It is not possible to read all the Sci-Fi books out there. So you must have a process for selecting what you do read. Reading a book is an investment in your time. Your time is valuable. No one wants to waste that time reading unworthy books.
I have never codified my criteria. And it has changed and evolved over time. I suspect it will continue to change moving forward, as who I am tomorrow is not who I was yesterday.
What is your criteria to date?
Mine is that it must meet ALL the following criteria, some objective and some subjective.
- it must have at least 1,000 reviews
- it must have at least 70% 5-star reviews
- if after reading about it I get the suspicion that it’s a romance disguised as Sci-Fi, I automatically reject it no matter what
- if it’s YA, it really needs to be exceedingly compelling to choose it
- Space Opera also needs to be exceedingly compelling
- if I get the feeling it’s trying to preach I’ll reject it
- if i get the feeling it has (messaging, strong opinions, or political overtones) about today’s societal issues, I probably won’t choose it. Not judging; I primarily read for escapism.
I guess that’s about it. There’s probably more but I just haven’t put that much thought into it yet.
I’m very interested in how y’all decide to choose a book to spend your valuable time reading.
Honestly I just read the biggest classics and hits. Usually they’re classics for a reason, and even if it’s not to my liking, at least I learn something new and can cross it off the bucket list.
Now that I think about it, scifi is somewhat monocultural - is that a word? - this way. The consensus what’s good and what’s not, and why, seems to be higher than in real world fiction.
I do listen to more audioshows than books and it’s kinda the same. If something becomes very popular, it’s likely to be better than average. Although I’ve found some sleeper hits too, and nothing really bad. Producing an audio show is probably harder than writing a book.