Should You Read In The Bath?

Two Penguin.co.uk editors whipped up a social-media storm recently over books, tubs and whether they go together. So…

- Emmie Harrison-West, Bess Browning

No: ‘The only thing I’ll risk dropping into the tub is a bath bomb’

Bess Browning, Acting Features Editor, lives in Faversham, Kent. Enthralled by Sally Rooney’s Normal People novel, my eyes dart from page to page as I find myself completely absorbed in Marianne and Connell’s tantalising love story.

There’s no better feeling than being gripped by a book’s story and becoming invested in its characters and, when you really get going, you often don’t want to put it down. That’s why, on numerous occasions, I’ve clambered into the tub in hope of achieving the perfect combination of a great read and a relaxing soak.

In truth, I’ve been reading too many fairy tales, because the reality is a stressful, sweaty circus culminating in wet pages and flooded floors.