With so many books being published every day, how do you find a book you want to read?
I usually go through recommendations on Goodreads, and I keep track of what books my favourite authors are publishing.
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For nonfiction, a good source is checking the bibliography or works cited section of the book.
I might have the opposite problem lol. Too much I want to read and too little time. I always wanna read them all.
To narrow it down, I search in my library/libby app and then pick the one currently available.
I’ll second the Libby app but more directly…
I look at the new books available then filter by the genre I’d like to read. Many duds but I’ve also run across many duds being recommended online (like reddit). Feels a bit like eating out pre-internet where you’d try a restaurant and hope for the best.
I like searching by publisher every once in a while: if a book I read is a particularly well done translation or edition, odds are the company have done a similarly good job elsewhere.
I enjoy walking through bookstores and libraries I could get lost for hours
Sometimes a friend shelves a book on GoodReads or Bookwyrm (the fediverse book tool/communities) which catches my eye. There’s a SF/F bookclub podcast I listen to, and I learn about new authors and books that way (The Sword and Laser http://swordandlaser.com/). Then, I also get leads from talking about books with friends or co-workers. And, listening to other podcasts and talk radio programs, I get leads on books with different topics. For example, the NPR show Science Friday reviews books and interviews authors from time to time (and they also have a book club: https://www.sciencefriday.com/scifri-book-club/ ). The BBC Radio show The Food Programme does the same, and also does seasonal episodes on new cookboods/food books that are coming out ( https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qnx3 ). And also, several different book subreddits.
In 2022, my recommendations came mostly from:
- Blogs that are not dedicated to books – I’ve left most blogs & podcasts that only talk about books because they tend to make my
- My local library & my local bookshop are both absolutely amazing and have wonderful suggestions for books I would never have found in any other way.
- When I see a clearly leftist or anarchist-leaning library, I enter and, uh… support them financially.
- Friends, of course!
