One reason is the smell.

I really hated it too. I can only be mad at myself for reading something I knew would be garbage. The "lol maybe it was all just a goofy little writing exercise" was a genuinely insulting Shyamalan esque ending.

Okay but Emerson is a cute name, ngl

Vuong is right imo

me reading no longer human: how the FUCK did he miss the point of literature THIS BADLY?!

I like that! Giving this a try! Thank you!

They're a concentration of chaotic human creativity and love untouched by corporate optimizations

That would be even better for me!

Thank you that is so helpful. I plan on asking next time!

Coincidentally enough I just ordered the book to arrive on Tuesday, so here's hoping to start it at some point!

Sometimes I wander around and pick up whatever looks interesting, but often that gets overwhelming, and then I pick books out in advance, use the online catalog system to put them on hold, and pick them up from the hold shelf. That way I can consult my TBR list, check and see what's available, and choose a book from the comfort of my own couch.

I keep a list of interesting-sounding books that I want to read, which helps with this process. I use reviews, recommendations from friends, things I read on social media and hear about on podcasts, etc. to make my list. If the "blind date with a book" event worked well for you, I would see if the library has recommendations or book lists on their websites. Sometimes the individual library staff members recommend books, and you can figure out whose taste tends to jibe with yours.

I think CH read Twilight and then "headboard destroyed during sex? 😳😳 write that down write that down"

That’s cheating, it’s the size of a small book in of itself(for those who don’t know, it’s like 300 pages, or 9 hours on audiobook). It is awesome though.

I loved the Norton Abridged anthology translation, which is by Burton Raffel; but when I got the Gutenberg I did end up stalling. Maybe after I tackle everything else I'll go back.

wait until you hear about her daughter Emerson DORY Kincaid

Yup, same to me. The article quotes someone complimenting the smell: "It’s the smell that seduces me. Like incense." (It turns out there's a good reason, the lignin in paper produces vanilla-like compounds when it decomposes.)

I'm from East Texas, and their libraries smelled like that when I was a kid. They had air conditioning by that time but it was recent enough that the "biblichor" (if I can coin the word - see "petrichor") persisted. Incense, yes.

I check Pinterest, BookBub, GoodReads, friends, etc for suggestions to add to my To Read list on GoodReads. When I go to the library I change the list to sort a different way (By author alphabetically starting with Z for for one visit, by title starting with A the next visit, etc) and then I wander the stacks in order and pick the first 2 or 3 I find. I call it my "semi-organized" scavenger hunt.

Yes, shallow is a great way to describe it!

I second this. I’ve found a lot of great books from the new section. I also ask a librarian I know I have similar reading taste to what she’s been reading lately.

Exactly. The second part is astounding.

Nope. I read The Fountainhead completely on the John reading about 7-10 pages a day. It took forever, but ya know...gotta read something trashy while pooping.

I really liked Tobias Smollett's translation. It has just the right archaic feel to it, not surprising because he lived in the 18th century.

What's great is when a sleazy publisher announces they're having some interns re-write a classic author's work, you can buy the used books instead of the 16 volume special edition which they just happened to have ready to announce within a day or two of raising an uproar and generating loads of publicity and FOMO.

But seriously, I love used book stores. It's so fun to find something out of print or with a really interesting cover or, just different from what you see among the new books.

It's both a shame that used bookstores have been dying off, and a blessing. Mainly because every shlock genre book that fails on Kindle is a print run that spared a copse of trees.

My personal comparison:

Online Bookstore: Hard to find, niche, targeted purchases.
Ie. I need a reference book on 12th century Persian woodwork. I also heard about a fiction novel with a giant spider as the protagonist through a forum and its only print on demand, damn it, not that I can fault them because being your own publisher sucks. Oooh, what's this, now...? Erotic Klingon Verses... Why? Eh, why not?

First Run Bookstore: Purposeful, general, targeted purchases.
Ie. I want a dessert ideas cookbook.

Used Bookstore: Book Pathfinding and browsing.
Ie. If you find one copy of a well-read book, it has promise; if you find 20 copies of a rarely read book, you've found a stinker. Plus, frugality or bulk purchasing perks...

Library: Entertainment discovery and research at a leisurely pace.
Ie. I need a dictionary. Check that, all of the dictionaries. And topo maps. And microfiche, probably, because that local history research I want to do predates the Internet. Wait, they got a laser cutter? Damn, there goes my afternoon...

I think the fact that it's probably impossible to make much money doing it helps make the stores better. You can't possibly approach it to get rich, you have to be doing it because you love books and sharing them with people