Don't Read This
I received a strange package in the mail today. It had no return address and no stamp.
My wife handed it to me. She had received an identical package. We opened them and found a small book inside each. The same book. We never ordered these, but they were addressed to each of us specifically, so it can't be a mistake.
The book is titled "Don't Read This". The title is in bold red letters on a black cover. Nothing on the back. No author or anything. It feels kind of leathery and high-quality. Probably expensive.
Luckily they wrote the instructions right in the title, so I just shoved it into a desk drawer.
Anyone else get one of these?
A lot of people were out sick at work today, including my friend John. Is it flu season already? The rest of the guys and I went for drinks after work, and one of them mentioned the book.
He got the same one we did. Amazingly, it turned out all of the other guys got one too. This quickly became the main topic of the night.
It seems like some kind of mass-scale prank, or maybe some bizarre advertising scheme. I don't know why anyone would do this in our part of town; there's not a lot of money here.
Weird.
I'm not falling for it, though. Maybe later I'll sell it online.
I saw the news this morning, just like everyone else. Yes, "the black book" I've been posting about is some sort of national security threat, which is extremely hard to believe.
They're telling us not to read it "under any circumstances". Why? Luckily I haven't touched it, but it's apparently related to a bunch of disappearances.
My boss is telling everyone to stay home today; we're too understaffed. A coincidence? I can't reach my friend John. He's not picking up.
What's going on?
My wife can't go to work either, so we spent the day trying to figure out what's happening.
We saw the video that's been posted everywhere with that lady reading the book.
In case you haven't seen it:
She opened the book and started panicking almost immediately, looking like she was about to get up. She calmed down after staring at the book for a while and went back to reading. The video sped up a bit until she got close to the end, where she started panicking again.
When she flipped to the last page, she started screaming. It made me jump with how loudly she screamed. It seemed almost fake, but the terror on her face was disturbing as hell. She suddenly disappears afterward, which again seems pretty fake. A green screen?
I got laughed at by my wife when I jumped. She must enjoy these kinds of things but I didn't think it was funny at all. She joked about my reaction and tried to get me to laugh at the "bad acting", but I can't get the horror on that lady's face out of my head.
My wife asked if we should just read "the Please Don't Do This book" and get it over with. Wait, why did she call it that? I'll look at her book tomorrow. Anyways I told her it was an absolutely terrible idea, at least until we know more. I really don't want to take any risks.
Has anyone here actually read the book? I'm getting spooked after watching that video.
This is serious now, and I need help.
I woke up last night to an earsplitting scream. My wife wasn't in bed, and I ran through the house looking for her.
She's gone. I don't know where she put her book and I can't find it, so I don't know if she read it.
I'm calling everyone to see if she went somewhere. Her car is still here.
If you know where she is, please message me immediately.
It's been a week since I last saw my wife. I'm losing hope. I think she must have read the book.
The streets are almost empty. Nothing is normal anymore. Most of my family isn't answering calls, and I still haven't been called back to work. Not that I would go.
Watching the news is like watching doomsday unfold in real time. Everyone is going crazy.
I just want to find my wife.
This doesn't seem real.
If you have any information about where my wife is please message me.
I've been sitting in front of my computer for God knows how long. I can't watch the news anymore. I can't really bring myself to do much of anything. I don't know why I'm even posting these updates.
All I can think about is the book. Would I die if I read it? Would I find my wife?
I can't bring myself to take it out of the drawer.
My wife will come back soon. I can't give up yet.
Please message me if you've seen her.
It's hopeless. No matter what's inside, no matter what happens, I have to read the book. I'm opening the drawer.
Once again I'm holding it. "Don't Read This" stands out in red on the small, pitch-black cover. My heart is pounding. It's covered in some sort of weird leather. It feels like I'm touching cold, human skin.
I open it.
I received a strange package in the mail today. It had no return address and no stamp.
My hands shake. I start flipping through pages. This is impossible.
It's my own writing. It's everything I've written since this started. Every sentence, exactly. Possibly even these words, if only I had the courage to read the last pages.
Even more terrifying is that this is my handwriting. I typed this online, so how could it be my handwriting?
It's too much. I can't bring myself to read more right now. I closed the book and put it on my desk. Maybe after I calm down, I'll try to reach the end.
I've been thinking about the book. About everything I don't know and the questions that desperately need answers.
People reach the end of the book: they scream hysterically, they disappear. Why? What actually happens to them?
What if someone can't read? Would it be pictures? What if they're blind?
Who wrote this? What is the purpose of these books?
How is it my writing?
Where did it come from? How can someone deliver all these books without being seen?
Why my wife? Why me?
Why? Why? Why?
I'm praying that the answers are on the last pages. I can handle one moment of fear if it means I might see my wife again. I can't live without knowing.
I have to read it. I'm picking up the book again.
I don't know what's going to happen. I'm almost paralyzed with fear right now, even though I'm so close to getting answers. I can barely type this; my fingers are shaking over the keys.
Everything up to the last entry was in the book. These words are the only ones not written on the pages.
There are three additional sentences near the very end, something that I never typed or wrote. It's in my handwriting.
Three sentences, in the center of the second-to-last page. There's nothing else on the page.
I read the last page.
I finally understand.
Don't read this.
I've come too far to stop now. I have to learn the truth, no matter what it is. I can't go on like this.
I need to find my wife.
I'm turning the page.
Posted Dec 1, 2025, 6:49 PM UTC