Book Order

[sakura-panda]

When you first discover an author that already has a bunch of non-serial books, how do you decide which books to read first or next? Do you go by publish date, popularity, of just by which blurb seems the most interesting? Something else entirely?

I stumbled over a book by Kristin Hannah and I see she already has a good size list of books and I'm wondering if I should start with the one that caught my attention (Magic Hour: A Novel), one that is popular when I google her (Firefly Lane), or try to determine which one of the others was the first one written and start there.

I'll figure something out -- leaning toward getting both of those books above since both blurbs caught my attention -- but it started me wondering what other people do when they are in a similar situation.

[jbcohen]

When you read a non series novels like you are contemplating it makes little difference which one you read first. However I typically like to back in to the books that the author has written, read the last one first and work my way backwards. I do this becuase I find that the author's writting style tends to evolve over time and gets better as time goes on. Hence the latter ones tend to be better than the older ones, thus I tend to back into them. I would typically pick up Winter Garden first.

[bluezhift]

I would tend to go to the older ones first unless the one I just finished is part of a series. In that case I'll continue and finish the current series before visiting the older works.

[Hellmark]

If it is non serialized, I just go with what ever interests me the most. Why should what everyone else likes effect what I start with, or even like? We all have different tastes, and sometimes an authors earlier works are better than their "popular" stuff.

[Anthem]

I had this problem (in extremis) when I approached Shakespeare. Eventually, I just went with what seemed the most gripping at the time (the Tragedies).

Series of books are different, obviously.

[snipenekkid]

when I bought all my paperbacks at thrift shops, used book stores, yard/garage sales or wherever I found them I never had the option of deciding the order, even with a series. Part of me thinks that was a good thing and took a lot of the pressure off reading for me. Now I feel if I can't find the ebook version of a series I will skip whatever can be read. In the past with paperbacks I didn't give it a second thought. Weird.

I say just pick a title and go don't think about it. Print the list and throw a dart, or spitball, at the list, where it sticks that is the book you read.

[mr ploppy]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

I find that the author's writting style tends to evolve over time and gets better as time goes on. Hence the latter ones tend to be better than the older ones,

Robert A. Heinlein ? L. Ron Hubbard ?

I tend to go for whatever sounds interesting at the time I'm looking for something to read.

[Maggie Leung]

Read whatever interests me most, in that order.

[snipenekkid]

Originally Posted by Maggie Leung

Read whatever interests me most, in that order.

good call...if ya like it just read it already!! haha

[Pinecone]

I organize them on my reader in the order they were written or published. But I might read them in any order.

Heinlein was mentioned. I have them ordered by order written, but read them as they move me.

[GhostHawk]

First thing I do with a new author is go to google, look up a bibliography, so I can see which one to start with, etc.

While I'm there I copy, paste into a .rtf file, and save it with the authors name, and load it onto my Jetbook. That way when I don't remember which book follows which I can go look quickly.

[sakura-panda]

Thanks for all the replies! There is so much information available immediately when I'm contemplating a new ebook, that sometimes I get caught up in it and forget to just concentrate on the books themselves.