We all have them: those things in a book that just drive you crazy. Otherwise known as-
Bookish Pet Peeves
Here are my personal top 5 bookish pet peeves:
1. Editing Mistakes
Whether it's a typo, grammatical mistake, or spelling error, once I see an editing mistake, I can't ignore it. It's there, tugging on the back of my mind for the next chapter or so. The worst, though, is when there are multiple, frequently. One or two I can live with, but when every page seems to have an error- it drives me crazy!
2. Instant Romance
I'm sure most people would agree that instant romance is extremely annoying. It throws the reality of the plot off center. What's worse is when the plot is driven by the romance, because then the entire storyline is centered on this unrealistic "love".
3. Models on the Cover That Look Nothing Like the Character
I know there are some of you out there who just dislike models on the cover of books in general, but I can live with it. However, I can't stand it when the model looks nothing like the character they represent. I don't mean small, insignificant details, but the color of their hair, the tone of their skin, or the color of their eyes are all things that should coincide with what the author describes. I also dislike it when they're wearing something the character never wears. If the character doesn't ever wear a dress in the entire book, the model on the cover shouldn't be either.
4. Printing Mistakes
I recently read a book that was covered in these random specks of ink. And not pen ink, printer ink. The specks obscured letters, showed up in the margin, and were just everywhere. It was just so annoying, because I kept trying to brush them off... but they wouldn't go away! Another printing mistake I can't stand is when the page is not aligned correctly, meaning it's off center or crooked, the words leaning one way or another.
5. Dust Jackets
Don't get me wrong, I love hardback books. I love how I don't have to worry about the spine breaking or the cover creasing. However, the dusk jackets are just exasperating. I like being able to look at the actual cover of the book, but it seems I (along with many other people, I'm sure) end up slipping the cover off the book until I'm done with it. Whenever I try to read the book, the cover slowly creeps up or down, and it seems like the jacket gets creased or bent while traveling in my bag. Dust jackets, while good looking, are simply impossible.
So those were my bookish pet peeves! What are some of your annoyances when it comes to books, and do you disagree with any of mine?
Good choices! I get irritated by lots of typos and editing errors. And I went on a major rant with the film tie-in Still Alice cover where Julianne Moore looks absolutely nothing like the literary Alice. Grrr!
ReplyDeleteMy absolute worst peeve though is books that don't have proper endings. I understand authors leaving some threads open, especially when they are trying to flog a sequel, but several I read last year just stopped mid-story - in one case mid-scene - and it makes me so angry. If book one wasn't finished in a decent style, why on earth would I risk my cash on another?!
Stephanie Jane
That is awful! Books should definitely have real endings, even if they're a part of a series.
DeleteYes. To all of these.
ReplyDeleteI make a good number of grammatical mistakes myself (commas and I are not friends), but I still can't stand it when I stumble upon a typo in a book. It just jars you out of the world and pokes at you until you slowly get sucked back in. Romance, too, is pretty irritating to me in general (because it's everywhere), but instant romance? I roll my eyes whenever it pops up.
I hadn't thought about #3, but I can totally see that now! It's a bit misleading, and makes it harder to picture the character. Printing mistakes are annoying, but I can live with them. I definitely do the same with dust jackets, too; I try to leave them on, but always end up removing them.
Yeah, I got really worried that I would make a grammatical mistake in the post, and then come off as hypocritical, but in books, they've gone through multiple stages of editing, so you'd expect it to be mostly free of mistakes.
DeleteWith number #3 it can be really misleading. I remember reading one of James Patterson's Maximum Ride novels (would not recommend, by the way) and there was a 13 year old model portraying a six year old girl. It was ridiculous!
Instant romance is one of my pet peeves too! I need believability in how a relationship develops, especially if it's going to be the center of the plot. I've never really thought about #3 but you're absolutely right. In relation to this, I'm not entirely keen on movie tie-in covers, especially if the movie differs quite a bit from the book!
ReplyDeleteYes, movie covers are the worst! I got the Percy Jackson boxed set for christmas one year, and the first two were movie covers. The movies are horrible and differ from the plot, so it was rather annoying to be stuck with two of the movie covers.
Delete