Navigating Through a Sea of Books: How to Decide Your Next Read

Bookstores are my happy place. For me, it’s akin to a confectionary for chocolate addicts. 

Back in 2000, I met my match when I was hired as a store associate at a massive, two-story Barnes and Noble store in Skokie, Illinois. For a year, it felt like I was in a crack house for bibliophiles. 

The best (worst) part of this experience was that as an associate, I was entitled to a store discount of 40% for each book I purchased (60% during the Christmas holiday season). And for better (or worse) they would deduct these purchases from my bi-weekly paycheck.

I was making $3.75 an hour at the time. Eventually, in doing the math, I started to realize that this was probably not the best environment for someone like me who should have been in a 12-step program for book addicts. 

Today, thanks to space limitations and my nomadic inclinations, I am a lot more thoughtful about how many books I purchase. In fact, my limit is now one book per bookstore visit. 

Admittedly, having this sort of self-control hasn’t been easy. Someone, in fact, asked me recently about what factors go into my eventual selection of a book. Here’s what I came up with:

Relevance

“Great Books, Great Minds” the digital platform I’m currently building is predicated on delivering lots of content. So while visiting the Barnes and Noble in the Sugar House District of Salt Lake City, it made sense for me (at least in my mind) to purchase the book Content, Inc by Joe Pulizzi. His advice in part is what influenced me to write this very article

Aesthetically Appealing Book Cover

I recently featured Marko Marković, Founder and Senior Art Director of Belgrade, Serbia-based 5 Media Design in an article about the importance of book covers. Here’s an example, albeit from one of my digital books.

Despite being suckered in by the cover, it sits unread on my Kindle. 

Price:

At times I’ve felt conflicted about this. Sure, I love a good deal (BookBub is da bomb for highly discounted digital books). And I have definitely downloaded my share of Kindle reads over the years. But in full disclosure I am admittedly partial to the mission of independent bookstores. This is despite the fact that they often charge full price for a book that I can get for 30-40% off at Amazon. 

Recommendations From Others

This is how I end up selecting the majority of my books. During my recent visit to the delicious Tattered Cover (McGregor Square) location in downtown Denver, I purchased two books that were recommended to me: The Personal MBA by Josh Laufman was recommended by Tyrance Billingsley of Tulsa’s “Black Tech Street.” And The Bullet Journal Method by Ryder Carroll was recommended by my good friend Khrystian Veals.

Whoops, that’s two books in one visit. I’m busted. 

Randomness

Ever have a book literally jump off the shelf in front of you while wandering through a store? It’s a common occurrence for me whenever I visit The Hermitage Bookshop in Denver’s Cherry Creek North District. That’s how I found “Lift Every Voice: The NAACP and the Making of the Civil Rights Movement,” one of my current reads 

Question: So what are the primary factors entice you to either purchase a book or pick one up from the library? Please offer your thoughts here in the comment section.