Hey, Pagebound readers! I've noticed something about book covers that really bugs me: those featuring real people/photographs. Whether it's a face staring out or a posed figure, I get an instant aversion, and I suspect I'm not alone. I can’t quite explain why... maybe it’s too direct or breaks the imagination’s spell? If you also get this reaction, what’s behind it for you? Do you get through it and read the book anyway? The truth is that I've never ever read a book with a cover like that, even though I understand there are many great books behind those covers... I simply can't get past it. Can you help me unpack why these covers turn some people off? What about them clashes with the reading experience? 📚

Today I learned that the way in which I vet my authors is, frankly, not enough. So what steps do you take to ensure the people you are financially supporting match your morals and values? And how are you doing this in a timely manner? Please note: I am not asking if you vet your authors, but how. If possible, I'd like to keep the comment section as focused on tips that anyone may want to provide :) ETA: Follow up question, at what point do you feel you’ve done enough research?

do you use custom shelves on pagebound? if you do, how do you organize them? i'm very curious, as i haven't been using ANY this entire time and i kind of think i should... just because i think i want to categorize books better before i amass a ton and it becomes too daunting to sort. right now, i'm sort of thinking i conjure up a "TBR - high priority", then a "TBR- low priority", then "Finished - would recommend/reread", and a "Finished - wouldn't recommend/reread"? i dunno! just looking for ideas from the community :) of course it's all personal preference, but what do you guys do? do you include genres or anything?

This may be a no brainer to some people, but I've always had the habit of buying books when they come out, if it's a book that I've been really looking forward to, or even later when my bookstore has a sale. And I've since realized how common it is for people to pre-order books, sometimes months in advance, and also how important it is to support the author, but also for the author and bookstores to get a sense of how many people are interested in the book. Do you tend to pre-order books or just buy it when it comes out?

Sometimes I'm in the mood for a good cry. I think the last book that made me cry was A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman, which I was not expecting. I'm currently reading Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, and I already know there will be tears.

Is it just me or do you guys also rate cheap or library borrowed books better? I find myself being harsher to books I paid good money for because if you disappoint me I just wasted 15-25€ - but when it’s cheap I can read without pressure. Usually bought books also have a certain expectation behind them and if I find something second hand/borrow it’s usually more experimental and casual. Slightly different conversation: Not buying books also means for me that there is a delay in when I can read the most popular books in online spaces because my library here (understandably) buys them in german, as I’m in germany, and the translation does and should take a certain amount of time ((Edit: doubting myself rn, don’t I gaslight myself to like the bought books because otherwise I have to live with wasted money ??))

Could you stop yourself from adding more books to your TBR for a specified amount of time? Maybe I could go a month without, if I avoid reading reviews? Or limit myself to adding one book a month and be really picky about it? I just have this existential dread about not being able to finish my list before I die and I feel like the only way I'd be able to get through it is to stop adding! 🥲