Random Book Musings: What makes a book a great reading experience for you? #travelingsistersread #BookBloggers

Posted on by mycoulee

Hi everyone! Hope everybody is having a great Friday!

I always have these random bookish questions that I’m curious about so I ask our Traveling Sisters a weekly (sometimes more) book related question. We thought it would be fun and interesting to take some of those questions to our blog and see what you all think or do. I hope that you will also join in on the discussion with us.

Well I am a day late in posting my Random Book Musings question for this week.  I have no other excuse except that I kind of lost track of what day it was because with Monday being a holiday it sort of threw me off my schedule.  Luckily I knew it was Tuesday at work or else I might have made a few mistakes there.  LOL

Anyway onto my question this week……I’ve been told it is my hardest one yet.

Norma’s random book question:

What makes a book a great reading experience to you? Is there certain things that you look for while reading? Are you an emotional reader or are there certain aspects that a book must contain in order for you to feel like it is a great book?

Print_L375-5_brunete_brown eyesNorma’s Answer

I am definitely an emotional reader and all for how a book makes me feel. If a book gives me those warm fuzzy afterglow feelings then it is a great book. For thrillers, the ending is usually what tells me that it was a great book. I don’t necessarily have to be shocked for it to be a great book though but it has to come together really well.  Also, being totally immersed in the storyline and thinking about the book when I’m not reading it is another telltale sign for me that it was a great book.

I am also big on writing style. I definitely like to have a connection with the way that the author is telling the story.  Beautiful writing gets me every time.

If I get any type of emotions while I’m reading whether it be scared, mad, angry, sad, happy, excited, surprised and even contentment, then that usually tells me that it was a great book too.

Looking forward to hearing what makes a great book a great book to you!

L389-3_brunete_green-eyesBrenda’s Answer

I love the books and authors who make me think.  I love to be drawn into a character’s mind and emotions.  I love to be shown how they feel and see them experience the events of the story in my mind.  I am not a big fan of being told what they feel or do or big on the shock factor.  I love the stories that make me dig deep into the layers.  So I guess the well-layered books are the ones that make for the best reading experience.

And of course, the very best reading experience is when I can discuss and see other people’s thoughts on the book whether it’s in our groups or here on our blog or traveling over to other bloggers and reading your reviews.

L383-3_blonde_blue-eyesLindsay’s Answer

Norma – a great book for me is one that I simply cannot put down. If I read it in a day or 2 that usually means I loved it. I’m a highly emotional reader and love a good “book cry”. Like you, I really love to feel something while I’m reading which means I really connected. 💜

 

Now to the best part. Your answers. Please join in our discussion and let us know your answer. We would love to hear from you!

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Published by mycoulee

25 thoughts on “Random Book Musings: What makes a book a great reading experience for you? #travelingsistersread #BookBloggers”

  1. This is a great question! When I feel I’ve spent my time well reading a book that satisfies me. If I read a book and didn’t throughly enjoy it, I feel ripped off with my time. Which is why i rely on the Sisters. I love to get feelings that left me feeling picked up and wowed. Stories that have such incredible detail that its left me telling a beautiful narration picking up small details in my life. And also to take my mind on such a foreign journey, a place my mind has never went, lighting a fire in my imagination. My choice of books are never dark in emotion or thought.

    Liked by 3 people

    2. I am so happy to hear that you get some great book recommendations (and books lol) from us, Tiffany! Oh, you have just reminded me what else makes a great book for me. When I talk to Lloyd about the book and have him smell it. LOL

      Liked by 1 person

  2. Anything which evokes my emotions… Is a great read. It can be fear, anger, exhilaration imagination love romance tenderness happiness sadness… Basically if the book lets me be a part of it, its world, its life, its story, its characters… It is a great read. If my heart beats faster, my pulse races, goosebumps, anything which causes an equivalent physical reaction in me – is a great read…
    Your posts are a great read because there are so many vibes in it. Hence I follow you guys because sometimes being in the company of such vibes feels like being hugged. Makes sense?

