A librarian in Portland told me to skip the bestseller list and I've never looked back

I was at the library downtown last month picking up a hold for some new thriller everyone was talking about. The librarian at the desk, older lady with glasses on a chain, looked at my stack and said "you know, those are picked by marketing teams, not readers." She handed me a dogeared copy of this weird little novel from 1987 I'd never heard of. Two days later I was telling everyone about it. Made me wonder how many hidden gems I've walked past. Has anyone else had a librarian or bookseller steer you totally off course into something great?

3 comments

3 Comments

susan8116d ago

Bestsellers are popular for a reason, you know, marketing teams know what people actually enjoy reading.

cameron_hernandez6915d ago

Honestly, "marketing teams know what people actually enjoy reading" hits a bit different when you think about it. It's like they're telling us what we should enjoy, not always checking if we really do. I feel for anyone who's ever been burned by a hyped-up book that just didn't land for them.

phoenix_martin4015d ago

Yeah marketing knows what sells but that doesn't mean it's good.