I'm around 80 books a year and my most common sourcing is you and people ive met here, the GR "lists" and after I've read the book I will sometimes read similarly rated reviews and then "compare books" on GR and see if we match. Then I plow through their top rated reads!
I find the GR "you may also like" to be laughably inaccurate however the overall rating on the site is a key for me. If it's under 4 stars w many reviews, I'll dig a little deeper.
I also take advantage of Amazon First Reads every month and have read some good ones but also some real whiffers.
A couple years ago I also started prioritizing non-white authors and recently worked out my rating percentage. Over 70% of the bipoc-written books I've read are 4+ stars vs the 50% overall. Just because publishers don't promote them the same way says nothing about the quality of their work. For a bipoc person to get published at all says a lot about their book right off the hop!
I love these tips! I've also been conscientious about diversifying my bookshelf--I think it's important, especially as I buy most of my books as a deliberate effort to support other authors. XO
With regards to DNFing a book, I've felt much better about since I read Nancy's Pearl's Rule of 50: if you're under 50 years old, then give a book 50 pages before you quit. If you're over 50, subtract your age from 100 and that's how many pages to read before deciding to DNF. My mom hates that I quit books so easily, but damn it, Mom, life's too short for shitty books!
I am trying again this year to dip my toes into audiobooks. I've never really given them a try before, because I have absurd rules that apply only to myself... in this case, audiobooks absolutely "count" as reading for OTHER people (and I've even gotten into heated arguments online about this, in which I defend audiobooks), but for ME, I've always felt like they were cheating. This year, though, I'm trying to remind myself that I'm actually not that special. I just started the audiobook of "Deaf Utopia" by Nyle Dimarco, and so far, so good!
I do most of my reading done through audiobooks; more than 200 each year (I bump up the playback speed). To make sure I don't repeat accidentally, I keep track of them in a spreadsheet; I also use my spreadsheet to note authors that I really like and I will go look for new books from them.
I also try to take a look at the annual "best" lists from NYT and NPR, also book reviews from NYT. At one time I was trying to work through all of the Pulitzer Prize winners for fiction.
I have found a lot of great authors from a Facebook book club started by an author that I like very much. If I've had a good book recommendation from someone then I will tend to follow their other choices.
Finally, I've recently started listening to some podcasts by authors I like, especially when they talk about books that they've enjoyed and what they are reading. Btw, I would not have read the Library at Mount Char if I had not heard about it here 😃 I loved it!
Love all these tips for finding recs! BookTok is a huge hit for me for finding books, but so are my book besties. One thing I’d add to finding the right book is to listen to your mood!
I’m a notorious mood reader, and I’ve had many books that I needed to read (for book club, because my Libby checkout was going away, etc.) that I was less-than-thrilled with simply because I wasn’t in the mood for them. This is especially true of darker/heavier novels and historical fiction - if I’m already having a bad day with anxiety/depression/being tired, and I pick up something heavy, it only makes me feel worse and I end up not liking the book, even if it is objectively good. Now I listen to my mood, and if I feel like I need a hug in book form, I pick up a 5-star to reread, or a super cheesy romcom that I know will make me smile even if the plot has been done a bajillion times. I save the heavier books for when I’m feeling good enough that I know it won’t bring my mood down, and often only pick it up in the mornings and read something light before bed so I don’t get into a funk that will give me anxiety nightmares. Listening to my mood has made such a difference in not DNF’ing books, and not down-rating a great book because I just couldn’t appreciate it at that time.
so true. I read City of Thieves, followed closely by All the Light We Cannot See and now can't stand the thought of reading anything involving WWI or WWII (The Splendid and the Vile is on my list but I keep putting it on hold)
WWII books are particularly hard for me, and I always need several months and approximately 50 romances before I can read another one. But when you’re ready, The Nightingale, Winter Garden, and all of the Kate Quinn books (The Rose Code is my favorite) are so worth it! Now go find something happy and cheerful to keep you reading instead of spiraling 😘
I read about 250 books a year (13 non-fic last year, rest were fiction) and my DNF stats are low. I do appreciate the permission to abandon ones that aren't clicking!
I will note that sometimes it's timing and I'll re-request it from the library in another format (ex. audiobook if I was struggling with the print copy) and it might fit my mood better in the future. Or not.
