Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
Post Reply
Grt2bOutdoors
Posts: 18453
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:20 pm
Location: New York

Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors » Thu May 09, 2013 7:47 pm

This thread is inspired by the "What Book are you reading now? Part V which is into it's 29th page as I type this. The list is varied with some seemingly interesting topics, most of which are not business or finance related. So Bogleheads, what is your method if you have one of selecting your reading list? Especially when time is a precious commodity.
"One should invest based on their need, ability and willingness to take risk - Larry Swedroe" Asking Portfolio Questions

User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 18183
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 7:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by VictoriaF » Thu May 09, 2013 8:57 pm

I don't have a single method, and the selection depends on whether it's fiction or non-fiction--and what type of non-fiction.

These days, I only "read" fiction via audio books. I get them from my library where I select fast-paced mysteries written by the Brits and some male American authors.

The process of selecting non-fiction is much more involved. I have a long backlog of books I want/need/must read. Unfortunately, the order of these books continuously get reshuffled, and new books jump the line. New books come from two major sources: (1) They are written by someone I already know and like; (2) I browse Amazon.com and one book's featured ads or reviews lead to other books.

Occasionally, I become interested in a new topic. I go to Amazon.com and start with the key words. After I stumble on popular books, I review the top-100 list. After that the details of what I am looking for become clearer in my mind and I start a more-targeted selection of books and reading their reviews.

Victoria
WINNER of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)

Calm Man
Posts: 2917
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2012 9:35 am

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by Calm Man » Thu May 09, 2013 9:08 pm

I have been reading novels for the last few years in "streaks". So I read every one of the Sherlock Holmes series, then everything by Dostoevsky, all Charles Dickens novels and I have recently begun John LeCarre novels. The latter may be the best yet and there are something like 20 of them. After that, I have everything by Edgar Alan Poe then Tolstoy. Then maybe some non-fiction: I have a slew of books about wars and things like that.

chaz
Posts: 13601
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 2:44 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by chaz » Thu May 09, 2013 10:23 pm

I like the crime and mystery genre. I get the novels from the library.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

saurabhec
Posts: 1816
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 3:52 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by saurabhec » Thu May 09, 2013 10:53 pm

I was an avid reader of fiction till I went to college. I then decided I did not have the luxury of reading fiction and should only read non-fiction that would further my career or somehow contribute to success. In my late 30s I was prompted by life events to pursue reading fiction with no end in mind other than to nourish and comfort the soul and perhaps gain some insights into how to live. I basically read on train commutes to work and back and focused on American fiction writers in the pantheon of literary greats who appealed to me (Philip Roth, John Updike, David Foster Wallace, Jonathan Franzen among others). I have recently branched out into also reading women writers who I think have always been underrated (Joyce Carol Oates, Alice Munro). I do all my reading on a Kindle smartphone app and an iPad and find that the Amazon recommendation engine does a fine job of pointing out stuff I might be interested in.

scrabbler1
Posts: 2139
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2009 2:39 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by scrabbler1 » Thu May 09, 2013 11:19 pm

I get a lot of my non-fiction book ideas from C-Span, particularly BookTV. I don't read a lot of fiction, but I recently began reading more books which were made into movies I saw and liked, even if they came out years ago. There was even a list of books like this on the Net. Other sources of book ideas are from talk show interviews. For example, comedienne Jen Kirkman was recently interviewed on Jay Leno about her latest book and I was able to snag it from the library.

letsgobobby
Posts: 11272
Joined: Fri Sep 18, 2009 1:10 am

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by letsgobobby » Fri May 10, 2013 12:08 am

I just look at bookshelves in the library and choose. Latest author I "discovered" was Kazuo Ishiguro. Yeah, I'm kind of late to the game. Never Let Me Go is not letting me go. I've got this indelible stain of sadness and horror and tearful thankfulness for all those things we take for granted but shouldn't.

Also I belong to two library systems and both have extensive collections of Kindle books to borrow. I peruse those lists til I find something intriguing and available.

In other words, it's mostly random.

