That's not true, I'm kicking 2013's ass. I own 2013! I making it my servant (originally typed "making it my bitch," then seriously spent five minutes debating the gender politics of it, erased it, then gave up on the joke. As you can tell.)
Moving on.
So anyway, I've turned my reading life into a kind of experiment/survey for retrospective viewing for 2013. I am going to read whatever I want, since I'm no longer a book seller and don't really have to read every new big thing in order to have an opinion on it. The survey part is that I'm going to take note of where I bought the book and/or why I'm reading it. Was it recommended by a friend, someone on Twitter, sent to me by a publisher, caught my eye via a review in the New York Times (yeah, right) shoved down my throat on any number of social media outlets until I finally caved, etc.
I got the idea from this Verso presentation on book-buying behavior (seriously, check it out if you're into powerpoints because it's interesting), but I feel like their data doesn't really apply to me. Their "avid" reader is someone who buys ten books a year.
I buy ten books A TRIP. So. I need my own survey. I don't know that this information will be interesting to anyone, but I thought it would be nice to see where an ACTUAL avid reader gets recommendations.
Carry on, internet.
Sounds fun! I look forward to reading more about your adventure. And, I, too, love a good graph/chart/piece of data.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds really cool! I look forward to you posting on your findings.
ReplyDelete(10 books a year?! Are they just counting the moms that finished twilight and jumped into 50 shades?)
This sounds really fun -- looking forward to hearing more about your book-finding adventures!
ReplyDeleteI keep a super-nerdy excel spreadsheet in which I track my reading, so I fully support this.
10 books a year makes you an avid reader??!!! That's not even a book a month.What does that make people like us then?
ReplyDelete10 books a year. Heh.
ReplyDeleteWE ARE READING SUPERHEROES, THEN.
I started kind of doing this too, when I realized that Goodreads has a spot to put "recommended by" or something like that. Super interesting.
ReplyDeleteThere is no way I only bought 10 books last year. Maybe 10 books every 2 or 3 months... Now that I think about it, I'm scared to figure out how many books I bought last year. Probably enough to cover a car payment... or two.
ReplyDelete10 books? Hmm. That doesn't seem very avid to me.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious about how this experiment will unfold, can't wait to see the numbers!
LMAO 10 books a year? Are they kidding? If that's an avid reader, we are obviously superheroes with super-reading ability.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your experiment thingy! Sounds interesting.
A great idea. I have more books than I think I'll ever get to reading, and I consider myself a heavy reader. Figuring out where they all come from would be an interesting prospect.
ReplyDeleteSomeone who buys ten books a year is an avid reader? That's like calling someone who gets drunk on New Year's Eve an alcoholic!
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your results :) thank you for the interesting link!
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your results :) thank you for the interesting link!
ReplyDeleteYikes. There are people who only buy ten books a year? And they're considered avid readers? Ahem. I'm torn between being envious of their fuller wallets and feeling pity for their emptier shelves.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the experiment! :)
I'm working hard at buying less and using the library more, but I think the world would end if I could only buy 10 books per year. Post the criteria and we can all compare results at the end of the year.
ReplyDelete