I also love the Goodreads suggestions and end of year best of lists.
I read primarily romance for the past 8-9 yrs, so I'm pretty honed in on the authors I like and who doesn't do it for me anymore. Always open to new ones - often suggested by authors in their newsletters or by Kindle app suggesting based on my reading history.
I used to be in a bookclub but the majority of the books they selected weren't really my jam. Left for other reasons, but fully appreciated getting to read what I wanted without outside obligation. So I recommend finding out what types of books a potential book group is drawn to before joining.
This is a smart book club tip. I'd be fine if the club chose a diverse selection and they weren't all winners for me, but I'd never want to join a book club mostly focused on a category I wasn't into!
"If you didn’t like The Library at Mount Char, we can still be friends, but you’re wrong." LOL and spot on!! After reading that book I knew I would follow you forever if only for your book recs!
I love this. I know I am a paid subscriber. Can I share this with my book club? You may get some new subscribers!! If not, that's OK - I understand. I always love your insight!
I usually don’t track how many books I read a year, but then I discovered StoryGraph and I like it so much better than Goodreads (and actually use it!). So now I know I read 59 books last year! I’ll take a rec from anywhere/anyone but then choose to read it based on my mood. This has led to less DNF books for me. Even if that means letting the hold lapse on Libby 😭 I know I can always pick them back up again. I now treat my search history in Libby as my TBR! I belong to a book club but gave myself permission to not read the last two books bc I wasn’t into them. I go for the people anyway 🤷🏻♀️ I LOVED Anyone by Charles Soule that you recommended and want to read that again for the first time! If anyone has a book like it I’d love to hear your recs!
Since I dove DEEPLY into personal development 35 years ago, I just can't bring myself to get excited about fiction. (I also don't like spending much time on Netflix if it's not a documentary). I just love LEARNING! About travel, research, and bettering my health physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually... So my books lately (mainly audio while multitasking) are longevity/wellness, mindfulness, your Boundaries book, Mel Robbins' latest books, and LOTS of podcasts (Whoop, Huberman, Anna Bey, Jay Shetty, etc). My entertainment (=SHHH brain!) is often comedians' "shorts" on YouTube, or an occasional hair, makeup or 50+ style tutorial.
I really enjoyed it. Needed to sit with it for a few days after it ended to truly appreciate it. Some of the most incredible writing I've seen in a while. I also just LOVE Irish authors.
Do you buy most of books you read? And what do you do with them when you’re done? I often put books on hold at the library and then when I get them the timing is wrong. Oh well.
My 2023 goal was to buy and read more books. I definitely bought a ton and read a lot more than previous years but now I’m trying to read what I bought last year. I too give myself some grace about DNF’s because I buy most books at the thrift store I’m not married to the outcome so if it isn’t my thing I drop them off at the free library in the park. If they’re great I pass them around to others. I’m not sure about audiobooks because I listen to podcasts so much that I’m not sure I’d be able to also get through audiobooks while driving etc. I dislike headphones in my ears, so uncomfortable! If someone has a good recommendation for headphones I’d love to hear it. I have smaller ears and the Apple headphones are too big, big clunky over the ear ones don’t fit well because I wear glasses... I did order a clip on my ear set which are better but they slide around so they’re not perfect either. I’ve added some of these book recommendations to my list! Thanks for sharing. 📚❤️
I'm around 80 books a year and my most common sourcing is you and people ive met here, the GR "lists" and after I've read the book I will sometimes read similarly rated reviews and then "compare books" on GR and see if we match. Then I plow through their top rated reads!
I find the GR "you may also like" to be laughably inaccurate however the overall rating on the site is a key for me. If it's under 4 stars w many reviews, I'll dig a little deeper.
I also take advantage of Amazon First Reads every month and have read some good ones but also some real whiffers.
A couple years ago I also started prioritizing non-white authors and recently worked out my rating percentage. Over 70% of the bipoc-written books I've read are 4+ stars vs the 50% overall. Just because publishers don't promote them the same way says nothing about the quality of their work. For a bipoc person to get published at all says a lot about their book right off the hop!
Long live bedtime reading!!!
