Are your book choices influenced by friends and family? Do their recommendations carry weight for you? Or do you choose your books solely by what you want to read?
Definitely influenced by the folks around me. I’ve read some books just on a recommendation from someone I’ve met in passing or at school/work and never seen again. Surprisingly, I’ve read more that I like rather than dislike from such encounters. I will always read what I want to, if a recommendation doesn’t look or sound like something I would read/like (as in, very far out of my tastes) then, on occasion, I will skip it, but such happenings have been pretty rare.
The best suggestions are when you’re standing in front of a bookshelf at the library and someone comments that you are borrowing their favorite book. They do a much better job of capturing your interest and sharing the excitement of the read than the dust jacket or the back flap. I think my most favorite discovery was the Mary Russell books by Laurie R. King. A friend recommended them, knowing I was a dedicated Sherlock Holmes fan and from the Beekeeper’s Apprentice, I was hooked! They still rank somewhere along the top with my classic favorites. ^_^
Cheers!
