Scrolling Notification

When I get time, I listen to music, or read books. If any is left, I blog!

Friday 25 May 2012

Your Search for A Good Book Ends Here

It is raining here in India - a cloudburst of books and best-sellers at bargain offers! Book lovers have never had it so good. If you want a share of it, don't sit and gaze. As Dolly Parton said: 'To catch the rainbow, you gotta get wet in the rain!'

I am talking about online shopping sites, some of which are 'push-selling' books in a big way. The discounts offered are hefty, sometimes as much as 50 percent! You can use credit cards, net banking or even opt for COD (Cash on Delivery) to pay up. The books are couriered within 4 to 5 days of your order. Experience how easy, inexpensive and convenient it is to 'shop from the comfort of your home'!
The spurt in choice however throws up a few challenges too! Which books do we buy, from where, and at what price? A search brings up hundreds of recommendations, reviews and offers. Not only daunting, but also confusing!  Hence, after several trials and errors, I devised a fool-proof method. Let me share it here. 
*
1.  Search
Buying a book is easy, but buying a good book isn't. The key is knowing about the current trends and tastes. Here are two sites to begin with:
Unarguably, the most authentic and comprehensive source. It will help you graduate from being a random to a planned reader.

Good Reads

Awesome site. You are in the company of readers, writers, reviewers, critics and book lovers. If you have been neglecting reading, GoodReads is the place where you can 'kick-start' that habit again!
*
2.  Assess
Once you catch up with the latest, the next step is to zero
in on the book that you must read. For tips on this, check out these two sites:

Enter a title or author. The site will come up with reader recommendations from its huge database.  Click on, to know more about your choice.

Here, you not only get information on any book of your choice, but also get to read its preview. A must for anyone waiting to begin his next read.
*

3.  Checkout
The last step before you purchase. Visit one of the following sites and enter the name of the book that you wish to buy. Within seconds, the sites will show up a list of online portals where the book is available, with their offer prices and mode of payment.

*
4.  Purchase
For the sake of brevity, I am limiting my recommendations to just two of the numerous online shopping sites. I have tried out and found them to be reliable and satisfactory.
Flipcart   
I don't know why I didn't try out Flipcart earlier. When it finally happened, I was pleasantly surprised.  And here they are right at the top of my recommendations.      
My favourite. Huge collection of books; attractive discounts; prompt execution. If your book is stocked out, enable the SMS/Email alert.
Great site. A welcome feature here, is the multilevel reward points that you can earn and redeem as you purchase.

*
5.  Save More
If you are happy buying used books, here is a site. Try out any title; you will get to know about the condition of the book and the discount offered. In select locations, you can also use their library facility. My favourite.

*
6.  Not Yet Over
After reading, if you want to dispose of the book, there are a few sites, where you can list your books for free, wait for a prospective buyer to turn up, and close the deal directly. The sites generally do not charge you for for this service. Search for more info.
That is it. I have shown you the way to discover, procure, and read good books. Happy reading


"You never know which book, at which time in your life might be the one
that inspires you to grow in many ways you thought was never possible."
-  Burke Hedges

Disclaimer:
The websites referred above are based on personal experience and are solely indicative of the growing online shopping opportunities in India. A missing reference does not in anyway imply a rating of a particular site's status, reputation or reliability.

16 comments:

  1. Tara Joshi11:08 am

    This is great. You have covered every aspect of book reading and buying, and even selling it after use. Absolutely helpful. It is posts like this that make blogging an interesting and enriching experience. Thanks a lot, da

    ReplyDelete
  2. suchitra4:22 pm

    hi. got here through goodreads IR group in which u had posted this link!
    good work! will let u know how this has helped me when i use it...
    also, loved the quote about knowledge and wisdom and a tomato in your one liners tidbits.....but no idea how to post a comment there!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Tara,
    It was just an attempt to help book lovers. Glad you liked it. Thanks, Tara.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Suchitra,
    Any blogger would love to have a reader like you.

    Four lines and four worthy points - a word of appreciation, a promise to return after reviewing my tips, an added reference to another section of my blog, and indirect though, a suggestion to Blogger! No comments have ever been more meaningful.

    Thanks a lot. Hope to see you again

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous12:31 pm

    hey..you really great :-)

    this will surely will help to people like me :D

    thanks for your visit in my blog :-)

    keep blogging rajuda

    ReplyDelete
  6. This is a brilliant post. You have done a truly great job of bringing together diff websites for book lovers. This is a commendable effort. I truly loved this. Kudos to for bringing in so much useful info in one place! :)

    There's also Shelfari which is similar to good reads.

    Thanks!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Aaakanksha,

    True, Shelfari is another good site. I will add this in my next update. Thanks for pointing it out.

    Glad, you liked my post. And Aaakanksha, I am overwhelmed by your words of appreciation. Thanks once again.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Malu Vaid5:14 pm

    Very helpful post.

    It keeps a reader in the loop, helps him buy his books at attractive price, and shows him the way to sell it after reading. I applaud your effort, because it promotes reading habit in a big way.

    Thank you. Hope to read more and more useful articles like this.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Well, I learned something today by reading this post! Great info for me as a reader and, as a writer, delighted to see my books working their way out from raining Ireland to sunnier climes!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thanks Ruby Barnes. I am waiting to read your latest book 'The Baptist', which I see has been rated very high at GoodReads. Congrats & Best Wishes

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great info, add one more http://www.govasool.com/index.php/category/books

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks for writing in Vikky. I promise to take a look at the site soon.

    ReplyDelete
  13. rema.singh12:10 pm

    This is brilliant. I never knew there were so many websites which help readers choose and buy their books. Thanks a lot Mr Rajuda

    ReplyDelete
  14. True. Lately even I have started buying books online. It is hassle-free and the discounts one gets are amazing! The online shopping boom has just helped us book-readers tremendously! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Lovely blog! How did you get that moving text thing at the top of your blog? It is awesome!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Easy Alisha.

      Collect from the web a free HTML/JavaScript code for a marquee notification bar. Modify it to your requirement. If you have a Blogger hosted site as mine, login to your dashboard, go to Layout, then to Add a gadget, select HTML/JavaScript widget in it, paste the modified code and save. Your marquee is ready.

      Delete