Being handed a few christmas presents from a close friend this year, there was one addition that excited me beyond words: a book. I promise, I’m not so much of a nerd that any old book would get me so hyped up (it would, but this was extra special). On this occasion, my delight resulted from the fact that my gift giver was none other than Anjali Nayak, a prolific reader known for giving her closest friends annotated books for birthdays and holidays. Being handed Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle was, by far, one of the best gifts I have ever received, for reasons that go well beyond the novel’s incredible story.
In the past, I have been known to “hate” on annotated books. A close friend of mine, Mika Shahar, has been frequently witnessed breaking out a fresh set of highlighters with every book she reads, decorating the pages in post-its and neon ink, and creating her own story in the margins. Until recent events, I simply did not get the hype—writing my own notes in a book I will likely never reread seemed pointless and, honestly, disrespectful to the original author. However, decoding Anjali’s cryptic handwriting has changed my mind.
First of all, the situation in which I completed Cat’s Cradle should speak wonders to how engaging the experience was. I sat 35,000 feet in the air, in a crowded airplane at 3 am, reading by the light of the emergency exit sign (the woman next to me was fast asleep, and turning on the overhead light felt rude). In these eye-damaging conditions, I managed to get through not only all 304 pages of the novel, but all 150ish personalized notes (written in incredibly unclear penmanship—you can’t imagine the relief I felt at reading the note, “I just realized how messy my writing has been. I’ll try to write neater”). Never before had I felt so excited to turn the page, anticipating more original commentary on Vonnegut’s commentary on religion and delightfully self-deprecating comments regarding Anjali’s poor script. Because of the annotations, Cat’s Cradle began to feel like a story written just for me, one that seemed to know my life and my way of thinking. Reading an annotated book completely changed the pace and intensity of Vonnegut’s words, adding a new dimension to his thoughts.
Honestly, there is nothing I love more than frank discussion on the meaning of an author’s work. The benefit of the annotations was that I no longer had to wait until I finished the book. There was something beautiful about reading a particular turn of phrase, then looking to the margins and finding my own thoughts reflected back in Anjali’s penmanship. I felt connected to the characters, the author, and to my friend, frequently resisting the urge to dig into my own backpack, pull out a pen, and start writing back.
Now, I can honestly say, I get the hype. It may be a minute before I take up a new ball-point pen and start drafting comments just for myself between pages, but I can absolutely say that, for any book lover out there, there is no better gift than an annotated book. As I aspire to write just for myself, I’m enlivened to begin annotating for friends and family, and to begin giving gifts that will truly let someone know how much I care.