I love these tips! I've also been conscientious about diversifying my bookshelf--I think it's important, especially as I buy most of my books as a deliberate effort to support other authors. XO
Thank you - you know that I will!!!
With regards to DNFing a book, I've felt much better about since I read Nancy's Pearl's Rule of 50: if you're under 50 years old, then give a book 50 pages before you quit. If you're over 50, subtract your age from 100 and that's how many pages to read before deciding to DNF. My mom hates that I quit books so easily, but damn it, Mom, life's too short for shitty books!
I am trying again this year to dip my toes into audiobooks. I've never really given them a try before, because I have absurd rules that apply only to myself... in this case, audiobooks absolutely "count" as reading for OTHER people (and I've even gotten into heated arguments online about this, in which I defend audiobooks), but for ME, I've always felt like they were cheating. This year, though, I'm trying to remind myself that I'm actually not that special. I just started the audiobook of "Deaf Utopia" by Nyle Dimarco, and so far, so good!
I do most of my reading done through audiobooks; more than 200 each year (I bump up the playback speed). To make sure I don't repeat accidentally, I keep track of them in a spreadsheet; I also use my spreadsheet to note authors that I really like and I will go look for new books from them.
I also try to take a look at the annual "best" lists from NYT and NPR, also book reviews from NYT. At one time I was trying to work through all of the Pulitzer Prize winners for fiction.
I have found a lot of great authors from a Facebook book club started by an author that I like very much. If I've had a good book recommendation from someone then I will tend to follow their other choices.
Finally, I've recently started listening to some podcasts by authors I like, especially when they talk about books that they've enjoyed and what they are reading. Btw, I would not have read the Library at Mount Char if I had not heard about it here 😃 I loved it!
Thanks for a fun discussion topic!
Love these tips! The annual best lists are a great place to go for sure.
Increasing Playback speed is a life hack not enough people know about!
Love all these tips for finding recs! BookTok is a huge hit for me for finding books, but so are my book besties. One thing I’d add to finding the right book is to listen to your mood!
I’m a notorious mood reader, and I’ve had many books that I needed to read (for book club, because my Libby checkout was going away, etc.) that I was less-than-thrilled with simply because I wasn’t in the mood for them. This is especially true of darker/heavier novels and historical fiction - if I’m already having a bad day with anxiety/depression/being tired, and I pick up something heavy, it only makes me feel worse and I end up not liking the book, even if it is objectively good. Now I listen to my mood, and if I feel like I need a hug in book form, I pick up a 5-star to reread, or a super cheesy romcom that I know will make me smile even if the plot has been done a bajillion times. I save the heavier books for when I’m feeling good enough that I know it won’t bring my mood down, and often only pick it up in the mornings and read something light before bed so I don’t get into a funk that will give me anxiety nightmares. Listening to my mood has made such a difference in not DNF’ing books, and not down-rating a great book because I just couldn’t appreciate it at that time.
so true. I read City of Thieves, followed closely by All the Light We Cannot See and now can't stand the thought of reading anything involving WWI or WWII (The Splendid and the Vile is on my list but I keep putting it on hold)
WWII books are particularly hard for me, and I always need several months and approximately 50 romances before I can read another one. But when you’re ready, The Nightingale, Winter Garden, and all of the Kate Quinn books (The Rose Code is my favorite) are so worth it! Now go find something happy and cheerful to keep you reading instead of spiraling 😘
I read about 250 books a year (13 non-fic last year, rest were fiction) and my DNF stats are low. I do appreciate the permission to abandon ones that aren't clicking!
I will note that sometimes it's timing and I'll re-request it from the library in another format (ex. audiobook if I was struggling with the print copy) and it might fit my mood better in the future. Or not.
I also love the Goodreads suggestions and end of year best of lists.
I read primarily romance for the past 8-9 yrs, so I'm pretty honed in on the authors I like and who doesn't do it for me anymore. Always open to new ones - often suggested by authors in their newsletters or by Kindle app suggesting based on my reading history.
I used to be in a bookclub but the majority of the books they selected weren't really my jam. Left for other reasons, but fully appreciated getting to read what I wanted without outside obligation. So I recommend finding out what types of books a potential book group is drawn to before joining.
