Blind date with a book

Submitted by Kaisietoo8 t3_yg22cg in books

My favourite thing about bookshops is when they do 'blind dates' with books. So you buy a random book that is wrapped in paper and you have no idea what book it is until you open it. Yesterday I bought two and got The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I have read neither of these books but am super excited to start them!

Have you ever bought a book in this manner? If so, what was the book and did you enjoy it?

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Deevilknievel t1_iu6fq1z wrote

It’s a cute idea but I’d hate to end up on a date with a book Ive already read or worse something I already own but haven’t touched.

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Kaisietoo8 OP t1_iu6hm4w wrote

That's true, I was worried about doing that. The ones I bought yesterday had words on the front giving you clues as to what the book would be about. Also, they were £3 each so I thought I'd risk it as that's not too expensive for a book.

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KudosInc t1_iu879w2 wrote

When I saw this they said you could return your book if you’ve read it already

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[deleted] t1_iu8gmii wrote

[deleted]

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sasakimirai t1_iu8sb26 wrote

I got 2 books this way from a book store and they were lightly used books that employees had donated and all the money was being donated to a charity, which I think is a good way to do it.

They're all only $2 or $3 so even if it ends up being one you've already read it's not such a big deal, and you know your money is going to a good cause. And since they're books the employees owned, you know they're probably good!

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North_Bicycle9071 t1_iuahutf wrote

We used to do that with both books and dvds at our public library. Usually there would be a short description to entice you to choose it! Very fun

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DeTrotseTuinkabouter t1_iu7ikpo wrote

I reckon you can return it.

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Deevilknievel t1_iu7nd26 wrote

Yeah I’m sure it wouldn’t be a problem. And it’s not like I’ve read such a vast quantity of books that it’s even likely to happen.

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PoeticFury t1_iu6fpcm wrote

I've done a few from Etsy and it was a lot of fun. The Etsy sellers like to put a few goodies in with the book and they try really hard to get you something you've never read.

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SnowdropWorks t1_iu80a4m wrote

Can you recommend a seller on easy for this? I've been thinking of trying this for a while, but none of our local bookstores or libraries seem to do this .

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FourPat t1_iu6ilwd wrote

Never bought a book like that (except at used bookstores) but I do that often in libraries, I just pick up something totally random on the shelves (I'll check on Goodreads if it's part of a series, though, and will change to the first in the series if needed).

I'd say my success rate is about 75% liking the books, which is higher than I expected.

I often end up always reading the same authors and styles, it's great to find new things to read.

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HeleneSedai t1_iu6fhxc wrote

The Woman in White is AMAZING! What a great random pick.

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Roupert2 t1_iu7jlse wrote

Yes, awesome. Real page turner, super clever

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NobelBlues t1_iu6ngkd wrote

Came here to say this. I loved it. Count Fosco had serious panache

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CreativismUK t1_iu93rq8 wrote

Studied it at A-level… that was a great way to destroy a decent novel, just the title makes me wince now!

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Bacm88 t1_iu773ex wrote

Our library does this!! So cute and no worries off the date isn’t right… just return and try another lol

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despenser412 t1_iu6xsvi wrote

I once bought a used tablet off Amazon and it had Little Women and White Fang pdfs installed. I actually bought it for a time killer at an old job (pandora/youtube type stuff). I don't normally go for classics or digital copies but figured I bought it to kill time so might as well. What a treat. White Fang wasn't disappointing but Little Women was great! Totally lucked out on that random experience.

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palebluedotcitizen t1_iu7uiak wrote

Imagine getting Fifty Shades of Grey, the only book I've ever thrown in the trash

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BigCheeks2 t1_iu7hidm wrote

I once grabbed one of those blind date books because the description promised a whimsical fantasy adventure. On my way to the counter, I picked up a copy of "Guards! Guards!" since I had never read any Pratchett and it seemed as good a time as any to start, only to be told by a staff member that I had inadvertently ended up with two copies of the same book.

