One of my goals for 2019 is to really focus on reading the backlist books on my shelves and kindle and I've been doing really well at it. In fact, it and my goal to read more new-to-me authors this year have kind of merged and allowed me to read more. And it has been glorious!
I'm in the middle of binge reading the Elder Races series by Thea Harrison and it and the other reading I've done has gotten me thinking. For the past several years, I really focused on reading almost exclusively new releases which had me requesting ARCs like mad. Don't get me wrong. I read so many great books but I'm wondering if that didn't play a part in what caused the Great Reading Slump of 2019. Not only did I stress myself out trying to read all my ARCs but did my fear of missing out on all the new books cause me to really miss out on some truly glorious older novels?
I'm in the middle of binge reading the Elder Races series by Thea Harrison and it and the other reading I've done has gotten me thinking. For the past several years, I really focused on reading almost exclusively new releases which had me requesting ARCs like mad. Don't get me wrong. I read so many great books but I'm wondering if that didn't play a part in what caused the Great Reading Slump of 2019. Not only did I stress myself out trying to read all my ARCs but did my fear of missing out on all the new books cause me to really miss out on some truly glorious older novels?
The answer would be yes. Over the past six months or so, I've been making it a point to read some of the older books I've had on my shelves and kindle for a while and I keep wanting to kick my past self for waiting so long on some of these books. I've read so many great ones and it has motivated me to read like nothing else has the last couple of years. I never really questioned my review/for me reading balance before but after seeing my successful reading year so far I think I need to.
Discovering these older books has been great but also sad at the same time. I've been missing out on these fantastic stories for years. Years I've missed out on being part of the fandoms and pushing them on my friends. And it just makes me sad. Especially with the ones I've adored like Carry On.
Don't get me wrong. There's nothing wrong with waiting to read a book. I can't physically read every book I want to read the day it comes out as much as I want to. And there's some definite perks to waiting so long to read something. First off, the book is usually significantly cheaper if it's been out for a while. Two, there's no annoying wait for the next book in the series unless you get caught up in an ongoing one. Three, there's more discerning reviews out so I'm less likely to fall into the hype trap and actually enjoy the book. A lot of books get so much positive buzz when they first come out that I can never get a good idea if I'll really like them or not.
I guess I need to figure out what the perfect ratio of new releases to backlist books is for my reading life. As much is it irks me that I've missed out on some really awesome books for years, I'm so glad I was able to read them and add them to my list of favorites. Some days the phrase "So many books. So little time." is really depressing. I just hope what ever ratio I choose will help cut back on the number of books I'll regret missing out on.
How about you? Do you read a lot of new releases and ignore backlist titles? Or are you someone who reads mostly backlist books? Do you ever feel like you're missing out on awesome books?
Discovering these older books has been great but also sad at the same time. I've been missing out on these fantastic stories for years. Years I've missed out on being part of the fandoms and pushing them on my friends. And it just makes me sad. Especially with the ones I've adored like Carry On.
Don't get me wrong. There's nothing wrong with waiting to read a book. I can't physically read every book I want to read the day it comes out as much as I want to. And there's some definite perks to waiting so long to read something. First off, the book is usually significantly cheaper if it's been out for a while. Two, there's no annoying wait for the next book in the series unless you get caught up in an ongoing one. Three, there's more discerning reviews out so I'm less likely to fall into the hype trap and actually enjoy the book. A lot of books get so much positive buzz when they first come out that I can never get a good idea if I'll really like them or not.
I guess I need to figure out what the perfect ratio of new releases to backlist books is for my reading life. As much is it irks me that I've missed out on some really awesome books for years, I'm so glad I was able to read them and add them to my list of favorites. Some days the phrase "So many books. So little time." is really depressing. I just hope what ever ratio I choose will help cut back on the number of books I'll regret missing out on.
How about you? Do you read a lot of new releases and ignore backlist titles? Or are you someone who reads mostly backlist books? Do you ever feel like you're missing out on awesome books?
We’re participating in the 2019 Discussion Challenge hosted by It Starts at Midnight and Feed Your Fiction Addiction. Check out all the April Discussions!
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