Literary Tattoos for the Bibliophiles (2024)

My mother always told me, if you have something to say, say it with knuckle tattoos.

OK, my mother never actually said that, but the point stands. All of us, every single one of us, should read more than we do. It doesn’t really matter what you read, just, in the words of a giant corporation named after a Greek goddess, do it. It can be an interminably long novel like “Infinite Jest,” a beloved YA novel like “The Hunger Games” or even this here article.

I fell in love with books at a very young age, thanks to A.A. Milne. I’m pretty sure that I learned to read by having the “Winnie the Pooh” books read to me over and over, and eventually, I pieced together what the words meant. But once I knew how to read, I never stopped.

There are so many characters and stories that have been tattooed into my brain. Where older generations used to quote Shakespeare, I can pull out the perfect Kurt Vonnegut quote for every situation. Any time I bristle at the government or society, the words of Hunter S. Thompson are the first to come to my mind. I’m currently in the middle of reading “The Power” by Naomi Alderman and I may have been so entranced by the story that I missed my subway stop, which is the sign of a really great book.

I have no idea how many books I’ve read over the years, but there is one character that stuck with me more than any other—Behemoth from Mikhail Bulgakov’s “The Master and Margarita.” Admittedly, I probably shouldn’t find myself identifying with a demonic cat the size of a hog, but I do. Behemoth is chaotic, sarcastic and a little obnoxious. He loves a good drink, playing chess and taking people down a peg. While I’m not a demon cat, unfortunately, I can get a tattoo of a demon cat. So that’s what I did:

I’m far from the only bibliophile who likes to wear their love on their sleeve. In the gallery below you’ll find a ton of tattoos inspired by all kinds of books. If you have a literary tattoo of your own, share it with us on social media.

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