New vs. Used -- That same old story

I was asked recently how much money I spend each month on books. The answer was $5.00-$10.00. Given that I buy 30-40 books each month, I obviously don't buy new. I almost felt bad about it for a minute, but then I got over it...

I've read countless articles on this topic on the internet. The authors don't get recognition or royalties from used books, blah, blah, blah. If the publishing industry's royalty model is broken, is it my responsibility as a reader to fix it? Absolutely not! You don't hear GM or Honda complaining that consumers are not buying their products new. They've already factored that into their business model. It seems to me that authors should take up the issue with their publisher instead of trying to make readers feel guilty. Frankly, they should be happy someone wants to read their book.

Given that I never have trouble finding any book I want used, someone is buying those books new. There are some people who don't like reading anything but a brand new book and I say great! It ensures I get the book I want that much quicker!

I am lucky enough to live in Southern California where a tremendous amount of books are available used in Like New condition for $0.25-$0.50. These books are made available through library book sales. I am a huge supporter of libraries. When I started reading at the tender age of 3, my parents couldn't afford to buy me 15 books a week. But they could take me to the library where I could check out my 15 books absolutely free! Maybe this is why I'm unwilling to pay a lot of money for books. 20 years later when I could afford to buy books new, it just seemed like a waste of money to me. I would much rather give my money to the Library Friends who support those kids who can't afford to buy new books. It's a win-win situation and the MBA in me loves the practicality.

Hooray for libraries!

New Year -- New Features

Several new features went online in the last couple of days. We hope you'll check them out and let us know what you think.

One of the joys of going to the bookstore is browsing all the new book covers. Well, we have created a similar environment here at FictionDB. From the New Releases page you can click on Cover Gallery and be taken to a page displaying all the new covers for a given month. Cover galleries now exist for new releases and new in paperback releases.

I tend to add to My Wishlist from the New Releases pages as the books become available. Sometimes I forget whether I've added the new month's titles to My Wishlist. Or sometimes I think I've added a book to My Bookshelf but I really haven't. Now I can catch all the discrepancies easily.

Meet our new icon:

If you are logged in to your FictionDB account, you will see these checkmarks throughout the site. They indicate that the book is on My Bookshelf, in My Archive, or on My Wishlist. I have been going through all my favorite authors and making sure I haven't missed any of their books. Luckily only a few have slipped through :)

Like to request a book be added to the site? Click Here to suggest a book. We'll do our best to get the title added in the next update.

We will also be updating our printed reference guides within the next couple of weeks. Check Here to find out if the new books are available.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading!