What is your single most common method of book discovery?

[Thasaidon]

I chose "other" because I always have an eye out for books in my genre (SF) which I have not read and which appeal to me. I have read so much that I know many authors writing in the area and I have met many at SF conventions.

Other than that al of the above applies.

[RiverY]

I choose "Personal friend/family member recommends it to me". One friend in particular for the past 30 years has been trading books back and forth with me. It helps that she works for a library.

But from there I go to....
On-line forums, favorite author web sites, and often I will hear an author interview on NPR that will also introduce me to new authors.

[Harmon]

I voted "other" because I don't actually have any "method." I don't find books so much as they seem to find me.

Many of the books I read are ones I discovered while looking for other books. I might start out from any one of the sources listed in the poll, but wind up using another source when I actually find a book.

A review in a magazine might send me to the used bookstore, where I don't find that book, but I do see another book which interests me but I check the reviews on Amazon and see that the author has another book which interests me more, so I buy that one. Often, one book just leads to another, whether by author or topic.

[AprilHare]

To be honest, I don't often remember how I find books.
I found "The Hobbit" from a bargain bin of adult audio books - when I was around 10 years of age. And no, I never normally listen to audio books, and it took a lot of convincing to get my mother to buy it - it was in a adult audio book bin after all!
No idea what drew me to it even today. This was many years before the movies were even contemplated.
It took a long time to get a copy in paperback (one of the tapes wore out in the interim), and many years before I got The Lord of the Rings (as a gift; much begging was needed). I don't know how I found out about tLotR - not from the movies, certainly.
Nowadays I accept recommendations from individuals, media, accidental findings, books on a theme and general good luck. There is no #1 method.

[6charlong]

I listed “other.” My best source is book reviews on NPR (radio wasn’t listed as an option on the survey) because they go into some depth and often include an interview with the author and they send me a list of recommendations via eMail every week. I also get some very good recommendations through my book club. Once a year the members each provide a list recommendations for the club to read next year although that may be listed under recommendations from friends. And the New York Times has given me some really good ideas. I’ve gotta quit. I actually use every one of the methods on your list. Plus the ones mentioned here that aren’t on the list. The biggest weakness in my search is the problem of finding indie authors. Amazon helps some with that as does the B&N book clubs or take my Nook to B&N and browse until I find a likely one then get a coffee and download the sample and buy it if it holds up. There's more but I really gotta quit.

My method of finding a good book has resulted in my getting an awful lot of books in my lifetime.

[xg4bx]

usually just amazon recommendations but i've picked up a few recommendations here and i also keep an eye on what others are reading/new releases from publishers on facebook.

[Apache]

I use every method available to me to find and choose books to read.
Apache

[bevdeforges]

I guess I have to go with "other" too. I don't seem to have a consistent method of finding books for my "wish list" - which I then track until the price comes down.

Various methods I've used in the recent past:

- book reviews in "non-traditional" sources (like The Economist, Guardian Weekly)
- short and long lists for Man Booker Prize, Orange Prize, and sometimes even the Pulitzer Prize winners
- interesting author appearing on The Daily Show or sometimes even on France24 in English
- interesting sounding book that has been made into a film (I usually prefer the book over the film anyhow)
- scanning various categories on Kobo or Sony store sites

[ekster]

I would have to say my best friend is at the top of the list. Our tastes are practically the same so we always trade titles that we find. After that, I usually try to find discussions/lists of specific genres and sub-genres (for example, recently it has been military sci-fi) and go with whatever sounds interesting.

[Perplexed1]

I receive online newsletters from book sellers, including specialist book stores each month. I read the reviews they provide, especially of my favourite authors and then select books from those lists.

[solitarywolf]

Usually when I am reading, something in the current book inspires research and that ends with a new book and a new direction for me. I may be discussing a classic I am reading with a friend and that discussion leads me to the next adventure. I am very random with my reading, but usually within the same genre.

[jocampo]

I really like Amazon's website, its book's recommendations and the rating system.

The books I buy are usually computer books, so I type the keyword and hit the "search" button. It immediately shows most recent or popular books on that topic and I've found new and nice books that way.