Booklover’s Guide to Choosing a Good Book to Read

There are approximately 134,021,533 books on the planet, and the number is steadily increasing. In the United States alone, between 600,000 and 1,000,000 novels are published each year, not to mention the rest of the world. Furthermore, the average lifespan is barely 70 years. So, whether or not you're a voracious reader, you'll only scrape the surface of human creativity and understanding. In that situation, you simply cannot afford to squander your time reading useless publications.

There's no denying the importance of reading: it informs, inspires, entertains, and so much more. But, with thousands of books produced every week, how does a reader (particularly one who is new to reading) choose which one to read?

Know what you want to achieve.

What motivates you to read? Is that for your own personal development or entertainment? Choose novels based on it. But it’s not wise to read only fictions as they’re not going to make you smarter. The busier you get, you need to minimize things that waste your time, and if you spend six hours reading a book that did nothing more than entertain, you just wasted six hours. Try the books which are intellectually stimulating too. In that case try to apply the skills in the book soon.

How to Choose a Good Book to Read

Read the Works of Your Favorited Authors

If you're having trouble picking what to read, this is one of the most straightforward options.

Why don't you finish reading your favourite author's work if you haven't already? Alternatively, if you've previously done so, look for an author among your top fives whose work piques your interest during this era of your life.

During a holiday, you should try out this this reading technique. In order to improve your book-reading habit, you should decide to focus on the works of your favourite author.

Reading another one of your favorite author’s works piques your interest and piques your excitement since you are able to truly comprehend the writer's style and tone; which, if you are a writer, may be good for your own writing.

It's likely that you'll love another book by an author with whom you're already familiar and who writes in a style you like. The risk is negligible.

People you know would appreciate it if you lend them books.

This may appear to be illogical and unimportant. However, if you gift someone books you believe they'll enjoy, they may return the favour when they find something that suits your preferences. Other people may see you in a different light than you do, giving them a new perspective on what you would love.

The same is true when it comes to book recommendations. For example, because you write so much about books, you get regular emails suggesting novels to read next, which frequently alerts you to books you might not have discovered otherwise.

Make a reading list for yourself.

Do you have any sort of reading list? It doesn't have to be something elaborate, like Rory Gilmore's ultimate reading list; it might just be a list of 5–10 novels you'd want to read but aren't sure about.

Thinking about how relevant the book you'll read will be to you in that particular period of time; by taking note of your mood, stress levels, level of busyness, areas of curiosity and interest in that particular period of your life; is one of the strategies you can use to choose a book from your reading list.

These requirements are always evolving. Try to pay attention to your natural requirements and choose a book that speaks to them.

Always read the bibliography before proceeding.

Your closest buddy is a bibliography. If you appreciate a book, always read the bibliography if one is included, because:

• Writing a book requires a lot of reading, and you're likely to find a full list of everything that influenced the author.
• The novels listed are, on average, 20 years older than the one you've just finished, so they could be hidden gems that have fallen out of favour.
• It's an excellent approach to delve deeper into a topic you're interested in. Bibliographies are where I get at least a quarter of my books.

Inquire about recommendations

Take the advice of your family and friends. There's a good chance that someone in your circle enjoys literature. You may trust their opinions because they have similar tastes. They'd have a good sense of what you'll like because they know your personality and have your best interests at heart. This is something we should always do. When you’re looking for the perfect book and can't seem to find it, you turn to my mum. She has a good sense of which ones are ideal! Make sure to give it a shot. Also, if more than one person recommends a book to you, take it. It should be good.

Visit a bookstore and select a book that piques your interest.

Even though internet novel retailers are increasingly replacing traditional book stores, browsing through a bookshop (or, in this case, a library) is an activity that never gets old.

Looking at the books on the shelves, reading the back covers, physically feeling them, flipping over the pages... It's simply a more genuine and authentic experience than buying books online.

Listening to your intuitions and feelings while you're there for a long time, in the presence of the books, may help you choose a terrific book to read. Don't be afraid to express yourself. Learn to pay closer attention to them.

If you absolutely need assistance, ask the personnel for assistance and inform them of your reading preferences. Is it a fiction or non-fiction book you're looking for, and if so, what genres or similar books can you recommend for the type of book you're looking for?

Going to a bookshop with a buddy, especially one who understands your interests, reading tastes, and is a relatively decent reader themselves, also helps and makes the decision-making process much more fun and easier.

Strolling around the store while discussing the books may provide you with fresh ideas, motivate you, and help you make a decision on a book more quickly. It's also a great exercise to do with a buddy!

Buying Books in Bulk Isn't a Good Idea

This goes against your instincts and sentiments about a book at that particular moment of time in your life. With their attractive book covers, fascinating synopsis, and compatibility with our sentiments and current learning/reading demands, books have the capacity to entice us.

Buying numerous books at once encourages you to finish them as soon as possible, reminding you to finish one and move on to the next, so you can cross them off your list.

You can buy five novels at once, but once you've finished the first two, there's a risk the remainder won't appeal to you as much as they did before. They don't appear to be relevant or interesting to you at this time. You don't feel like reading them, or you feel compelled to finish them because you consider them to be must-have items.

As a result, you either complete them by not really immersing yourself in them, or you don't pick them up for an extended period of time and they sit idle in your bookshelves for nearly indefinitely.

If you don't feel like continuing with a book, don't.

This is a common blunder that the majority of us make. We get through a significant number of pages in a book but still don't feel the spark, can't understand what it's about, can't focus, or just don't enjoy it. However, we persist because we feel compelled to complete it!

You are free to stop reading the book if you have no obligation to do so (for work, school, etc.). It will not be wasted; rather, you will save more time than if you had finished the book. Don't just read for the sake of it! What's the point of it if you're going to have an unenjoyable and useless reading experience?

You don't have to like or understand every book you read. Different people have different tastes, and it's possible that you're missing the point since it's an advanced level book and you haven't yet reached that level. If that's the case, put the book down and come back to it when you're more confident in your reading comprehension and intellectual abilities.

You'll be able to tell if a book is fascinating to you. If it is, you will be intrigued by what happens next, eager to learn more, or satisfied. If you don't have any of these feelings, I recommend that you put the book down and pick up another one. There are more productive ways to spend your time.

Don't get caught up with the number of books you own or should read.

One disadvantage of constructing extensive reading lists is that it can demotivate you from reading because you'll have a mountain of possibilities to read, leaving you feeling overwhelmed and stuck. In that sense, reading a book can feel like a chore to complete and check off the books on a list.

If you don't have a strong reading habit and are just starting out on your book reading trip, we wouldn't recommend overloading yourself with a long list of titles. Because you won't have the courage to keep going.

Starting a new habit or reinforcing an old one should begin with smaller, more enjoyable steps rather than lofty goals like "I should read at least 50 books this year."

Setting these lofty goals can put a strain on you, and you may decide not to participate in the activity at all. Alternatively, you might indulge in this type of reading but remain on edge at all times. Because you'll be thinking about the next book while reading the one you're presently reading.

If you already have a good reading habit, lists can help you keep track of the books you want to read. However, there is a distinction to be made between reading for pleasure and reading as a chore. The latter is what you should avoid if you want to get enjoyment from what you read and learn.

Don't listen to self-help gurus or internet entrepreneurs who tell you that if you want to be successful, you must read a certain number of books. It adds to your burden and dilutes the wonderful benefits of reading by turning it into a tedious task.

Find your own rhythm and tempo instead. After all, it's not how many books you've read that matters, but the quality of your reading. It's pointless to read for the purpose of finishing the book so you can say you've read it but didn't get much out of it.