Help needed finding books!!!
By gdesjardin
@gdesjardin (1918)
United States
March 3, 2009 7:27pm CST
I have a friend that recently has become ill, so she can no longer work. She is on an extremely limited budget while she waits for her disabled to be approved. Due to her poor health, the only thing she can really do is read...which is something she enjoys doing. She doesn't have internet access, however I try to visit her regularly and I bring over my laptop. I was wondering if anyone can suggest some sites that review books in a variety of genres. She loves all types of books, and I was hoping I can pick her up some, but I need some help in this department. Can anyone help me?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
4 people like this
17 responses
@biwasaki (1745)
• United States
4 Mar 09
Try http://www.bookmooch.com and http://www.paperbackswap.com
Your friend can post the books she's already read, and trade them for points to get books that she wants to read. There is no fee to join either program. If someone requests one of her books, she would mail it via Media Mail (costs about $2 to $3). It's a great way to get rid of the books that she's finished, and get some good, new ones in return.
@jillhill (37354)
• United States
4 Mar 09
They have plenty on ebay that are cheap.....also go to your local thrift store..like the Salvation army or goodwill and you can pick up books very cheaply....I adopted some soldier is Iraq and got some very good book there to ship to the kids overseas..try that.
@snowcat46 (2322)
• United States
4 Mar 09
www.shvoong.com (not a referral) has lots of summaries and reviews, to see what others think of a variety of books.
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
4 Mar 09
Do you know of any websites where they review books. That way, she can review the books online as she is unable to go to the bookstore, to review the back of the book.
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
5 Mar 09
Our library is quite small, with the Childen's section being larger that the adult section. We don't have a delivery service at our branch...you are very luck to have one.
@Aurone (4755)
• United States
4 Mar 09
If its reviews you are needing epinions.com should have a few, as should online retailers like amazon. If you are looking to purchase cheap books most major retailers on-line and in the store have a clearance bin. If you want to trade books I know this really nice site, Paperbackswap. You can trade books you have for ones you want. How it works is that you list books you are getting rid of, when someone requests them you mail it to them, when they get it you get a credit. Then you can use that credit to request a book. So getting a new books only costs you postage which is around 2.23. They have hardbacks and audio books too. If you are interested, PM me for a link to the site as I get book credits for referring people.
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
4 Mar 09
Yes, I am looking for book reviews. I figured I could find a good book review site, I can show her when I take my laptop over there, that way she can pick the books she likes. She is unable to get to the bookstore, so she is unable to read the review/synopsis on the back of the book cover. Thanks so much for your help.
1 person likes this
@lordwarwizard (35747)
• Singapore
4 Mar 09
Hi gdesjardin,
Your friend loves all genres? Well this is not that common since people usually have their favorites.
Anyway if she loves all types, then it is an easier task for you.
Why don't you just hop on to one of the major bookstores and look at their hot seller lists for each genre? Just grab the top few books per genre (whatever your budget is) and you got it! Task completed!
@lordwarwizard (35747)
• Singapore
5 Mar 09
Wow, you have be a really good friend. A book a day is quite a lot and this means you have to make many regular trips to the library.
The libraries usually are divided into sections. Perhaps you can get her books from a particular section each trip, then switch to the next section... rotate.
Ask her what makes her pick up or put down a book. She must definitely know. You can't say she reads just about anything if she still looks at the back cover to decide. I have my favorite genres too but I do read the back cover too. I don't just read *any* book from that cover.
So you can do a trial and error thing and improve on your selection by getting her feedback on which books she likes or hates from those you borrowed. (And easy way to get more books which she likes is to choose the subgenres she likes or books by the authors who wrote the books she likes.)
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
5 Mar 09
Hi! Yes, she likes all kinds of books. I have a wide range of stuff that I read...and I am the same way with music, I like all types. But my friend is a big fan of reading the back cover to get an idea if she might like the book or not (talk about judging your book by the cover...lol). Anyways, she does like alot of the popular authors out there. Since her disability, the only thing she can really do is read, so I have been trying to help her out. I have been spending a lot of time at the library, as it is the cheapest way to obtain books. She reads about a book a day!
1 person likes this
@okkidokitokki (1736)
• United States
4 Mar 09
While I do not know of any websites, you could go to the library and check out books that the librarian says is popular.
@okkidokitokki (1736)
• United States
4 Mar 09
Ours has done the same thing. I would go to the library and talk to the librarian, because she is the expert on what is good. Then go to their book store and see if you can buy it for a dollar or two.
@Jezebella (1446)
• United States
4 Mar 09
I agree you can talk to librarians or you can even go to a bookstore and ask about what are the most popular. James Patterson is incredibly popular in the mystery genre. I have read a few of his. Sherryann Kenyon is popular in the romance, I am reading her now and she's good, not vulgar or anything. Ted Dekker is popular in Christian thriller. Ask your friend what kind of books she likes to read and find out who is popular there.
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
4 Mar 09
i'm not really a book lover and i never write reviews for books online before... but i heard from people here that there is a site called associate content that do book reviews... otherwise you can try the local library and may be it can help you a lot... take care and have a nice day...
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
4 Mar 09
I have never heard of that site, but I will check it out. Thanks for the tip.
@cripfemme (7698)
• United States
3 Feb 13
Your friend should check out her local library. They frequently have a delivery service for the housebound, if she is. They can also order books through inter-library loan. As she doesn't have internet, I would suggest asking your librarian (who love to be helpful, I've found) to search for her.
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
4 Mar 09
When my mom was bedridden, I use to go to the library and take out about 6 books at a time for her. It worked pretty well for us. It is free and if she really didn't like one, it was no big deal. I also kept a list of books that we'd taken out so as not to duplicate. 
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
5 Mar 09
I didn't even think of keeping a list. Thanks for the tip!
@mystic888soul (390)
• Philippines
4 Mar 09
i dont know any sites..but one thing i can say is to try to search for some ebooks for free then download it for your friend to read..^^
@wolfaaron (179)
• United States
5 Mar 09
I do not know any websites,
you might try Googling one,
maybe your local library has a website
@net2you (10)
• Indonesia
4 Mar 09
for find books and reviews you can use
http://truveotube.com/search_book.php
@rogue13xmen13 (14403)
• United States
4 Mar 09
"Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte, anything by Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe, Franz Kafka, Ray Bradbury... okay if you are into anything horror, science fiction, and fantasy, you can generally find anything that you want. I love Ray Bradbury. "Fahrenheit 451" is one of Ray Bradbury's best novels.
@Lushlie (572)
• United States
4 Mar 09
I find anything by Janet Evanovich very good reads. They all seem to be books that once you start you can't put it down. She also has a new book out all the time. You should have your friend give her a try. I have a couple of her books that I have been trying to sell. Let me know what she thinks?
@lanyoublue2008 (882)
• China
4 Mar 09
I really sorry to hear of this news about your friend health!
I also want to help you,however,I'm chinese!
I think I could only do is to hope your friend could be well quickly!
