Before books looked more-less the same and they were sold only in book stores…
Now they are not only on your shelves as hard covers, but also in your e reader, computer, iPad and on USB.
For a nice book you no longer need put on your clothes and go the nearest bookstore. You just need internet access and a click.
At the same time the self-publishing concept has emerged. That gave the opportunity for hidden talents to become visible, but at the same time some bullshit content to come up too…
What are you looking for while starting reading a book?
What should the book be like in order to be considered as a good one?
I think that there are no right or wrong answers.
Here is my humble opinion
Joy – you have to enjoy the process of reading. You should not read because it’s a classic and most of the world tells it’s good. You should read because you enjoy it a lot. You may find a piece of treasure no one has heard about, which may become source of great joy for you.
Interest – if you get the need of jumping through few pages and/or skipping long discriptions then the book is not interesting enough and most probably is not worth the time. In best case I would just scan it fast and get to another one.
Escaping the Reality – if you are completely out of reality when you read the book and you are inside the story with all your attention then it’s the book worth sinking into.
Feelings – books are strong when they evoke feelings. You have to shiver, be afraid, feel happy and get all the feelings characters go through. You have to live the story yourself while reading.
Knowledge – each time you read you are supposed to learn something new, otherwise what’s the sense? Here I mean both – intelectual and emotional IQs.
Food for Thought – there are books, which don’t leave anything after reading and there are others, which provoke thoughts. The later ones make you grow.
Inspiration – it’s amazing how writers may make so many completely different people feel, think and learn through their writing. Each book should inspire the reader to do something special – be that follow a dream, start someting new, or just notice the how amazing the life is.
No matter how many million books are coming out each year, good quality fiction is still rare. Maybe that is why there are not too many names that are accepted, loved and read by millions even many years after they are gone.
What about you? How do you decide whether the book was good or not?
6 replies to "How to Detect Exciting and Powerful Fiction"
It depends where I am in my day/week/month and what I am going through at that time. Sometimes it is as simple as the need to escape and then been pleasantly surprized by the added value of inspiration or a different viewpoint that will cause me to look differently at where I am in my life.
Books … reading … is soulfood for me and I top my hat to every author who manages to move me.
Thank you Adi! 🙂
Hi Ani, for me a good fiction is something that transports me to the place and time of the events in the book and carries me along. Most of the time, I feel a sense of loss when such a book’s about to end…for I would be hoping it never ends so I can stay in that place and time forever…. that’s why One hundred years of solitude, Catch 22, The hunchback of Notredame, and Les Miserables are among my all time favorites..
Vinod,
I have similar experience reading a good book too.
Hi Ani,
Feelings work for me every single time, so a good fiction is one that evokes strong feelings, enabling me to live the story while reading it.
If it also is interesting enough to make me escape reality as well as gain some new knowledge, then the author has me for keeps. I buy the works of my favorite authors on faith, without bothering to even read the blurb. And yes, I have also paid dearly on occasions, for this blind faith, but very seldom:) .
I read for enjoyment and anything learnt along the way is bonus.
I feel the same way Azuka. Thanx for the comment!