Over my lunch hour recently, I did what I always do when I grab lunch at the mall. I entered through the Barnes and Noble and took a walk through the YA section. There are SO MANY books there. I mean. Wow. How does one choose what to read?
I will be the first to admit I don't do as much reading as I'd like. Right now I'm just starting to get through my Christmas gifts. And lucky for me there's a lot of books I got for Christmas :)
So if I'm not reading my CP's work, (which is always my first choice in reading), then I'm usually reading work from someone I know. (The perks of having a lot of writer friends.) Or I'm reading books I got as a gift.
In summary: I rarely buy random books off the shelves at the bookstore (or the internet).
But, there's got to be people reading this who DO buy books and I'm curious, how do you choose what to read?
I don't buy any random book, I buy what is interesting to me. YES, first on my list is my bloggy friends books so I can SUPPORT them. I mostly read books that are movies also and books by favorite authors.
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't do much reading as I'd like too so you're not alone, Kelley. It's hard finding time to read when you got life and you're writing :(
I usually buy, like Livia, books that sound interesting to me. Sometimes I have heard of them and sometimes not. I support my blogger friends first and they offer suggestions of books they like sometimes. Goodreads helps too to find out books I like!
ReplyDeleteMy key to finding really awesome books is getting to know the booksellers. When I'm getting to know a new bookstore (after I've moved), I give them a list of four or five of my favorite books and ask for recommendations. I buy three books (not from the same series), and use them to gauge the bookseller. If they've picked good books, then I'll take their recommendations. If I don't enjoy the books, I don't usually go back to them for recommendations. Pretty much, this always works, and they really try to do a good job with recommending books.
ReplyDeleteCover influences me a lot, actually. But I usually only read if it's recommended to me! But I'll occasionally pick up something because the cover looks cool. Does this mean I'm shallow??? :D
ReplyDeleteI'm very into fantasy, paranormal and dystopian books. So I move towards those first. I still look around to see other books in other categories but I rarely buy books at random. But I did buy City of Bones out of the blue last year while looking for a different book. And I too want yo read more.
ReplyDeleteI go totally by word of mouth. I don't have THAT much time to read, so I want to make sure it's good before I invest the time!
ReplyDeleteI go by word of mouth, like Peggy. I also go by reviews I've read on blogs and goodreads by writers/bloggers i know.
ReplyDeleteAnd like Morgan, I buy based on cover when all else fails. Nothing shallow about it, imo - covers say a lot, even though the writer has little or no say in them.
Us blogger writers are definitely never short of a recommendation. I've enjoyed reading books by my friends and exploring other genres - even chick lit which I wouldn't have considered before! I got a £50 Amazon gift card for my birthday, and the stuff I bought with that is going to keep me going for a while.
ReplyDeleteBut I do kind of miss browsing bookshops. Just don't have time any more and the nearest proper one is too far away. I like the element of discovery - I don't really know how to browse Amazon!
I usually have a book I'm looking for but I do like to pop in, especially at bargain book shops and randomly search for any book. I always tend to go to YA or Fantasy/Sci-fi/Horror. Covers tend to draw me in as well as interesting titles and blurbs.
ReplyDeleteKristin Tubb has a new book out called The 13th Sign, which is a fabulous realistic fantasy. Ruta Septys' new book Out of the Easy, about the daughter of a prostitute, will be out in a few days too. I've already read the ARC and it was great! There are a lot of wonderful YA books out there. If you haven't read Ruta's first book Between Shades of Gray (not to be confused with the sex book making the rounds), it won all kinds of awards and has been printed in multiple languages. This is a historical fiction about Stalin's treatment of Lithuanian people. The history was pretty much ignored because of Hitler's actions at the same time. I hope you'll check these out!
ReplyDeletehttp://joycelansky.blogspot.com
I go by recommendations from friends. That, and I'm in a book club that gets me to read books I otherwise wouldn't pick up. I wish I could read so much more, though.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely recommendations. I've realized how valuable word-of-mouth actually is!
ReplyDeleteI don't buy many books. When I do, it's more likely to be books that won't appear on the bookshelves at B&N. Goodreads has been great to find out about terrific books. And blogs. If I hadn't gotten into blogging I'd be missing out on a whole nother world of books by self-publishers and smaller presses.
ReplyDeleteAnd besides, the big books by the mainstream popular authors will appear on our library shelves, so it's just a matter of waiting.
When I'm browsing at library though, I scan names on the spines. Since I'm more into contemporary, I'll skip over names that are obviously fantasy. Unless I see a cool cover, then I'll pull it out.
I'm still on a classics kick right now, so I read the books that are most widely praised. Basically, I read to improve my writing; I want to learn from the masters. But for modern books, I read them if they have a lot of hype or if someone recommended one to me.
ReplyDeleteI have favorite authors that I always gravitate towards, especially when they release new books. Then, I subscribed to some reader services. I've found some great new authors that way. Sometimes I hear about a book in a magazine and read a short synopsis that will intrigue me. Lastly, I hit the bookstore and see a title that jumps out at me. Then I buy it or go see if I can find the title for my Kindle.
ReplyDeleteSusan Dusterhoft
Today's Working Woman
todayworkingwoman25.blogspot.com
I rely on other bloggers to tell me what they're reading and what they loved. Though I did use to be a bookstore browser and buyer. If there's a summary that gets me (anything contemporary set in Europe, for example), I'll get it.
ReplyDeletei'm like you, gifts, cp's works & friend author books. i do love reviews tho, so i put titles on my tbr list for next xmas =)
ReplyDeleteI plunder my library's "New Release" section a lot. I pick up books there way out of my genre preferences. They do have to sound interesting, though.
ReplyDeleteI tend to use my library a lot, because most of the books I'm reading are picture books (for kiddo, me and for research). They tend to be more expensive than regular trade paperbacks, so that's part of my logic. I use picture book author Susanna Hill's Perfect Picture Book review links to find most of my books. I've purchased a handful after finding them in the library. Of course, I pick up blogger friend's books as well. Blogging has made me stretch a little from my regular non-fiction genre too. As, I've enjoyed some fantasy book written by people I know via online channels.
ReplyDeleteI haven't had a lot of time to read lately--except what my daughter has to read for her lessons--so I can know what she's needing help with--but I rarely just buy a book off the shelf. Almost everything I read is from someone I know or something that was recommended.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Jenn
The last time I bought a book without prior knowledge of it (through a recommendation or familiarity with the author), it was a book with a dragon on the cover (with beautiful artwork) and the author's last name was Knight. I thought it was too cool that a Knight was writing about dragons, and picked it up. It didn't disappoint, either!
ReplyDeleteAlthough I have not had the time to read much lately either, I just picked up a few books - no new releases though. I usually browse through the aisles of my local B&N, whichever genre I feel like at the moment, and then pick one based on the blurb and sometimes the cover too....I often go by recommendations too.
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