Bookish Thursday - BIG Books and Annotating

I like big books and I can not lie!

There is something about a big, huge, chunky book which makes my wee heart sing. 

Granted, most of my massive books are nonfiction. Well, except for my copies of Anna Karenina and War and Peace. And of course, most things by Brandon Sanderson. 

One thing I like about my big-ass nonfiction books are they are pick-up-and-put-down books. I can read a bit, set it down and then pick it up again. 

The one I am currently reading is quickly becoming an all-time favorite. 

While this book is written based more on an UK garden, it is easily 'translated' into my USA garden. Each 'seed' is broken down into four different areas - History, Culinary, Growing and Recommended Varieties. And tons of pictures.

I enjoy reading about the history of where a plant came from and how it was used around the world before it landed in my garden. Under Culinary, there are additional sections on preparation and dishes. This is particularly important when it is a vegetable or herb which I haven't used before. 

Under Growing, it is further broken down into propagation, aftercare (what to do once ready to plant), problems, harvesting and storage. There is also a quick glance box for sowing, planting out, spacing and harvesting. 

And then each plant ends with recommendation varieties. Each variety has a tidbit on where it originated and a description. 

What I am doing with this book (and hopefully with other big books), is annotating parts which are of particular interest to me. I have this handy-dandy pen holder I have slipped a highlighter into to mark passages on the page. Then page flags to show where I have noted something. 

This process has been a lot of fun and I like seeing all the little flags sticking their heads out. Based on the size of these books, I have gathered a stash of page flags. 

And if nothing else, my big books make great paperweights!