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VioletInADream t1_iu6kqm6 wrote

It's a great idea as a concept but in practice I feel like that the sheer quantity of the existing books makes the possibility of a random book being something that I really like really low.

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GoodGoodGoody t1_iu6to37 wrote

Part of the fun of reading for me is the browsing and choosing, but if you’re happy, I’m happy.

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dentarthurdents t1_iu7cdqa wrote

Oh, my local library did this for Valentine's a few years ago, and I ended up getting Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill! What a great, weird, spooky book.

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Scarlight t1_iu6h5ep wrote

I know someone who does a book box like this! You can check them out at mysticforestcrafts on instagram, if you like.

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spider-bro t1_iu6rh41 wrote

In college my GF and I did this once at the movies. Just watched a movie neither of us had heard of. It was About Schmidt and it was pleasantly surprising.

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SlightlySlapdash t1_iu7883m wrote

lol my husband and I went to the movies with my parents and we did that.

Unfortunately, we picked “Good Luck Chuck” because it was the next thing playing. All we knew was that it was a comedy. It was a tad uncomfortable, but the situation was comedic in itself.

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Juanicee_Maikooku t1_iu6t952 wrote

I received a cybercrime book "Kingdom of Lies" this way. It didn't really hold my interest, so I left it in a Little Free Library

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Aphid61 t1_iu75tt4 wrote

I've done the blind date with a book at the library a few times & loved it. The whole brown paper wrapping thing just intrigued me. 10/10 will do it again.

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Ceriii t1_iu78iq3 wrote

I have a book match-maker subscription! The book shop ask you to fill in a big form about your likes, dislikes, genres, favourite ever book, most hated book etc. They select a book they think you would love then email you the author’s name. If you have read anything by that author you email them back and tell them. They can email someone else to check your bookshelves on your behalf if you’d prefer to be totally surprised. They then send you the book in the post.

My first book is arriving at the beginning of November. I’m so excited!

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[deleted] t1_iu8vnru wrote

Not 100% blind, but I do like to just go to a section I like and randomly pick a book based on how nice the cover art looks. I don't usually buy books, so this is almost always in a library where I don't have to "pay" for a mistake. It usually works out well for fiction titles, but history and sciences are always a gamble. I've found my favorite book of all time, One Summer by Bill Bryson, using this method

Fun fact, that's also how I started playing No Man's Sky

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Kaisietoo8 OP t1_iu8xr1z wrote

Bill Bryson who wrote Notes From a Small Island? I recently bought another of his books as that was really funny.

Also, I'm looking to play No Man's Sky! Do you enjoy it?

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[deleted] t1_iu8yuva wrote

Yes, that Bill Bryson. He's a great author and till date, I haven't found a book from him I didn't enjoy - I highly recommend any and all books from him

It was like 5 years ago, but I liked it at the time. I think I got maybe 10 hours of gameplay in all. Not my favorite game though, a solid 6/10

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blueraspberryicepop t1_iu741yh wrote

The Great Gatsby is my all-time favorite book ever! Between high school, college, and 2 years of grad school, I read it about 5 or 6 times and wrote the same number of papers on it. Hope you enjoy it even half as much as I do!

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pinponpen t1_iu75gka wrote

I did that once years ago, ended up with a romance book which i didn't enjoy cause i couldn't relate. It was something about jumping back in time and has a lot of American culture and themes from the past, right down to the details.

Now that my taste in book has changed to thriller, i might try another blind date

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vonwarwick t1_iu77oxu wrote

My book was Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult and looks like this may be an overnight thing…

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SilverWord8909 t1_iu7auwe wrote

My library did this once. There was a little description like "great beach read with a margarita" or "it was a dark and stormy night" just to give you a vague feel for genre. Then you checked them out and then unwrapped. A bit silly but definitely fun.

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marconis999 t1_iu98dme wrote

Woman in White is very good. It is a little drawn out but excellent. Enjoy. I think it was a best seller when it was originally published.

