In India, on an average, almost 400 books are published every day and out of those 400, almost 270 (maybe 300 some days) are the leisure literature – the fiction books. So, a reader has abundance in the form of choices and there is no stopping… a reader is free to read what he or she wants. However, how many times do the readers discern their authors or the literature they read from the authors or literature they ignore? This is a question that I am asking because one just cannot go around reading books after books and not ask who the hell were the guys who wrote those books.
It rarely happens that people read new books on their own. They (the readers) are introduced to the new titles by the prudent authors through various means and digital book promotion is one of those means. Book promotion in India has been a recent trend which has been used by the authors, established as well as the beginners, to present their books to the right or the target audience. And it is very understandable because these authors do not want their books to get in the rush of other books. So, are the books being promoted the worthy ones to be read? This is my question.
Before picking an Amazon bestseller to read, you should always check about the author and about the book. Amazon Bestseller rank is something which is very dubious scale to measure the worth of a book – even Tharoor becomes a bestseller even before his book is actually launched – and you need to be careful. You have to look for the reviews on the credible sources (if available) and also look for the reviews by the ‘neutral readers’ on online platforms where books are sold.
Knowing about the author will reveal a lot about the literature’s depth as it reveals the likes and associations of the author and it also tells the readers how the literature might have come to existence… so, always look for the recognition that the author has got and what genres he or she holds an expertise in. I am not saying that a new author cannot be trusted with his or her vision; I am only saying that knowing the author before reading the literature might be of certain help.
By Rajiv for Literature News
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