Where is your favorite place to find new books to read? Blogs? The library? Newspapers? Magazines? In the backs of other books? Suggestions from friends/family? Online bookstores? On the shelves of the local bookstores? (I don’t necessarily mean, ‘where do you find books to buy’ — I mean, ‘where do you discover new titles that you add to your to-be-read lists’?).
I suspect that a number of you are in the same boat that I am.
You really do not need any more books at the moment.
And by moment, I mean the next few years.
Yes, I have several hundred books in my possession that I have not yet read. Yes, I read about 100 books a year. So I am good for several years.
And no, that does not stop me from still looking for new books.
Because I have a sickness.;-)
Where do I find these new books?
I must admit that while I like to wander around a bookstore, I rarely find new books there. Actually, all those books, all those covers...I find it a bit overwhelming. And my library branch tends to be a bit behind in acquiring new books. If they got a copy or two, it will not be on the shelf for quite awhile. So where do I find them?
Well, I read the book reviews in the Philadelphia Inquirer and NY Times most weeks and that is always good for a few to add to the wishlist. I check out their Bestsellers list to see what is popular among the folks. I read Shelf Awareness every day which always shows me a few new books that look interesting.
But the greatest amount, no doubt, comes from my fellow bloggers. You read a positive review and it sounds so good. Something I would like, right up my alley. Or maybe something on a subject that I might not have considered before but piques my interest. Then you read another positive review, or two, and the little voice kicks in "...oh, you should get that. right now...hurry..."
My little voice never uses Upper Case letters BTW.
I must admit, in the past couple of years, I did not show a lot of restraint when the Little Voice spoke to me. I would go to Amazon, see if maybe there was a used copy available if it had been out for awhile. If not, that nice new copy, available for delivery in just 2 days with Amazon Prime, tempted me. And I would give in.
Which explains the several hundred unread books.
These days, running out of places to pile the unread books, I try to be a bit more cautious. Now, I always check the library web site first and see if it is available to borrow. That is good for several reasons. It is free. There is a time deadline to read it. You give it back.
But sometimes, I still just hit the "Buy" button. I can not help it.
I have found that those 21 gallon plastic totes can hold a lot of books.
I find bookstores overwhelming too! I can spend hours in there and still not find anything I want to buy, unless I find a discounted table. They have some really good books on them sometimes.
ReplyDeleteglad to know I am not alone...lol
ReplyDeletebut yes, a really cheap price can get my attention!
I always take my TBR list with me when I go to the bookstore, and go to customer service and let them show me where the books I am looking for are. Then I go to the discount tables and check them to see if anything looks interesting.
ReplyDeleteI like reading other bookies blogs to see what their reviews and that is mostly where I find all the books I add to my TBR list.
This year I have made it a goal to try and visit the library more, to find books to read. It will save me money.
haha great post!
ReplyDeleteI am the same - I love browsing in the bookstores, but most of my impulse to read something now comes from other bloggers!
ReplyDeleteIt's like you took the words right out of my mouth.
ReplyDeleteI like the restraint of your inner voice. Mine is more like "BUY IT NOW!!!!" I'm with you ... my fellow book bloggers are to blame for all the books I want.
ReplyDelete