but we can read anywhere (which makes us very good at avoiding eye contact with strangers).

Keeping a beloved book intact by willpower alone

What for some people is a simple pile of pages, for us is a member of our family. Some book lovers are more adorable with their books than anyone else around them, and are therefore inclined to take care of their beloved books when they are damaged, perhaps by multiple readings. Tape is a book lover’s best friend.

Follow two (or five) plots at a time

Some book lovers are readers from one book at a time, but many of us have developed a talent that allows them to jump from one plot to another without missing anything. We can get on with our re-readings, book club books, new releases and pocketbooks… and we can tell you exactly what’s going on in each of them.

Keeping books balanced in strange positions

Obviously as book lovers we prefer to read in a comfortable chair or on a park bench under a cherry tree. But we’re just as good at balancing books while we eat, cook, exercise, brush our teeth and do all those uncomfortable things we often have to do while we’re in the middle of a good chapter.

Applying literature to life

Sometimes it’s frustrating to be a book lover. Would you like to explain to everyone how Shakespeare managed to synthesize all your feelings on one particular issue, and others don’t seem to be interested. But that’s okay. Our ability to see how literature reflects real life and vice versa is a real skill, and we are not wrong in thinking that literature helps us to better understand the real world. Fiction makes you more empathetic after all.

Find the perfect place to read

Readers have a sixth sense to find comfortable places to read. Wherever we go, we look for bars, parks and other places to read comfortably. Add a cup of tea and a purring cat, and we’ve got the ultimate reading comfort.

Walking and reading

Warning: this activity should only be practiced by lovers of long books. For them, walking and reading is as natural as walking and talking. Remember, however, to look left and right before crossing the street.

Write

Not every book lover wants to be a writer. But many readers tend to be better writers: whether it’s a story, a blog or a text message, readers have an innate sense for the language.

Falling madly in love with characters from novels

All right, this may not be a talent… but book lovers do it better than anyone. Literary infatuations are intoxicating because the reader has total control over the imagination of what seems to be the date of his dreams, how the characters he falls in love with are dressed, what perfumes they wear, and so on.

Find creative solutions to store books

Yes, our bookstores fill up quickly, so we have to be creative. All book lovers know how hard it is to keep an infinite number of books in a finite space. Fortunately, many of us know how to place books under the bed, in the unused oven and behind the books that are already in the bookcase.

Read

Well, yeah… it happens that we book lovers don’t realize how good we are at reading. Reading is a skill and understanding what you read is an art.