How Do You Choose A Book?

[Patricia]

I just took a survey done by a major publisher and this was one of their questions. I thought it was very interesting. It was multiple choice and not one of the choices fit how I choose a book. Even MORE interesting. Some of the choices were by the reviews, the cover, the author, suggestion by a friend, genre, specific author etc.

I know I absolutely never go by reviews done by critics. They can be the worst judges of a good book. I think they feel like they elevate themselves by plugging cerebral junk. Reading a book like that is too much like work. That's not why I read.

I choose a book by exploring what is there. I use to spend a couple of hours in a book store. Now I spend a couple of hours on Amazon. I choose a book by how the cover and flap write up grab me. I have to feel something when I read that blurb.

How do you choose a book?

[Karen ⚜Mess⚜]

For the most part I pick a book by judging my Goodread friend's reactions and ratings.

There are a couple of bloggers that tend to share the same tastes in books as me. I use them as a guideline too.

Occasionally, I'm a sucker for book covers.

[Aly, Book Monster and group creator]

I chose a book several different ways, myself. I sometimes go by the cover if it draws me in, I sometimes go by what people in this group say is a great book, I pick sometimes, something totally out of the normal for me just to see if I will like it. Anyone else?

[Ashlee]

I generally look at the cover then I'll read the back (or inside) and, if it's something I think I'll like then I'll buy it. The other way I'll chose a book is browsing books on here. Mostly though it's all about the cover unless I hear someone talking about it.

[Seis]

Sometimes the cover catches my attention and if it seems interesting, i will read it because of the pretty cover hehe if certain goodreads friends whose tastes are similar to mine really like a book, i will usually read it too. Otherwise, by browsing and it seems interesting, even if it isn't within my normal genre, i will read it. Thank goodness my gut is seldom wrong! :D

[Robert]

Title and cover grab me first, then reading the worse of the reviews grab me next, then sampling for myself to see if I like the style.For my own books I work hard to get a good cover. Designing a recent book cover I favored one cover over another but they were very close. So I sent samples of both to 24 friends to pick their choice. They over-rode mine 12 to 1. So I went with theirs and know why it won. The cover figure was a small absolutely too cute to resist little big-eyed jungle baby clutching a toy bird. The second choice went inside. So it was a win-win.

[Patricia]

I think a big part of the reason I don't read romances is because of the asinine covers. They are such a turn off for me. Especially before the days of kindle. I was in the Navy for a lot of years. I worked mostly with guys. Can you IMAGINE the comments if I was caught carrying around a book with some long haired lethario clutching a maiden in distress?

There are probably some really good romance novels out there but 9 years of avoiding being harassed to death stuck.

[Seis]

Agree with you 100% about the covers!! But romance isnt my fave either, has to have some other element, like crime or comedy

[Patricia]

When I read bad reviews on Amazon I'm beyond amazed at times. People complain about language and sexual content. WTF???? Books that are sweet and wholesome are marked as such. SO BUY THOSE BOOKS!!

The other one that gets me is complaints about a book not being edited and has spelling and grammar mistakes. SO BUY A BOOK THAT ISN'T SELF PUBLISHED!! It really gets to me when that's the complaint and there are spelling and grammar errors in the review.

The only book I have ever given a really horrible review for is Christopher Rice's Bone Music. It's one of the worst things I've ever read. I tortured myself and kept reading because I thought it would have to get better. It didn't.

If anyone wants to read it and is a kindle user I'll GIVE IT to you. Not loan, GIVE.

[Greg]

I chose books by various methods. Next one in a series I am reading is one, of course. A new (or previously unnoticed) book by an author I like is another. Goodreads recommendations on occasion, what friends are reading sometimes, various 'best of' or 'top 100' lists. and monthly group reads even. The group reads have introduced me to some excellent books, and some really yucky ones, that I would never have read otherwise and introduced me to some authors I continue to read. And the odd add in the back of a book or the list of other books by the same author or even the same publishing house. Sometimes the cover or the review. I am a book junkie and it doesn't take much to make me want to read a book. Probably why my TBR list continues to be around 500 books no matter how many I read.