Tuesday Thingers

Published on by Margaret
Marie’s question today is:
Popular this Month on LibraryThing: Do you look at this list? Do you get ideas on what to read from it? Have you read any of the books on the list right now? Feel free to link to any reviews you’ve done as well.

Until today I’d never looked at the list so I’ve never used it at all. I haven’t read any of the books on the list, I don’t own any of them and I haven’t read anything by any of these authors. Some of them look interesting and certainly they have been reviewed many times on LT – is that the measure for their popularity or is it the number of people who’ve entered them in LT?

  1. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman – I’m tempted to read this.
  2. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron – cats and libraries, may give this one a go sometime.
  3. Nation by Terry Pratchett – I think I should maybe have a look it this.
  4. Brisingr by Christopher Paolini – I don’t think so.
  5. Anathem by Neal Stephenson – this looks interesting but I’m not sure if I’m up to reading “esoteric mathematical philosophy” as one reviewer on LT describes it.
  6. American Wife: A Novel by Curtis Sittenfeld – not for me!
  7. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer – I’ve written about my reluctance to read this one, but if I see it in the library I’ll have a look.
  8. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel by David Wroblewski – described by one LT reviewer as a “coming-of-age novel, set in rural Wisconsin”, ” a modern take on Hamlet” – tempting.
  9. Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland – I don’t think so.
  10. Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) by Stephenie Meyer – definitely not for me.

I’ve found it interesting to look at this feature but I shan’t be using it to get ideas on what to read. Reading tastes are very subjective and I prefer to choose books by reading reviews, mainly on book bloggers’s blogs and by picking up books off the shelves in lbraries and bookshops. The books on this list have varying reviews on LT anyway – some good and some not so good.

11 thoughts on “Tuesday Thingers”

  1. It’s a great feature for seeing what books are getting a lot of attention in the community, but not really for book suggestions to read.

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  2. That’s a good point – I wonder just how they decide what’s “popular” enough to go on the list. So far, I haven’t seen anyone in the “Thingers” group who’s read more than one or two of the titles. And I agree about “Eclipse” – that’s one I definitely will not be reading.

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  4. As you said, choosing books to read is very subjective, and looking at a list to see what’s popular just doesn’t appeal to me at all!

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  5. I just discovered this feature too, I probably won’t use it for recommendations because all the books on it have been featured on many other bestseller lists. But I will be checking it out every so often to see how it changes.

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  6. I think it’s fantastic that you stick with the selection process you have now. I used to be the same but then I became compulsive and now just about every book I read a review on sounds good to me, LOL. I’m out of contol.

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  7. I usually glance at those, but I’m not always tempted (I already have too many books waiting to be read). The lady who wrote the Dewey book is going to be speaking at my public library in December! Iowa, where she lived and worked, is right next to my state, otherwise we never get big authors to come give talks. I am hoping to go. Have you see photos of Dewey–cute cat!

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  8. I agree with your way of picking books, but those books do happen to be the books that I’ve heard a lot about from the blogs that I read… though I’m surprised that some titles aren’t on the list.

    Also, I highly recommend The Graveyard Book!

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  9. Hi, I just have to say that I, like you, tend to avoid the “bestsellers” and all the hype that seems to force-feed these books on us. But a friend gave me “Guernsey” guessing I would love it, and indeed I did; so do yourself a lovely favor and give it more than a glance. It is a novel written in letters, a format that I especially like as you seem to be more tuned into each of the characters, and the story is compelling enough to keep you thinking about these people long after you have gone on to another read. Let me know what you think…all I know is that I am sure this book will increase tourism to the island, and I am going to figure out a way to be one of those visitors!
    Thank you for your ever-thoughtful posts!
    Deb

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  10. Definitely don’t bother with ‘Brisingr’; it was a tremendous disappointment and ‘Anathem’ got terrible reviews on the radio programme I heard discussing it. ‘The Graveyard Book’ is waiting for me at the library. I don’t normally like Gaiman, but so many friends have praised this that i thought I ought to see what the fuss was about.

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  11. Lenore, I agree it’s not the best place to get suggestions.
    JLS I was hoping someone would know how LT decide these are the most popular books of the month.
    Wendi, there are so many features on LT but this one is a bit puzzling I think.
    Cathy, I agree it doesn’t appeal to me either.
    Joanne, I may just look at it from time to time.
    Icedream, many reviews sound good to me too but some of these particular books don’t have good reviews!
    Danielle, how interesting and I have seen the Dewey cat photos so like my own cat Lucy – very cute!
    Patti, I have heard very good things about The Graveyard Book.
    Deb, I suppose I will eventually read the Guernsey Potato book one day.
    Ann, I thought Brisingr sounded dreadful and whilst Anathem sounds interesting it also sounds rather too mathematical for me. I’ll be interested to see what you make of The Graveyard Book.

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