I read this NY Times article called, "The Etiquette of Autographs," on people who choose to have books autographed. In it Geoff Dyer states:
There is something about the solitary, wholly internalized nature or reading that makes one crave an ex libris tattoo as external confirmation of the transient intimacy of reader and book. This urge then acquires an addictive momentum of its own."
I found this fascinating because I have been discussing book signing a lot recently. On November 10th I hope to attend a book signing by Cherie Priest of her book Ganymede. I like her books. Most are steampunk and some have zombies too. One of my books, Clementine, is worth $50-$70 unsigned. If I get it signed it will be worth even more but then that is if I were to resell it soon and I don't really want to sell because I want the set of her books. I like the books. By the time I would be willing to sell the book it would have lost most if not all its value.
Books are always interesting to return to later even if you don't entirely reread the book. I mark up my books and insert thoughts and correlations with other texts or thoughts I have at the time. Books demonstrate what my likes are at the point at which I read that particular book. Like Dyer says I often want to take that next step with my book. To get it signed shows the level of commitment I have to my books, learning, and reevaluation of self books to which books drive me. They are the concrete form of my thought process.
There is one rant as to why I read books. Now, some pictures although I must say it seems as if we rarely take pictures of what we do the most, thinking it is so commonplace it isn't worth the effort.