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No-Owl9201 t1_iu6f21x wrote

I must admit I've never heard of it but it's a great idea!!

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TipYourDishwasher t1_iu6sasy wrote

I’d love to have a book and not know the title or author until I finish

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crazybutthole t1_iu6x8kf wrote

I did something similar at the movie theater last weekend. During dinner on a date with a girl, i told her i wanted to go to the movies. We went to the movie theater and told the girl at the counter give us the next movie starting soon no matter what genre or what movie. Doesnt matter....we'll take it. Boom. We went to the crappiest movie ever. But i got some good make out time so it worked out. 😜

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robotbunnie t1_iu7d9fo wrote

Oh em gee! Love this!!!! If my city doesn't already do something like this I'ma see how we can implement it. Eeeek! Can't wait!!!

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guineawheat t1_iu7eyzz wrote

I just signed up for a RecycleReadRepeat subscription so that could be a fun option too. Not sure what book I'll receive but I'm looking forward to it!!

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South_Honey2705 t1_iuk6fb3 wrote

I am so hooked on recyclereadrepeat I just joined the waiting list. Such fun and great prices

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iSCREAM106 t1_iu7gqzk wrote

One time i was on cross booking event. I let 5books Got 5 tickets and then i realize that most of them was coocking books or shits like mushrooms atlas -.- i catch only one Good book for my 5 So i was disapointed af

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Relevant-Biscotti-51 t1_iu7i8h7 wrote

My local library did this for Valentine's Day (and the weeks leading up to it) for a little while. It was fun!

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Jolly_Conflict t1_iu7mk0l wrote

The Strand (NYC) has a table set up with blind date books… I don’t think I’m that bold to try, but I remember the nice designs on the wrapping paper covering up the books :)

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stephodile t1_iu7rzoq wrote

They're two of my favourite books, hope you enjoy them!

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AMF786 t1_iu80zmm wrote

I read The Woman in White as a result of this blind date concept. What a coincidence!

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Kaisietoo8 OP t1_iu8gd50 wrote

Did you like it?

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AMF786 t1_iu8i5ik wrote

I liked it, but I thought the same story could have been told in half as many pages. I mean, it is not a novel of ideas (like something written by, say, Dostoevsky or Faulkner); it is a genre book. With someone like Dostoevsky or Faulkner the story is secondary to the florid language and the profound ideas, so the length doesn't matter. With a story-driven book like The Woman in White, length does matter.

It is prolix. Reading a mystery suspense book where you are still left without resolution after 500 pages can be tedious and aggravating. Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did it better.

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TieFew1759 t1_iu82po8 wrote

Good idea but one gets disappointed when it's a book that you've read several times this happened to me sometime back I got a book called 'The lord of the rings" I never enjoyed reading it

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The-pfefferminz-tea t1_iu835v2 wrote

Our book club is doing this in February! You have to bring a book you have read and know the group would enjoy, write a fun description in it and we are going to trade. Used (but still in good condition books) are highly encouraged.

I have chosen books when my library has done this and I think only once I didn’t enjoy the book.

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johnsgrove t1_iu83zl9 wrote

Both very good. You did well

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KhaleesiofNZ t1_iu85b0c wrote

I've never brought one in this manner because I'm worried I'll get something I've already read. My local library does this though, and I always gravitate towards the blind date shelf when I can't decide what else I want to read.

The last time I did this I got a book I'd never heard of called Self Care by Leigh Stein, I got straight to reading without even looking at the synopsis. I really enjoyed it because it felt super current, literally like a story that could be playing out on the news and being debated on reddit. I probably never would have issued it otherwise. The time before I ended up with Truman by David McCullouch, I like biographies but I probably wouldn't have gravitated to this one because I've found I like reading about the founding fathers and later twentieth century when it comes to U.S history. I enjoyed this one more than I thought I would, and I'm eager to read more biographies by David McCullouch soon

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notinmywheelhouse t1_iu8c1mo wrote

The Great Gatsby is the perfect American novel for the ages. Enjoy it!