User avatar
bertilak
Posts: 5913
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2011 5:23 pm
Location: East of the Pecos, West of the Mississippi

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by bertilak » Fri May 10, 2013 8:14 am

I love mystery/detective books. When I find an author I like I hunt down everything by the author I can. I'm knid of dry right now, not having picked up on a new author in a while. Favorites:
  • Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe)
    M.C. Beaton (Hamish Macbeth)
    Agatha Christie (Hercule Poirot)
    Donald E. Westlake (Dortmunder), aka Richard Stark (Parker), aka several others
May neither drought nor rain nor blizzard disturb the joy juice in your gizzard. -- Squire Omar Barker, the Cowboy Poet

User avatar
FabLab
Posts: 1127
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 12:15 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by FabLab » Fri May 10, 2013 8:41 am

My "method" is scattershot. There's so much I want to read. Insufficient time to do it all. I guess I do have an ongoing mental list of next books, then someone on bogleheads goes and asks whether there are any major changes in Rick Ferri's latest version of All About Asset Allocation ...

Which now awaits pickup at my village library thanks to interlibrary loan, in order to see.
The fundamental things apply as time goes by -- Herman Hupfeld

User avatar
jeffyscott
Posts: 6878
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:12 am
Location: Wisconsin

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by jeffyscott » Sun May 12, 2013 11:14 am

I've been going through the Modern Library "board's list" of 100 best novels:

http://www.modernlibrary.com/top-100/100-best-novels/

In some cases this has led to reading more works by one of the authors.

Recently ran across this list of "books everyone should read". I've saved a copy of the google spreadsheet linked there and plan to use this to find things next:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog ... s-read-100
press on, regardless - John C. Bogle

leo383
Posts: 473
Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:36 pm
Location: Durham, NC

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by leo383 » Wed May 15, 2013 10:49 am

I get a lot of book ideas here, and have read several books simply because Value Thinker mentioned them.

I also try to fill in gaps in my reading that school didn't cover. I am currently working my way through my 9yo son's Battle of the Books list:

http://www.ncslma.org/uploads/8/4/7/0/8 ... rected.pdf

I also am always chipping away at a Shakespeare play I haven't read.

User avatar
ruralavalon
Posts: 13188
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2008 10:29 am
Location: Illinois

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by ruralavalon » Wed May 15, 2013 11:00 am

I have had a Kindle for about three years, since getting it I don't believe I've bought a physical book. My reading picked up considerably after my retirement, starting with re-reading old favorites starting with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

I browse Amazon for kindle books, including their recommendatins, editor's picks and top sellers. Then I sample whatever grabs my interest, which changes constantly. Current interests include detective fiction, U.S. frontier history, travel, and occasionaly something on investing.
"Everything should be as simple as it is, but not simpler." - Albert Einstein | Wiki article link:Getting Started

letsgobobby
Posts: 11272
Joined: Fri Sep 18, 2009 1:10 am

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by letsgobobby » Wed May 15, 2013 12:25 pm

This was a great idea for a thread, thanks for initiating. Now instead of lists of books I need to read, I have lists of lists of books I need to read...

User avatar
bengal22
Posts: 1396
Joined: Sat Dec 03, 2011 6:20 pm
Location: Ohio

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by bengal22 » Wed May 15, 2013 12:44 pm

jeffyscott wrote:I've been going through the Modern Library "board's list" of 100 best novels:

http://www.modernlibrary.com/top-100/100-best-novels/

In some cases this has led to reading more works by one of the authors.

Recently ran across this list of "books everyone should read". I've saved a copy of the google spreadsheet linked there and plan to use this to find things next:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog ... s-read-100
OK, you got to tell us what you thought of Joyce's Finnigan's Wake.
"Earn All You Can; Give All You Can; Save All You Can." .... John Wesley

af895
Posts: 116
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2012 10:15 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by af895 » Wed May 15, 2013 1:16 pm

I don't read much fiction but of the non-fiction I read, I start with books that are cited in books I'm currently reading. I also look for reading lists of authors of those books. (William Bernstein etc).

I started a thread over on the Canadian counterpart to Bogleheads and asked the good folks there for opinions on what direction my reading list should take: http://www.financialwebring.org/forum/v ... 1&t=115831
Last edited by af895 on Wed May 15, 2013 1:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Blues
Posts: 1635
Joined: Wed Dec 10, 2008 11:58 am
Location: Blue Ridge Mtns

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by Blues » Wed May 15, 2013 1:21 pm

I have eclectic tastes so I try to rotate the various genres between current and past classics of literature, history and non-fiction, mysteries and police procedurals etc, etc. I get my ideas for what to read next from a variety of online sites and discussions as well as bibliographies and various library listings.

