When I was a
kid growing up on a farm in Saskatchewan (think North Dakota, only less
cutting-edge) it seemed I couldn’t get my hands on enough books. Our one-room
school house (think Little House on the Prairie meets Lord of the Flies)
received a rotating number of books every month from the local school library
system. But I always plowed through those before the month was over. As a
results I re-read my favorites many times over.
Those days
are long over. Now it seems I am flooded with books. Every time I go on
Facebook or Twitter, or visit Amazon, Kobo or Audible, I see dozens of books
I’d love to read. And don’t get me started about Goodreads! Or bookstores!
The most
amazing thing of all, is that having identified a book that interests me, I can
have it purchased and downloaded to my Kobo, Kindle or iPad within five minutes
(or less)!
Buying books
is easy, fun…and addictive. But time to read them is increasingly scarce.
So…how to
decide what to read next? For me I usually circulate among the following:
·
The
monthly reads chosen by the “Happy
Bookers” my Calgary reading group
·
New
releases from my favorite authors
·
New
releases getting a lot of “buzz” on Goodreads, Publisher’s Weekly, or the Globe
& Mail (think New York Times,
Canadian style)
·
Older
books I always meant to read…sometime
·
Classic
titles I haven’t yet gotten around to
What about
you? How do you decide which book you’re going to read next? Do you, for
instance, pick up titles you see discussed on Facebook or Twitter? Do you
receive author newsletters and buy a lot of books from those? Or do you
subscribe to discount newsletters like Book Bub or ENT? And hey, does anyone
browse actual book stores anymore?!? I do. Witness this photo taken in Portland
this summer...
I really
want to hear from you on this! To prove it, I have a lovely mug and totebag
which I will be sending to one randomly chosen person who comments below with
their top 3 ways of picking their next read. If your name is chosen you need to
contact me with your mailing address (via Facebook or my website) so I can send
you your prize! (Just follow the links under my name.)
Oh, and
while I have your attention, why not enter my website contest for a grab bag of 10 books? (If you win you won’t have to
worry about what to read next for a long time!)
Happy
Reading!
C. J.
Carmichael
