No, not a post about posture while reading. Yes, a post about how to look after the spine of a paperback book - my university boyfriend taught me, and I'm now passing on the word. It only takes about a minute, and I don't think I've broken any spines since I learnt about it.
Get hold of your paperback - you need to do this before you read the book. Find a table or similar hard surface, and stand the book on its spine.
Take the front and back covers, one in each hand, and open them out onto the table. Leave all the pages still standing up. Use your thumb nails to smooth down the right-angled crease between the cover (now flat on the table) and the pages (still standing up). I think this works best if you do both sides at once.
Pick up 10-15 pages from the front and back of the book and open them onto the table, leaving the rest of the pages still standing up. Repeat the thumbnail manoever, running both thumbs down the crease between the pages that you've opened and the rest which are still standing up.
Keep on doing this - taking 10-15 pages from each end, opening them, and running your thumbnails down to make sure they'll stay open - until you get to the middle.
Close the book again, smile, and start to read from p1.
Any other tips for looking after books? Or for saving your spine while reading in stupid positions?
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