Reading is fundamental. 8-)
“Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” - Sun Tzu | "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." - Mike Tyson

User avatar
jeffyscott
Posts: 6878
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:12 am
Location: Wisconsin

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by jeffyscott » Wed May 15, 2013 5:35 pm

bengal22 wrote:OK, you got to tell us what you thought of Joyce's Finnigan's Wake.
I've not read that yet, actually (whew, dodged that one, good thing you didn't ask about Ulysses or Becket's trilogy, Molloy, Malone Dies, The Unnamable).
press on, regardless - John C. Bogle

vveat
Posts: 260
Joined: Sat Dec 24, 2011 3:24 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by vveat » Wed May 15, 2013 6:36 pm

I use a few different methods to come up with new titles to explore:
- book reviews or comments in blogs I frequent
- half an hour each week browsing at the library shelves (while my daughter is listening to storytime in the kids section)
- random searches on Amazon, jumping from review to review
- husband and I have a weekly "date" night which more often than not we spend browsing at Barnes and Noble (yes, geeky, I know, but we live in a relatively rural area and do not like dining out:-) - the social science section usually yields something good

And I also tend to read everything from authors I "discover". A year and a half ago I stumbled upon urban fantasy, which now account for some 70-100 books in my home library (Ilona Andrews and the like).

Regretfully most of my friends and do not have the same literary preferences as me, neither do they read as much as I do, so I cannot rely on their recommendations. Otherwise this would be a terrific option.

User avatar
bengal22
Posts: 1396
Joined: Sat Dec 03, 2011 6:20 pm
Location: Ohio

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by bengal22 » Wed May 15, 2013 7:37 pm

jeffyscott wrote:
bengal22 wrote:OK, you got to tell us what you thought of Joyce's Finnigan's Wake.
I've not read that yet, actually (whew, dodged that one, good thing you didn't ask about Ulysses or Becket's trilogy, Molloy, Malone Dies, The Unnamable).
I don't think anyone has read Finnigan's Wake. I read Ulysses but I had to do it in a Joyce class where the prof explained all the allusions, metaphors, and humor.
"Earn All You Can; Give All You Can; Save All You Can." .... John Wesley

wacobay
Posts: 51
Joined: Fri Jun 11, 2010 2:53 am

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by wacobay » Wed May 15, 2013 8:48 pm

I primarily read history and biography, not surprising I guess given that I was a student and teacher of history for forty years. I also like books on psychology, philosophy and science. I get my ideas mainly from book reviews in the magazines and websites I read and from my local library, which has a new books section. O.K I also "geekily" browse around Barnes and Noble too. :D

User avatar
manyness
Posts: 27
Joined: Thu May 09, 2013 1:33 am

paper not kindle

Post by manyness » Sat May 18, 2013 12:33 am

Is there no recommendation engine for books? I'm NOT amused at amazon's recommendation "service". I use jinni for TV.

http://jinni.com -- for TV and movies 'better' than netflix. Yes, I have netflix but I watch the actual-hd they NEVER deliver via usenet.
[ nosce te ipsum. (know thyself) ] ||| [ Be overcome by justice. Pursue honor. Be prudent. Find fault with no one. Deal kindly with everyone. Never tire of learning. ] ||| [ Long for wisdom ]

Lacrocious
Posts: 310
Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:45 pm
Location: Wisconsin

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by Lacrocious » Sun May 26, 2013 9:04 pm

My wife and I have been tracking books we read via GoodReads.com. You can make lists of books "to read" and track that way if you want. Alternately, I have gotten more into fictfact.com - which tracks series - and gives you updates when new books are released in series that you are tracking and shows you a list of the "next book" to read in each series you are watching. Neither Goodreads or FictFact are comprehensive for what I want, but combined - they work. FictFact doesn't track books by an author that are not part of a series. GoodReads doesn't give you the series tracking. Together, they help.

