15 Problems Unique to Book Lovers

Being a bibliophile comes with its own set of issues.

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  • Photo Credit: Clay Banks / Unsplash

Being a bibliophile isn't easy, and can also lead to some bizarre behaviors. For one thing, we should never be trusted in a bookstore. For another, we're constantly running out of shelf space. And then there is, of course, our obsessions with certain fictional characters—all of which have earned us more than a few side-eye glances from our friends.

Though occasionally frustrating, these "problems" (if that's what you want to call them) also make us happy to be readers. Below, you'll find a list of unique antics and experiences that any book lover can relate to.

Related: How to Find a Book From a Vague Description 


Books take up all of your disposable income (and sometimes a little more than that, too).

Let's be honest: Buying the latest Meg Wolitzer and Lauren Groff novels is much more important than stocking up on food for the week.

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  • Photo Credit: Poster of "The Golden Compass" via New Line Cinema

You can’t watch book-to-screen adaptations without getting at least a little angry.

Or occasionally very angry. The Golden Compass movie is a wound that will never heal.

No. More. Shelf. Space.

Stacking your books on the floor is supposedly chic nowadays, but once you have 6-7 piles you look like a potential candidate for Hoarders.

Moving is hard enough ... boxes and boxes of books makes it harder.

One day I'll just need a separate U-Haul.

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  • Photo Credit: Still from "Outlander" via STARZ

You get way too invested in the lives of fictional characters.

While touring the Scottish Highlands, a friend kept having to tell me that, no, Jamie and Claire Fraser had not stood on that particular hill or road because they don't exist. Each reminder was a revelation.

You constantly lose bookmarks, and wind up marking your place with whatever you can find (because dog-earring just isn't an option).

This is one of the many reasons e-readers are spectacular—I don’t have to use the lint-covered gum wrapper at the bottom of my purse! (Note: I'm too busy reading to clean my purse.)

You loan someone a book, and then they don't like it.

There is one novel that I've given to several family members, and not one of them has appreciated it. I feel personally attacked.

Or you loan someone a book, and they return it to you in bad condition.

Why are there purple splotches on pages 34-56? Were they eating out of a jam jar with a spoon? 

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  • Photo Credit: Wikipedia

When you fall in love with an ongoing series, only to have to wait several years for the next installment.

There is patience, and then there is waiting for The Winds of Winter

You finish reading a book that was just so good, and you have no idea what to read next.

The reading slump is a terrible curse, but on the flip side: There's no greater miracle than finding a book that pulls you out of it.

Your bedside table is stacked with books—and yet you can’t resist buying something when you go to the bookstore.

At this rate, you could build my mausoleum out of my TBR pile because I'll never get through it.

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  • Photo Credit: The Lord of the Rings Wiki

You've considered naming an animal after your favorite fictional character. And possibly a small human.

As far as I'm concerned, anyone would be lucky to be named Galadriel

People seem to think that you + reading = best time to strike up a conversation.

This math doesn't add up.

When you see someone reading one of your favorite books in public, and you can't not flail all over them.

Consider this my formal apology to any reader I've accosted on the subway.

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  • Photo Credit: Clever Visuals / Unsplash

It's 1:00 A.M., and "one more chapter" inevitably becomes "...I'll just finish the whole book."

It's always worth it!

Featured photo: Clay Banks / Unsplash