I've been thinking about this lately bc I'm in the habit of writing my first and last name inside the cover of the books I own. I started as a kid because a lot of my books were retired from my mom's classroom, and they had our last name written in them/on the spines so they didn't disappear at school somewhere. Naturally, I just assumed this is standard practice for book ownership, and started doing the same inside the covers. I also buy a lot of used books and I always love to find dedications, names, and annotations in a book and write mine alongside them. I think about the people who will hopefully one day pick up my copies and add their names to the list.

On the other hand, I feel a little weird about writing my name in books sometimes because it feels very, well, possessive, and I love the idea of letting books come and go from my personal library in a more free-flowing exchange between friends. Getting to pass on a book I loved to someone I love is so gratifying and fun, and receiving a well loved copy from a friend feels like a precious gift. As much as this system appeals to me, I just sometimes struggle to part with a beloved book once I've read and reread and annotated it to the point that it feels more like a memento than a mass market paperback.

Basically what I'm saying is I have way too many thoughts about this and I can't make up my mind...what do y'all think?

Hello boundlings and sorry for the delay (June has been kicking my ass!). You know the drill… what’s a complaint (no matter how big, small, dramatic, serious, silly) that you need to shout to the void?! 🗣️