- L

User avatar
manyness
Posts: 27
Joined: Thu May 09, 2013 1:33 am

hooray paper books

Post by manyness » Thu Jun 20, 2013 2:57 pm

Lacrocious wrote:GoodReads.com, fictfact.com
thank you for sharing those
- L
P.S. you need not sign forum messages as your name is already attached to them ;)
[ nosce te ipsum. (know thyself) ] ||| [ Be overcome by justice. Pursue honor. Be prudent. Find fault with no one. Deal kindly with everyone. Never tire of learning. ] ||| [ Long for wisdom ]

Default User BR
Posts: 7501
Joined: Mon Dec 17, 2007 7:32 pm

Re: hooray paper books

Post by Default User BR » Thu Jun 20, 2013 5:03 pm

manyness wrote:
Lacrocious wrote:
- L
P.S. you need not sign forum messages as your name is already attached to them ;)
What? Many people sign their posts, especially when their user name is not what they want to sign.


Brian (see?)

david99
Posts: 607
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2007 11:56 am

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by david99 » Fri Jun 21, 2013 1:30 pm

I read articles on the internet such as on the New York Times and then I get the book through the library. I usually read nonfiction.

nonnie
Posts: 1943
Joined: Thu Mar 13, 2008 8:05 pm
Location: Northern California

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by nonnie » Thu Jul 04, 2013 4:19 pm

bertilak wrote:I love mystery/detective books.
Since you're the second one to mention mystery/detective--that's 75% of what I read- I'm going to share a few of my favorites. Thanks for the tips on this thread; for other mystery novels I tend to take the recommendations of my favorite authors- below. I tend not to like the gruesome thrillers, can even be found reading "cozy genre" (Cozies don't usually involve a lot of gory details)
http://www.cozy-mystery.com/

Other resrouces:
http://www.mysterylovescompany.com/centurylist.htm
http://www.mysteryreaders.org/macavity.html

Other favorites:

My all-time favorite author for any genre is *Barry Eisler* He's former CIA, will turn 50 next year and he's a huge proponent of self-publishing and has gotten back all of his novels from original publisher and renamed them. He writes thrillers so well I make an exception and read the gruesome parts really fast :-)
http://www.barryeisler.com/

Robert Crais--wonderfully written and with humor
http://www.robertcrais.com/

Michael Connelly
http://www.michaelconnelly.com/

James Lee Burke- an old favorite but he's getting darker and darker with each book
http://www.jamesleeburke.com/

Nonnie
This post may be monitored for quality assurance purposes.

MP173
Posts: 1875
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:03 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by MP173 » Sun Jul 07, 2013 4:23 pm

nonnie:

I read many of the same authors as you...Crais, Connelly, Burke (love all three) and some others....have you tried the other Connelly (John...his books are really dark, but well worth the effort). One of my favorites is Lawrence Block.

My book selections tend to fall into several categories:
1. Favorite mystery writers (see above). Once I find a good author (or series as I like to get to know the characters such as Harry Bosch) I tend to read most if not all of those books written.
2. Books on finance and business.
3. Books on hobbies I enjoy (railroad history such as Klein's works on Union Pacific or Rush Lovings' "The Men Who Loved Trains")
4. Political books (Robert Caro's work on LBJ, Ron Paul, etc. One book I couldn't finish was Bill Clinton's "My Life").
5. Sports books that detail a certain team or period of time (such as John Feinstein's books...my favorite is "The Last Amateurs" on the Patriot League).
6. "Heavy books" which deal with major issues. My favorite of this group is Neil Shesham's "A Bright Shining Lie"...absolutely a great book looking at Viet Nam thru one man's life - John Paul Vann.
7. Biographies of interesting people (other than Bill Clinton's "My Life").

The local library offers a great selection. The "What book are you reading" thread is a great resource for me.
Ed

eucalyptus
Posts: 578
Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:24 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by eucalyptus » Sun Jul 07, 2013 4:59 pm

- Magazine reviews, often Atlantic, Economist, Scientific American

- New book by a favorite author

- New book in an area of personal interest

- Barnes & Noble browsing (hope they stay in business)

nonnie
Posts: 1943
Joined: Thu Mar 13, 2008 8:05 pm
Location: Northern California

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by nonnie » Sun Jul 07, 2013 5:13 pm

MP173 wrote:nonnie:

I read many of the same authors as you...Crais, Connelly, Burke (love all three) and some others....have you tried the other Connelly (John...his books are really dark, but well worth the effort). One of my favorites is Lawrence Block.
I've picked up John Connelly books, started reading them, and then figured out I picked them up by mistake -- they're not Michael. They don't do much for me at first glance. I used to really love Block esp. the Matthew Scudder and Bernie Rhodenbarr books. The last one I read , "Getting Off: A Novel of Sex and Violence"- was more soft porn that mystery.