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    1. I love how you said “if the book lets me be a part of it, its world, its life, its story, its characters” You have just made my day with your warm thoughts about us! It makes perfect sense. It’s the vibe I really want from our blog and in our groups and I feel so good knowing it feels like being hugged.

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    2. Shalini, I think you and I are very similar readers and like Brenda said I absolutely loved what you said! I feel exactly the same way……if a book immerses me totally in everything that it has to offer then it is a great book!

      That makes me extremely happy too, Shalini and what a beautiful and kind comment. I love that we send off huggable vibes to you! 🙂

      Like

  4. What a great question Norma. It depends on what genre of book I am reading. It it is a cozy (romance, chick-lit) it is making me feel the story and the characters. Wanting to get to know them etc. If it is a drama, it is thinking about the story when I am not reading it. If it is a thriller, suspense, mystery, then it is not wanting to put it down or stop reading until I get to the end. Of course if it is a book that is supposed to stir my emotions, then I want to feel it, if I cry or laugh out loud, then it is a winner. Sorry for the long dragged out response.

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    2. Carla, I love your response and I thought it was absolutely perfect! You can say whatever and whichever way you would like here!

      Liked by 2 people

  5. I’m a sucker for beautiful descriptions and also character driven stories. Even if it’s a crime mystery i need to have well written characters and need to feel the setting in vivid details 😃

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    2. I wish that I was able to visualize the settings a little more while I’m reading. I’m working on it though. Thanks so much for sharing, Norrie! Always love hearing from you!

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  6. For me, a great book is one I get totally lost in. When I’m reading it, I am in that world and nothing in the writing jolts me out of it. For example, if it’s historical fiction and I come across something I know is historically inaccurate, that will pop my dreamworld balloon. If everything and every character is true to the book’s time period and physical setting, then we’re good.

    I love a book that totally immerses me. I want to see, feel, taste, touch, hear, everything along with the characters. I know a great book if I’m thinking about it when I’m not reading it and I can’t wait to get back to it.

    The most telltale sign of a great book for me is getting to the end and having that “Nooooo! It’s all over!” feeling. What greater compliment can a reader give to an author than, “I wished this story never had to end.” ?

    Liked by 3 people

    1. I just finished reading a book that I even put in my review that I was disappointed that the book had to end. I could have kept on reading another 100 pages or so. The book was One Day in December by Josie Silver. One of my top 5 books this year.

      I think that is the best feeling and so satisfying when a book totally immerses us while reading. That is a great book for me too!

      Thanks so much for sharing, Eileen! Always, love hearing from you!

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  7. For me, it’s different things for different books. For literary fiction, I want to learn something, be made to think or be blown away by the beauty of the writing – preferably all three. For crime, I want to be puzzled and intrigued, but not disgusted or made to suffer vicarious grief. For horror, I want subtle ghostliness not chain-saw massacres! But for all books what I mostly want is for it to entertain me… 😀

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    1. Well said and I couldn’t agree with you more! Thanks so much for sharing and I loved reading what makes a great book to you!

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  8. Great question, Norma! It depends on the genre but I immediately thought of what I like in thrillers, and I realized I actually don’t care so much about liking the characters, I want a wild ride that is full of twists and I don’t really mind if it’s not remotely realistic! I just want the thrill of feeling off kilter while I’m immersed in a thriller 💕

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    1. Thank you so much, Mackenzie! I want a wild ride as well and be totally immersed in my thrillers too. I actually don’t need to like the characters either and they can be totally unrealistic to me as well. I actually kind of like my thrillers to have a certain bit of an unrealistic storyline. It just makes it that more thrilling to read.

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  9. Terrific question girls! I had to go away and think about it and then come back and answer! 😂 I think for a book to affect me it has to grip me almost immediately. This could be the plot or the characters, either way I need a hook that I can really invest in. I think if I can relate on a personal level to either a character or an incident in a book that also makes it a meaningful reading experience for me. 😍

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    1. Thanks so much, Beth! I think those are the best books too that grab our attention right away. For me a lot of times it is the authors writing style and my thoughts on a great reading experience are very similar to yours! Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my question this week and I always look forward to reading your thoughts! 🙂

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