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Do you read the back cover before you buy?

V

Violanthe

New Member
Do you read the back cover synopsis before you buy a book? The first few paragraphs? Or do you have some other method for sizing up a book before you buy it?
 
Unless it is a book I'm already familiar with, I always read the back and/or the first few pages. What really makes me cat spitting mad is when the entire back of the book is taken up with a photo of the author and the front pages where a synopsis could and should go, is take over by reviews from newspapers I don't read.
 
I always read the back cover if I have never heard anything about it unless I buy it online then I will almost always read a excerpt first.
 
Ialways read the back of the book before I buy it. I'm a sucker for good titles and writers with good reputations, so I have to be careful. Usually if the back sounds interesting I flip the book open to a random page, read four sentences, flip again, and four more. If the style seems to catch my eye I'll just carry that book on home with me.
 
I read the back cover (usually not the first few pages, however) if I haven't already researched the book. But if I've read about it on Amazon or something already and I know I want to get it, I don't always read the back cover. Actually I usually read the back cover of a book before I borrow it from the library, too.

abecedarian said:
Unless it is a book I'm already familiar with, I always read the back and/or the first few pages. What really makes me cat spitting mad is when the entire back of the book is taken up with a photo of the author and the front pages where a synopsis could and should go, is take over by reviews from newspapers I don't read.
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YEAH!!!! Man that is frustrating. Those publishers should get a clue.
 
I do a quick scan of the back cover. It helps to have some idea of what the book you may be reading next is about. I don't mind the numerous review excerpts so long as they don't take up space where a summary should be.
 
I always read the back cover and if that catchs my attention, then I read the first page or two. If it keeps me entertained I'll buy it. I hate it when the back cover summary sounds great but the book is really crap.
 
KristoCat said:
I read the back cover (usually not the first few pages, however) if I haven't already researched the book. But if I've read about it on Amazon or something already and I know I want to get it, I don't always read the back cover. Actually I usually read the back cover of a book before I borrow it from the library, too.



YEAH!!!! Man that is frustrating. Those publishers should get a clue.
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They must think one of two things..A. The readers are stupid and can't tell if they want to read a book unless they have a high quality photo of the author and all those newspaper reviews to tell us how grand the book is, or B. The books is so bad we wouldn't be interested if they went to the effort of telling us what its about.
 
If I'm not looking for a certain book based on a trusted recommendation, say I'm just browsing; I read the back cover, the foldovers (whatever they're called) and a few snippets inside. I also pay attention to the cover art.

Lately I've been buying solely on recommendations.

Ditto on the obnoxious author pics. Who the heck cares what these people look like? Tell me about the book! A small photo with the obligatory blurb about the author on the back inside foldover is fine.

As far as reviews go I'll pay attention if they are NYTimes, but that's about it.
 
What also pisses me off is when the back cover is just full of praise for the author by various magazines or other authors.
 
Pearl said:
What also pisses me off is when the back cover is just full of praise for the author by various magazines or other authors.
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Nothing annoys me more when buying a book than that.
 
abecedarian said:
Unless it is a book I'm already familiar with, I always read the back and/or the first few pages. What really makes me cat spitting mad is when the entire back of the book is taken up with a photo of the author and the front pages where a synopsis could and should go, is take over by reviews from newspapers I don't read.
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I'm totally with you there and most authors are kinda scary looking, I feel better not knowing what they look like :D

I also hate it even more when the back is full of reviews for a different book by that author. It's bad enough that there's only reviews but it's much worse when it's not even the book you are considering :(
 
If not recommended I stay away from books where the authors name is shown much larger then the book title - you know the:

Dan B*own
Read this rubbish and make me rich

types
 
Phlebas said:
If not recommended I stay away from books where the authors name is shown much larger then the book title - you know the:

Dan B*own
Read this rubbish and make me rich

types
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Stephen King books are notorious for that.
 
I tend to research books before I buy, reading reviews, talking to other readers, consulting if-you-liked-that-you'll-like-this lists, etc. I don't really browse much or buy on impulse. So no, I don't usually bother with the back cover.

Sometimes, however, the back cover can be fun to read in itself. Some humor books, for example, use the back cover for further jokes.
 
I also hate it even more when the back is full of reviews for a different book by that author. It's bad enough that there's only reviews but it's much worse when it's not even the book you are considering
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I hate that as well. It's all well and good that you (the author) want me to read your other books, but let's at least focus on one at a time.
 
Niamh said:
I hate that as well. It's all well and good that you (the author) want me to read your other books, but let's at least focus on one at a time.
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But its all designed to keep from telling us about the book in our hand:mad:
 
I always flip it over to read the back cover if it's not something that I'm familiar with. Sometimes I'll skim through and see if the prose looks appealing.
 
I always read the back cover to see if it's something I am interested in, even if I am familiar with the book (habit I suppose). If there are reviews on the back, I get annoyed as anything if I can't find something that summarizes the book and usually warrents further investigation. Of course it depends on the book...
 
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