I subscribe to B&Ns: books@bookgorilla.com for tips on e-books. There's a similar Amazon site. I read "real" books during the day, e-books in bed when I can't sleep at night or to lull me to sleep because I find it much easier to wrassle with a tablet than book in bed.

Nonnie
This post may be monitored for quality assurance purposes.

MP173
Posts: 1875
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:03 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by MP173 » Sun Jul 07, 2013 9:40 pm

"Getting Off" was a bit of a departure for Block. I was a little puzzled...but the motives for the killings was a bit unusual. Try the Keller series (about the for hire killer)...excellent.
John Connolly is an excellent novelist, but it gets really really dark. I swear that every time one of his books was finished, my declaration was "never again" only to pickup another one later. He is very good.

Have you tried John Sandford? Greg Isles? Lee Child? All are excellent.

Ed

nonnie
Posts: 1943
Joined: Thu Mar 13, 2008 8:05 pm
Location: Northern California

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by nonnie » Mon Jul 08, 2013 1:14 pm

MP173 wrote: Try the Keller series (about the for hire killer)...excellent.

John Connolly is an excellent novelist, but it gets really really dark. I swear that every time one of his books was finished, my declaration was "never again" only to pickup another one later. He is very good.

Have you tried John Sandford? Greg Isles? Lee Child? All are excellent.

Ed
I've read all the Keller books and love them. I'm just afraid he's going to stop writing them. Maybe I'll try Connolly but I'm at a stage in life where "dark" is NOT what I want. I've read all of Sandford's books; I recently discovered Lee Child (strangely enough it was from a critical review of David Baldacci's [another author I like] "The Hit" which said, "In his Puller books, Baldacci shamelessly steals from Jack Reacher." I didn't find that true and I enjoy Lee Child but it's more something to read when I want to be totally distracted and brain dead. I'll have to look into Greg Isles. I'm really picky about the mysteries I read-- only American and only contemporary--strange, eh?

Nonnie-- PS--Interestingly enough, I just got a B&N email reminding me that Sanford's new Virgil Flower novel will be released 10/1. I'm receiving promo notices earlier and earlier sometimes even before it shows up on my library's "ordered and in process" list.
This post may be monitored for quality assurance purposes.

MP173
Posts: 1875
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:03 pm

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by MP173 » Mon Jul 08, 2013 5:56 pm

I am with you in that I like American and contemporary.

Try Greg Isles. Most of his are set in Mississippi. I enjoy regional novels in that it gives me a feel for the area. James Lee Burke's novels paint quite a picture of Louisiana, don't they?

I believe Block is finish with Keller, based on the last one I read "Hit and Run" as he "retired" to New Orleans.

Did you ever read any John McDonald series of Travis McGee? Granted it is not contemporary (set in the 60's/70s) but these were excellent.

Ed

nonnie
Posts: 1943
Joined: Thu Mar 13, 2008 8:05 pm
Location: Northern California

Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?

Post by nonnie » Mon Jul 08, 2013 6:42 pm

MP173 wrote:I am with you in that I like American and contemporary.

Ed
I'm surprised a moderator hasn't kicked us out of this topic and/or moved us to:
Re: Method of Selecting: What Book are you reading now?.

I've responded to your post here:

http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/posting ... &p=1744445

Nonnie
This post may be monitored for quality assurance purposes.

Post Reply
https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=116144&newpost=1691612
www.bogleheads.org
crawl=CC-MAIN-2018-26
115984
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:JZI6L3YRIWRODKNL755DUKXFQNH2FBDD
<urn:uuid:44f2327e-ac37-4d95-99f5-2910460c0cd3>
2018-06-22T11:31:17Z
66.209.71.244
text/html
sha1:RKOFZK6KLDNDMGJ47FVBKKIUECUCIVHF
<urn:uuid:2bf989dc-8007-4467-81f2-1c835031b763>
https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=116144&newpost=1691612
response
<urn:uuid:6a52dedd-063f-45af-bbec-ee00d78add79>
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-109-239-82.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-26
operator: Common Crawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for June 2018
publisher: Common Crawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf