I Judge Books by Their Covers
Have you ever picked up your current read and thought about why you chose that particular book? I have often thought that—what was I thinking when I chose this one?
How many times, when you are part way through and the words you’re reading are just words on a page, you persist a few more pages to see if magically the story will begin to draw you in? Giving it up you shut the book looking at the cover simultaneously with that perplexed feeling of why?
Let’s think about it.
You are in the mood for a new book.
What kind of shopper are you?
Personally, I am a Kindle girly and a physical book girly, so that makes book purchasing twice as lengthy.
Kindle shopping couldn't be more different from wandering through a bookstore.
I don’t spend too much time deciding what to read here, everything is black and white, there is nothing colourful to catch my eye. If I don’t already have a book title in mind from either a recommendation or something I have seen online, I don’t usually scroll too far in each list that Amazon prepopulates for me before I make my purchase.
Bookstores however, these for me are like a child being given free rein in a toyshop.
When I enter a bookstore, I get all the feels, all of my senses are heightened.
My eyes are drawn everywhere, unable to focus on any one section.
I can smell the fresh new crisp published pages of book after book.
Fingers running across embossed titles.
Listening in the background to store people chatting about books to customers.
Sipping my takeaway coffee, because coffee and books go hand in hand.
As I slowly roam around the store, stopping at each genre to find the books that are standing out to me (because let’s be honest, there is no way I’m getting out of here with one book).
Before I even begin narrowing down my choices, I somehow end up walking through the entire store. Even the sections I have absolutely no intention of buying from.
I will then go back to genres I know I enjoy and will give attention to areas in store such as latest titles and manager choices.
Usually, the order I use to choose a book is:
Book cover - I am a sucker for colours, and pictures. If the cover looks interesting, bright or pretty, it will tempt me to consider it.
Book title - If the title sounds fun, unique, slightly unhinged, you can bet I’m picking it up to think about it.
Book Blurb - This is kind of the last thing, if the first two in my inner head thought process have been checked off, then next up the blurb.
Book Reviews/Social Media Hype
I have absolutely been caught up, as I am sure most of you have at times with social media hype of books. I mean as an author I spend a lot of time on social media for my own marketing needs and through the algorithm I am constantly being shown books that come across my feed.
These days I don't put as much weight on social media recommendations as I once did. Reading is incredibly personal, the book that completely changes one person's life might leave another wondering what all the fuss was about. That's the beauty of books.
Book reviews on sites such as Amazon, Goodreads and others, I also don’t lean into too much as a decider on my book purchase choice, for very similar reasons as above.
I have however, once finished a book that I may not have loved, then gone into read reviews to see what others have thought about it.
Overall, the whole process of choosing what to read is my favourite past time.
Sometimes I’m surprised.
Sometimes I realise I completely missed something another reader found amazing about the book.
Other times I have realised my senses were off and regretted my choice.
But that’s my favourite thing about books, there is no right or wrong opinion, and we have so many amazing books out there to choose from.
Reading is so magical. We get to immerse ourselves into these stories bringing our own emotions, memories and experiences to every page.
I would love to know…
How do you choose your next read?
Is it the cover?
Does the title arouse your curiosity?
Was it a recommendation?
Or are you all in from the blurb?
Leave me a comment
I genuinely want to know how your book buying brain works.