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LovelyLemons53 t1_iu8eb6b wrote

Yes, I loved buying a book this way. I only did it once around Christmas last year. I think the book has the description of "sci-fi elements with fantasy, action packed, beginning of a series". It was red rising by pierce brown. I loved that book. I continued with the series.

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HermitBee t1_iu8fj98 wrote

A few years back, a friend gave my partner and I a selection of 4 books like this from a website which packages them up with a few descriptive words (so you get some feeling of what you're buying and don't get the same thing twice).

They ranged from “not very good” to “fine”. I guess it depends on whether the bookshop is trying to get readers to try new things, or whether they're just trying to get rid of the stock they can't sell...

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beautiful_secrets14 t1_iu8mc6h wrote

I’ll do this at my local library, it a great way to read new genres and discover new authors.

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Fyrentenemar t1_iu8myyd wrote

I've often bought books knowing nothing more about them than what is on the cover, but I know of no bookshops in my area that offer "blind dates."

I think that would be interesting, assuming they have a good return policy.

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anfuman t1_iu8swqn wrote

No but would love to do that..

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Whimsyblue13 t1_iu8tf5p wrote

You can also buy Blind Date with a Book on Etsy!

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droveby t1_iu8um88 wrote

You lucked out with the great gatsby. I think folks are not picking up this book much (or maybe I'm mireading things) but it's deservedly a classic. I still remember to this day, 10'ish years ago, at the last chapter literally smiling because it was written so beautifully and the power those words imparted.

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joofish t1_iu94tqt wrote

Great Gatsby is one of the most common HS English class books, so most people probably read it there

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librachick104 t1_iu8v7wi wrote

Yes! I did this at a local store and I was so excited about it! My friend’s mom works there and she told me she would tell me what the book is if she had been the one to wrap it!!! I would have been so mad if she had told me. That would take all of the fun out of it. It was Operation Mincemeat which is a World War II historical fiction book. It’s also a movie on Netflix now. I haven’t read it yet. I’m pretty happy with what I got.

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FactorComprehensive8 t1_iu8w4kh wrote

First one I got The DaVinci code. Second one I got The Lost Symbol.

I haven’t picked up another one for fear of collecting the whole series lol

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jaredforshey t1_iu8w6h1 wrote

BooksActually in Singapore used to have a vending machine with mystery books in it. I bought a couple as gifts. The books were all from their Math Paper Press imprint.

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IlsoBibe t1_iu92sn4 wrote

Those are two excellent books. Enjoy 😊

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lumos43 t1_iu9560k wrote

I cheated once. Was looking at blind date books at a Barnes and Noble, found one that sounded interesting, and noticed they all had the ISBNs written on the back. Looked it up online and saw what book it was. Didn't end up buying it then, but got it later at a different B&N when it was part of some half off sale. It was Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth, I enjoyed it!

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sunshineandcloudyday t1_iu97z5o wrote

I bought a couple of "blind date" with a book from a book store a couple times. Both times it was the middle book in a series. Like seriously? Why would you DO that?

I never read them. They are still on the shelf waiting for me to be bothered to find the first ones.

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adelobasileus t1_iu97zl6 wrote

I've done this before through something called the Biblio-Mat - it's like a randomized vending machine for vintage/antique books! I've gotten two books this way, one called An Unfinished Woman and the other called The Faithful Ally. I took a friend once and she got one on how to repair upholstery.

I don't think there's too many in the world - if any others at all - and this one is at a book shop called the Monkey Paw in Toronto. I don't live there anymore so can't confirm if it's still there, but I'd highly recommend you check it out if it is, just for the novelty! It was only a toonie a few years ago too, you just pay the shop owner and they'll give you a token.

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TexasNotTaxes t1_iu9ine2 wrote

What's cool about the 'Woman in White' is that is THE detective novel. So much so that the guys that write the Pendergast novels, Preston and Child, used Count Fosco from WiW in their novel 'Brimstone'. Not the same guy but as an homage to Wilkie.

