Book Blogger Appreciation Week - Book Blogs and Reading Habits

The Book Blogger Appreciation Week prompt for today is the following:

Book bloggers blog because we love reading. Has book blogging changed the way you read? Have you discovered books you never would have apart from book blogging? How has book blogging affected your book acquisition habits? Have you made new connections with other readers because of book blogging? Choose any one of these topics and share your thoughts today!

First off - say ‘book bloggers blog’ five times fast.  Or don’t because then your dog will look at you like you’re an utter idiot.  And of course, she’ll be right.

I don’t think my book blog has changed the way I read yet - except for the taking notes and trying to read more analytically instead of devouring books as quickly as possible.  So maybe the way I read has changed...

But book blogs have absolutely changed the way I read.  Before I started reading other people’s blogs, I usually started my library route at the adult fiction and maybe glanced through the new YA shelf but I didn’t really look for YA books beyond that.  Since I started reading great blog reviews, I began requesting my library purchase books or ordering them through interlibrary loan because I wanted to see what made these people I enjoyed reading enthuse so much.  And I can’t say I’ve been disappointed!  I haven’t always loved the books I read obviously, but I love reading them and feeling connected to this great community of bloggers!  So I guess, to sum up, book blogging has made me more willing to take advantage of the resources offered by my library system.

For book acquisition habits...oh yes, especially since I’ve started reading NetGalley arcs, I’ve been buying so many more YA books.  I love the covers and how they look on the shelf, and since I love to reread, I want all my favourites near me!  Plus when I enjoy an arc, I feel like it’s good practice to purchase the book and support the author.  I’ve also learned more about the way publishing works so I’ve been more apt to go buy a book during the release week to help the author get her numbers up.

There are so many books I’d’ve never read if I hadn’t seen a review.  The review hasn’t always had to be a glowing one, but sometimes even if people don’t enjoy the book, the way they describe it sounds so interesting that I want to pick it up.  Let’s see...Twenty Boy Summer, Divergent, Anna and the French Kiss, Entwined, Hourglass, Playing Hurt and so many more.  So many of my recent favourites I’ve discovered through blogs.

The book blogging community is so amazing, friendly, and welcoming!  It’s been a fantastic experience both reading and commenting on people’s blogs and then beginning to participate more fully in the community by starting my own and connecting that way.