Do you annotate your books?

#QOTD – Do you annotate your books?

I usually don’t. I am a person who won’t even write my name on the book, keeping it all prim and proper. No dog ears. No markings. No writings in the book. No sticky notes. Nothing. Just reading.

But then I came across this copy of Macbeth I owned from when I was 15 years old. It is scribbled with writings and highlights. I have annotated every thought I had while I read this book. I have underlined anything that seemed impactful. I have highlighted all the quotations that I liked, and I have noted down all that I have wanted to ask the characters in the book.

I don’t know why I changed my style of reading but suddenly I realized that I don’t remember much from the last book I read, however I remember most of what I read from almost 15 years ago! I personalized the book in my own way. If I go through my annotations, I can see how I thought and processed the story as a 15 year old. It’s like reading a journal.

Now, I don’t annotate my books anymore, but, may be I should get back to annotating my reads, and become more mindful about what I am reading. I think I need to converse with the story and the characters! That will allow me to break down the story and view it in my own perspective, and I will be more involved in the story and with the reading!