Strange compulsion
So I have an interesting habit. I don’t know of anyone else who does this, though I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned it to anyone before.
Before reading a book, I always read the page in the exact middle of the book first.
There, I said it, and whew do I feel better.
It’s a ritual, really, and it goes like this: First, I read the back cover. Next, I read the liner notes. So far, pretty normal. Then I open the book to the last page of the story, not counting the author’s afterward, taking care not to actually look at the text, and I make a note of the page count. Then I open to exactly the middle page, and read the entire page, including the whole first sentence that may have started on the previous page, and finish the last sentence that may carry over to the next page. Then I open to the beginning and start reading.
So far, it has not spoiled any suspense the way reading the last chapter or even the last page might do. In fact, I’m often much more than halfway through the book before I even realize that I’ve already re-read that middle page.
I don’t know why I do this, and I can’t remember when I started doing this. I just know that I can’t stop.
6 comments April 11th, 2005