"a person who loves or collects books, especially as examples of fine or unusual printing, binding, or the like."
While I don't particularly care about the printing or binding of books, I think it is safe to say that I collect books based off of my three bookcases in the house, books stored in the garage, under beds, in shelves etc. There are a lot of books in our house... and those are just a fraction of what I have read!
In 2009, I read 49 books, in 2010 I read 50, in 2011 I read 63, and at this point, less than a month into the new year, I have read 5. This works out to about a book a week (though in truth it is more like a couple weeks for some books and a day or two for others, and more in summer, less during the school year etc.) All this to say, many books pass through my hands every year, and I felt like talking about how that usually occurs.
Price- Free!
If at all possible, I prefer to get my books for free. This sounds strange if I was actually collecting books, but I still feel like I collect books in that I have read them and their stories are in my mind. I don't need to have the books always in my possession... I am happy to lend out those I own, and borrow books to read, even if I plan to re-read it later.
-The Library. This is generally my primary method of getting books to read. It is free, I read fast enough to return them, and the hold system even eliminates the concern of will my book be there or not. If I am looking for a book to read, I will typically check my main library's catalog first.
- Family/ friends. My mom is the primary person in this category, though I have some friends that fall into this group too. After they are finished reading a book, if they think I will like it, they will pass it on to me to read. Still great, still free, not typically my choice, but in general good reads as the people passing me books know my tastes.
-Free Kindle books. There are not many of these, but I have downloaded and read some of the Kindle books that are free. Truth is, most of my other categories end up topping these because the books I most want to read are never the free Kindle books.
-Goodreads win. I have only successfully won twice, and tried many times, but Goodreads has book give aways all the time. I try to go on there every so often and apply for the ones that I like. It is not random drawings, but winning is based on what other books you have, if you post reviews etc. I am currently working on trying to review more of my books so that I have a better chance of winning in the future. However, like the problems with the previous two categories in free, there is very limited choice in this area too, since there are only certain books on give-aways and only a chance of winning.
Gifts- This is obviously simple, I get books that I asked for, which is fabulous and great, and typically are books off my wishlist talked about below.
Price- pay
- Kindle- If there is a book I want to read, like a book from one of my favorite authors or a sequel in a series I am reading, I will first check the library. If they don't have it, or have a huge list of holds on it, my next stop is looking to see if it is available for the Kindle. I find that the Kindle book prices are usually less than the hardback copies.
- Gift cards- Although I wish it weren't so, there are books that the library doesn't have or has tons of holds on, AND are not available in the Kindle format. These tend to be the more obscure books, like my transracial adoption books or Ghana related books that I am reading lately. As I find out about these, they go on my amazon wish list (because amazon tends to have every book I ever think of wanting). Then, when I periodically get gift cards for a book store, or sometimes just stores that sell books (like Target) I buy up these books off my list, and slowly pick away at it, and keep my list updated as my interests change and there are books I no longer desire.
- Ebay- If there is a book that somehow doesn't apply to any of the following, and I want it before I get more giftcards, then my last resort is ebay. Even with shipping, I find that it is cheaper than paying full price anywhere.
So, I get books in a variety of ways, and am able to keep my desire for exciting books to read filled with limited cost to me.
While I don't particularly care about the printing or binding of books, I think it is safe to say that I collect books based off of my three bookcases in the house, books stored in the garage, under beds, in shelves etc. There are a lot of books in our house... and those are just a fraction of what I have read!
In 2009, I read 49 books, in 2010 I read 50, in 2011 I read 63, and at this point, less than a month into the new year, I have read 5. This works out to about a book a week (though in truth it is more like a couple weeks for some books and a day or two for others, and more in summer, less during the school year etc.) All this to say, many books pass through my hands every year, and I felt like talking about how that usually occurs.
Price- Free!
If at all possible, I prefer to get my books for free. This sounds strange if I was actually collecting books, but I still feel like I collect books in that I have read them and their stories are in my mind. I don't need to have the books always in my possession... I am happy to lend out those I own, and borrow books to read, even if I plan to re-read it later.
-The Library. This is generally my primary method of getting books to read. It is free, I read fast enough to return them, and the hold system even eliminates the concern of will my book be there or not. If I am looking for a book to read, I will typically check my main library's catalog first.
- Family/ friends. My mom is the primary person in this category, though I have some friends that fall into this group too. After they are finished reading a book, if they think I will like it, they will pass it on to me to read. Still great, still free, not typically my choice, but in general good reads as the people passing me books know my tastes.
-Free Kindle books. There are not many of these, but I have downloaded and read some of the Kindle books that are free. Truth is, most of my other categories end up topping these because the books I most want to read are never the free Kindle books.
-Goodreads win. I have only successfully won twice, and tried many times, but Goodreads has book give aways all the time. I try to go on there every so often and apply for the ones that I like. It is not random drawings, but winning is based on what other books you have, if you post reviews etc. I am currently working on trying to review more of my books so that I have a better chance of winning in the future. However, like the problems with the previous two categories in free, there is very limited choice in this area too, since there are only certain books on give-aways and only a chance of winning.
Gifts- This is obviously simple, I get books that I asked for, which is fabulous and great, and typically are books off my wishlist talked about below.
Price- pay
- Kindle- If there is a book I want to read, like a book from one of my favorite authors or a sequel in a series I am reading, I will first check the library. If they don't have it, or have a huge list of holds on it, my next stop is looking to see if it is available for the Kindle. I find that the Kindle book prices are usually less than the hardback copies.
- Gift cards- Although I wish it weren't so, there are books that the library doesn't have or has tons of holds on, AND are not available in the Kindle format. These tend to be the more obscure books, like my transracial adoption books or Ghana related books that I am reading lately. As I find out about these, they go on my amazon wish list (because amazon tends to have every book I ever think of wanting). Then, when I periodically get gift cards for a book store, or sometimes just stores that sell books (like Target) I buy up these books off my list, and slowly pick away at it, and keep my list updated as my interests change and there are books I no longer desire.
- Ebay- If there is a book that somehow doesn't apply to any of the following, and I want it before I get more giftcards, then my last resort is ebay. Even with shipping, I find that it is cheaper than paying full price anywhere.
So, I get books in a variety of ways, and am able to keep my desire for exciting books to read filled with limited cost to me.
No comments:
Post a Comment