You should have said "here's why I don't like Asimov's Foundation."

Because that's what you're saying. There's no objective standard for good lit.

I think it's at least partly because it's a collectively created monument to a shared truth:

We cannot afford to fully fund our reading addiction alone.

Libraries support this as well, but used bookstores are special, because each is filled with books that have been loved and are now being passed on with greatest possible care.

So I'm not sure about putting this up against Dostoevsky or some of the beautiful writing of Nabokov for instance, but there's a chapter towards the end of The Peripheral by William Gibson that I've always respected which is just a conversation between two characters - but what I love is that it's direct dialogue (between speech marks, line by line) but with no need for indicators of who is speaking (e.g. X said... Y replied). He doesn't even introduce who is talking. You just get the dialogue alone.

It's just not necessary by that point to say who it is because he's developed the voices of the two characters so well that you instantly know, and the context is clear too.

I just always felt that it was evidence of a writer who had made the effort to make distinct characters with clear voices - you had really got to know these people. A bit of a writerly flex too I guess.

It’s the books.

Yes I just have a to-read list on Goodreads and pick from those. I mainly use digital titles so I can have a wait list and just read whatever comes available.

Having read it twice, I would say a few chapters a day is adequate, otherwise it does get a tad tedious. Keep on trucking with it 💪 Just know Part 2 is very different to part 1, and you’ll smash it

Just pull random things off the shelf and check out whatever sounds interesting

Honestly, I just wander the stacks and grab anything with an interesting-looking title, cover, and blurb. It's the library; if I end up not liking it, I don't finish and return it early and have lost absolutely nothing.

I felt the same way. What I do now is check out the "new" section first. I pretty much always find something there. If I don't see anything im interested in, I'll start going through my "to read" list on good reads and pick the first book that's available there.

We have one in Penticton, BC, Canada called the Book Shop that is labyrinthine.. its my go to place when I feel out of place or misaligned with life and the world.

Cheap hardcovers. We've got a Half Price Books in town and you can often find hardcovers in fantastic shape for $8.

I just tell the librarian the last couple of books I’ve enjoyed always get something interesting

Agreed. Occasionally I purge my bookshelf and try to sell the books at my local used bookstore. They always say, "We are pretty overflowing with books right now, so we aren't looking for anything new, but we'll take a look anyway while you go browse our shelves."

After about 10 minutes, I go back. I am always lucky if they take about half the books. Sometimes I'm bewildered by what they choose and what they reject ("just because you BOUGHT the book here doesn't mean we'll buy it back!"). But that's the reason the shelves are full of treasure.

Once I ordered a new book through them (Les Chants de Maldoror), a service they also provide. A few months later I saw a few copies on the New shelf. "Oh yeah, sometimes we do decide to stock books our customers order, if we see them and like them. Or maybe a bunch of other people besides you started ordering it."

The curation is the best part.

I always recommend checking in with one of the librarians for any tips they might have. In addition to being amazing people, they’re also a great resource for suggestions and recommendations.

When I see a book I want to read I write it down in a little scratch notebook I keep with me, then when it’s time to pick my next book I choose from there.

When I initially started using Goodreads it was great for recommending books similar to books I already enjoyed. Now I mostly read books my book club has picked, books by authors I already know and like, or other books suggested by friends or Reddit.

Please be serious

>!On the “therapeutic” point about fantasizing child abuse, i think thats the point. Like it’s open ended as to whether or not she actually did those things or not.!<

For me it's the randomness. You have no idea when you walk in what you'll find or what you'll walk out with.

Is there a Colleen Hoover snark sub because I live for reviews like this after being fooled by BookTok/Good Reads too many times.

I absolutely love the smell. It’s also a nostalgia thing because my mom would frequent one nearby and would bring me along.

Nope. You do you.

Its the "choose your truth" ending for me. So stupid. Verity as a character is stupid and gross.

There is a subreddit for that! r/yearofdonquixote

Also reading the Edith Grossman translation made the experience for me. I started reading it once with the version free on Gutenberg and got nowhere fast.

The smell of lignin breaking down. So good