How do you know what books to read?

[GoodMorrowFairMaiden]

This may be a very stupid question but how do you know what books are new and what’s popular?
I don’t go to book shops much and often look here for recommendations.
I’m trying to read more and miss the days when a new book was out and you’d just see people reading them on commutes or they were displayed in the window of a book shop as you walked by.

For me it’s the opposite, OP - I wouldn’t know how to avoid falling over newly published books. I have newspaper apps on my phone, so am likely to see the odd review most days. Plus literary and arts magazines and journals, again online. A poor third to those would be the kindle app on my phone - every time I download a book or a sample I’m inundated with suggestions for similar things. (Good for academic stuff, annoying for fiction.)

Also, I’m a lifelong radio listener. Mostly BBC R3 and R4 - more endless chat about new books.

Beyond that - I’m attached to a university - so receive regular newsletters including new literature. And there’s always a colleague or acquaintance bringing out their latest work.

I’m ashamed to say that although I like recommending books on MN - particularly for children - I haven’t always found the book threads accord with my own tastes, so they probably don’t get much of my attention. Though the ongoing discussion on Amia Srinivasan’s The Right to Sex has been … interesting.

I have either read a review (accidentally come across, I don’t go looking for book reviews) & thought it looked good, had a book recommended or books have been passed on to me that people have enjoyed & wanted to share.

I read magazines quite often and see reviews or ads for books in there that I'll then add to my Amazon wish list and wait for it to go cheaper. I'm also an Amazon unlimited subscriber so often browse there and read the blurbs of books I like the front cover of to find something. Also then it suggests other books you might like that are similar.

I watch some Booktube, the ones who have similar taste in books to me and I note titles that interest me. Also, Radio 4 book programmes, Goodreads, and also just browsing in (mostly) second hand bookshops.

@VanishingWitch who do you watch on book tube? I tried having a look but they all seem quite young and into YA.
I will try and seek out more reviews.

I listen to podcasts eg Book Off, Simon Mayo's Books of the Year, The Penguin Podcast, the Waterstone podcast, A Good Read (Radio 4), Two Crime Writers and a microphone, You're Booked, Book Shambles With Robin (Ince) and Josie (Long), Book Club (Radio 4), Guardian Books Podcast, Iain Dale's Bookclub, Mean Book Club, What Should I Read Next? and World Book Club.

I read book reviews in newspapers.

I read book threads on Mumsnet.

I get frequent emails from Waterstone's with recommendations.

I watched Between the Covers with Sara Cox. There have been 2 series and they are both available on BBC I Player.

Forgot to add, it most certainly wasn't a stupid question.

Podcasts as above. Try goodreads. You can look up a book you’ve enjoyed and see what other people who also enjoyed it went on to read.

I usually go by the blurb. Before the pandemic I used to get alot of my books at summer fetes and fayres. I also used the library and would just take gambles and pick 2 or 3 up at a time. Only a few times did I not like the books I have selected. When everywhere was shut in the pandemic I started getting 99p books on kindle - again if they are terrible you haven't wasted too much money but I can usually tell from the blurb. Also on kindle I signed up for amazon first reads and on the first of every month I get a choice of about 6 books for free. I always download one some have been excellent and some have in all honestly been crap but such a great way to discover new authors and books.

I found that when I started using a Kindle my reading became much more narrow - I tended to stick to the same authors and a lot of the 'If you like that, you'll like this...' recommendations from Amazon.

I now try to get to a big Waterstones every couple of months. I love just browsing, finding some new books and authors, reading all of the blurbs on the back and the recommendations. I try to buy a couple of things that are a bit different and will also make a note of some books to add to my Kindle.

DH and I were only saying the other day that there were certain holidays that we remember by the books that almost everyone seemed to be reading by the pool - The Da Vinci Code, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Life of Pi, The Kite Runner, Harry Potter, all come to mind.

There was a thread here recently which has got me onto 3 new authors, the op had read a book I had also and was asking for recommendations, I have since flown through lots of good books as a result. Tell us what you have enjoyed, may be we can help

I use Bookbub to get ideas.

Bookbub

On Facebook, there’s a Radio 2 Bookclub page. Lots of people post suggestions on there.

On kindle, they have book deals, so I quite often buy these if they look good.

If you feel like readinggai certain book - romance, crime. Etc, post it on here and people. Will give you suggestions.

I find magazines often have features on which books are recommended, and i follow lots of book accounts on Instagram (search the hashtag #bookstagram).

I also log the books I read on good reads and you can see suggestions there too.

@GoodMorrowFairMaiden I watch Jen Campbell, LaurenAndTheBooks, GettingHyggeWithIt, Savidge Reads, Read A Book Gem, All D Books. I've had some good book recommendations from them.

Thanks for all the ideas. I’m looking at some now.

Though talking to people online about books - several different places and it's changed over the years. It used to be more focused on crime fiction, now I use the website LibraryThing and chat to particular people on there. I also use Goodreads but I prefer the conversation on Librarything and also while both sites are started in the US and dominated by American users, it's easier to record what I've bought, borrowed, read etc on Librarything so my book info looks how I want i to!

My sister started a FB group for friends and family members (including friends' mothers or friends of an older generation - one of her best friends used to live next door to her when we were all kids, and that friend and her mum are both on the group.

I have old favourites, series that I like to read though in some cases I'm very behind and in other cases, for example, I've really enjoyed the first two in the series but not (yet) got much further! But I'm also always on the lookout for new ideas.

I also borrow lots of books from the library, huge Kindle wishlists etc and scour all the daily monthly and other details and keep an eye on prices of books I'm interested in and buy from charity shops and secondhand.

In short, my problem is not being short of ideas on what to read, it's being spoiled for choice.

Good luck finding some good books to read though.

@GoodMorrowFairMaiden

I have signed up to the Waterstones newsletter.

There is a magazine called Book Time, which is available online:

www.booksellers.org.uk/Member-Services/Saving-Time-and-Money/Booktime

I follow the 50 books/25 books in a year threads on here.

Whenever I walk past a charity or second-hand shop, if I've got time I'll go in to browse the books.

I get tonnes of recommendations pop up on my Facebook feed - some are my taste, others not so much.

I am a member of a book group, so we'll often recommend books to each other.

I look at the Waterstones charts online!

I read book reviews from major periodicals to help me decide.

However, I generally don't read anything new, nor because it's popular. I can't imagine reading something because I see total strangers reading it. But if that's the way you like to choose, just keep an eye on bestseller lists.

Browsing the shelves at Waterstones or the second hand book shop.

I have no idea what books are new or popular. I'm not one to read a book just because it's popular

I prefer to read the blurb on the back of a book and maybe a few pages if the blurb looks interesting.

I rely on friends with similar taste to mine. If they recommend a book to me, it will be worth a shot.

I'm going to try some of the things recommended above too - I've not had much success to date with book podcasts etc.

I imagine, YewandOak, that the OP is asking about the route people take to arrive at the point of reading the blurb on the back of a book.

I feel very leaden-footed reading about people’s podcast habits, etc!

Actually can anyone recommend a podcast with a few entertaining prolific readers being totally honest about the books they read?

I need one where they are not being polite or hoping to get any authors on, and where they only read what they want to read, and can say "This was shite! I didn't finish it." and say why.

When I think why the ones I've listened to don't work, it is because they're too respectful and bland.