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JoyfulwithaJ t1_iu9j7hh wrote

I’ve never done that before, it sounds fun!

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jennathehun t1_iu9tv0k wrote

Libraries do this too! And less commitment because you don’t pay

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ZephyrHeartz t1_iu9xtig wrote

Oh my god I NEED to try this, I love mystery boxes and all sorts of stuff like that, so a mystery book would be perfect

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National_Sky_9120 t1_iua0dkt wrote

I did! It ended up being The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon and I thoroughly enjoyed it

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civilwar142pa t1_iua14q7 wrote

My local library does this and it's great. I don't have to worry if I get a book I already read or absolutely hate, I just return it and grab another!

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Number1Record t1_iua5onk wrote

I've done this three times. One book I loved, one was okay, one I disliked. But it was fun every time. There were a few clues written on the wrapping paper and I made up my own stories based on that before I opened the books. And all three of them were books by authors I had never even heard of before, so it was nice to be introduced to some new stuff.

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anonymonster95 t1_iuadfw7 wrote

I didn’t know this existed!! I love this concept so much. I always put too much thought into what I’m gonna read next and it can make me enjoy it less. I needa do this

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Real-Plane-369 t1_iuaermo wrote

I absolutely love books, and reading, and can’t believe I’ve never heard of this! In fact, my whole family loves books, and reading! I’ll have to ask them if they have heard of this before! 😎✨

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NYLady13 t1_iuao0ma wrote

I SO wish I was reading Gatsby again for the first time! I'm jealous!

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larkharrow t1_iu77jrr wrote

I did one off of Etsy and the book was terrible. It was some weird hyper-masculine thriller that looked like it should have been titled "Reading....FOR MEN".

The rest of the box was great though! It came with a bunch of goodies that I happily re-used for other books.

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AlecMorgan_ t1_iu8mgnu wrote

I did this once and got 4 garbage books

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replikant8 t1_iu8oiyq wrote

The Woman in White... the only book I read full AND regretted it. It was really boring but I kept on going hoping that closing the book will give me some satisfaction... no.

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JellyCream t1_iu90o45 wrote

I tried this and got a rock with a note attached that said "you can't win all the time".

(This is based off a story John Waters told about what Edith Massey would do in her thrift shop).

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syphillitic t1_iu92w3a wrote

Do any of you guys ever read a book without reading the back or inside cover? I mostly do this with favorite authors - one too many times I've read a "buy this book" blurb only to realize that the thing they're describing as the premise takes place 150 pages in and should have been a major surprise...

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ChronoMonkeyX t1_iu95u5y wrote

I now buy all of Adrian Tchaikovsky's books without reading anything beyond his name on it and the title. Guns of the Dawn was not what I thought it would be, and it may be my favorite book by him.

I recommend it very often, and I also suggest the audiobook, it was a very good performance.

I also bought John Dies at the End without knowing anything about it other than the catchy title and cover, and the author pushing it hard on Cracked dot com. Loved it, and it wasn't just a surprise, it redefined what I think books can be.

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Zerodot0 t1_iua9mq5 wrote

I got Kafka on the Shore. That was a ton of fun, shame I've never seen another one of those since.

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Poetic-Jellyfish t1_iuahrkt wrote

Would be too worried it would be something I already own or have already read and don't want to reread...also I get incredibly picky with books, wouldn't read just anything...would be a shame to get a book I'm not even remotely curious about🙈

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Tryig-cncvblynormal t1_iu7fe4i wrote

That's such a new idea for business. Maybe I'll try that for my upcoming bookstore. It's such a brand-new good exciting experience.

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WayEducational2241 t1_iu8oyge wrote

I got a bs become a millionaire book, I would never touch one again.

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Imaginary-Dog8332 t1_iu99ccl wrote

No, and seems like a waste of time and money if you get shitty books.

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