This is a smart book club tip. I'd be fine if the club chose a diverse selection and they weren't all winners for me, but I'd never want to join a book club mostly focused on a category I wasn't into!
I love my Bookclub people, I hate most of the books😂😂
Hahaha that’s hilarious 😂
"If you didn’t like The Library at Mount Char, we can still be friends, but you’re wrong." LOL and spot on!! After reading that book I knew I would follow you forever if only for your book recs!
I wish I could read that one for the first time again, but my second time through was just as powerful!
will have to revisit it soon!
I love this. I know I am a paid subscriber. Can I share this with my book club? You may get some new subscribers!! If not, that's OK - I understand. I always love your insight!
Of course you can, and I’d love that! This post is free (but you could encourage them to subscribe). ❤️
Places I’ve found amazing books:
- comments sections of blogs I like, like cupofjo (jezebel was gold, too, RIP)
- the acknowledgments section of books I’ve loved, if I’m lucky the author will thank fellow writers and then I look them up
- if an author blurbs a book I enjoyed, oftentimes I’ll look them up
- the Millions website makes amazing lists a few times a year
I usually don’t track how many books I read a year, but then I discovered StoryGraph and I like it so much better than Goodreads (and actually use it!). So now I know I read 59 books last year! I’ll take a rec from anywhere/anyone but then choose to read it based on my mood. This has led to less DNF books for me. Even if that means letting the hold lapse on Libby 😭 I know I can always pick them back up again. I now treat my search history in Libby as my TBR! I belong to a book club but gave myself permission to not read the last two books bc I wasn’t into them. I go for the people anyway 🤷🏻♀️ I LOVED Anyone by Charles Soule that you recommended and want to read that again for the first time! If anyone has a book like it I’d love to hear your recs!
I'm open to finding a pull for fiction...???
Since I dove DEEPLY into personal development 35 years ago, I just can't bring myself to get excited about fiction. (I also don't like spending much time on Netflix if it's not a documentary). I just love LEARNING! About travel, research, and bettering my health physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually... So my books lately (mainly audio while multitasking) are longevity/wellness, mindfulness, your Boundaries book, Mel Robbins' latest books, and LOTS of podcasts (Whoop, Huberman, Anna Bey, Jay Shetty, etc). My entertainment (=SHHH brain!) is often comedians' "shorts" on YouTube, or an occasional hair, makeup or 50+ style tutorial.
... I'm open to finding a pull for fiction...???
How I choose my books: Follow Melissa Urban :)
Mount Char still haunts me to this day it was so good. Very few books have even got in the ballpark of that one. My new favorite is Demon copperhead.
Demon Copperhead was SO good! Quite a few of us at Whole30 HQ have read that one and we all loved it!
I love our little book club. 🤓
Me too! I still need to check out Wellness... I’ve picked it up at the bookstore a dozen times but never pulled the trigger.
And now I have 2 new books on my wishlist! Nice!
I just want to read it selfishly so we can discuss. It's an investment, though. I'm into long books lately apparently. Just finished The Bee Sting.
Bee Sting is sitting in my TBR pile! I'll start there.
Text me first, lol. It's a...journey.
I just got the Bee Sting!
I really enjoyed it. Needed to sit with it for a few days after it ended to truly appreciate it. Some of the most incredible writing I've seen in a while. I also just LOVE Irish authors.
Do you buy most of books you read? And what do you do with them when you’re done? I often put books on hold at the library and then when I get them the timing is wrong. Oh well.
My 2023 goal was to buy and read more books. I definitely bought a ton and read a lot more than previous years but now I’m trying to read what I bought last year. I too give myself some grace about DNF’s because I buy most books at the thrift store I’m not married to the outcome so if it isn’t my thing I drop them off at the free library in the park. If they’re great I pass them around to others. I’m not sure about audiobooks because I listen to podcasts so much that I’m not sure I’d be able to also get through audiobooks while driving etc. I dislike headphones in my ears, so uncomfortable! If someone has a good recommendation for headphones I’d love to hear it. I have smaller ears and the Apple headphones are too big, big clunky over the ear ones don’t fit well because I wear glasses... I did order a clip on my ear set which are better but they slide around so they’re not perfect either. I’ve added some of these book recommendations to my list! Thanks for sharing. 📚❤️