(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/swanksalot/2715407049/ CC http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)A few posts ago, I wrote about summer reading. There’s still time! I hope you’ve had a chance to read something really good, the kind of book that makes you read more slowly at the end to make it last, the kind of book you clutch to your chest when you’re done as if hugging an old friend.
(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/missrogue/457911556/ CC http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)Next comes the chore of deciding what to read next. Donald Latumahina gives some suggestions in this blog post.
I use Amazon, too, but use other sources more. In my line of work, I see reviews for books in library blogs, magazines, and newsletters. I keep a paper file and a computer file of titles that look promising. My main method of finding good books is one he didn’t mention—recommendations from friends. Why do the books friends suggest sound so much more appealing than those standing at attention on my shelf waiting to be read? I keep track of what I read on Shelfari.com, another place to get suggestions.
(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/yodelanecdotal/2452348317/ CC http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)Sometimes I’ll go on a binge and read everything by one author or stay with the same genre title after title. More often, I’ll mix it up—historical fiction, contemporary, mystery, non-fiction—enjoying the variety.
How do you choose what to read next? How do you find (as Latumahina says) "interesting books"? Remember this: Friends don’t let friends read bad books! Thanks to all you friends who share good books and good book titles with me.
