theodore

Do you annotate your books?

I understand that some fear wrecking their precious books. However, when done strategically, annotating books can be a beautiful, rewarding experience. This is your sign. Annotate the damn books.

Some tips:

1. Use tabs.

Everyone says it but tabs will be your best friend once you have a system that works for you.

2. You don't have to use the same colour system in all of your books, in fact I don't suggest it.

No book is the same, and there is no "right" book tabbing system. Stick to what works for the particular book you're annotating. If you're annotating a book out of sheer enthusiasm, chances are it'll look extremely different to how your obligatory study books will. You'll likely have a much better annotating experience by taking your tabbing systems one book at a time, in my opinion.

3. Highlight / underline in one colour if you choose tabs.

The Death of Ivan ilyich - Leo Tolstoy

"The syllogism he had learnt from Kiesewetter's Logic: "Caius is a man, men are mortal, therefore Caius is mortal," had always seemed to him correct as applied to Caius, but certainly not as applied to himself. That Caius — man in the abstract — was mortal, was perfectly correct, but he was not Caius, not an abstract man, but a creature quite, quite separate from all others."

- Leo Tolstoy, The Death of Ivan Ilyich

The Death of Ivan Ilyich is a gut-wrenching classic from the 1800's. Fictional, philosophical and riddled with symbolism. Tolstoy deals with themes such as regret, sickness and death. Despite being only 55 pages long the novella is one of the most beautifully written books I've ever had the pleasure of reading, and is also accessable for those who're new to Russian literature. Tolstoy encompasses every moral in the plot so skillfully in such little words, masterfully portraying Ivan's suffering in raw and intricate detail, so that we may experience it with him. The regret, agony, despair. With him.

You follow a man through the course of his life, watch him grow and shape himself into someone "successful" without much thought on life itself, focused on work and achieving as much as possible. Until he has no choice but to confront the thought of death when it knocks on his door sooner than he intended.

You'll most likely enjoy this book if you take an interest in classical literature and/or existential ideas. The book will provoke thoughts of what it really means to live a successful life, and if it is wise to confront death throughout the course of your life to minimize despair in the face of it.