Do you recommend books that you have never read?

Question: Do you recommend books that you have never read!?

Whenever I see the 'book recommendation' questions come up, I always look for one person that gives a long list of books and authors!. Most of the time, the books are listed alphabetically by the author's last name or by the date of publication !. Are these recommendations genuine!?

What scares me more is the fact that these long, alphabetized lists come from the 'top contributors' more often than the others!. I understand they might read more than the average Yahoo Answers user but cutting and pasting a list of books from an internet search isn't exactly a great recommendation, is it!? If you haven't read it, how could you recommend it!?

Do you recommend books you haven't read!?
I have not, nor will I ever!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

I'm one of those who has put long lists of books as recommendations!. Believe it or not, I neither alphabetize nor do I cut and paste!. As the book comes to me, I put it down!. The only time there is any alphabetization is when I check my own book list to search for titles (yes, I know, I have a "list" problem)!.

I don't remember what I may have recommended last August (it's too many questions ago & those first few months I was on Yahoo Answers is rather blurry due to a tragedy in the family at that time)!. I will tell you that I have recommended a few books that I haven't read for one of two reasons (the first being a compound reason, but without all those factors, I don't recommend it):
1!. It's by an author whose other works I have read and enjoyed, the story is one whose premise and basic outline I know, and it's on my "to read" list (yes, yet ANOTHER list) AND I think it's the type of book which might appeal to the asker (BTW: very few books fall into this category, though, because I've probably read at least 98% of what I recommend in those long lists and many times 100%, and all of them in the shorter lists I've given), or
2!. It was recommended by someone I know whose opinions I value and whose tastes are similar to mine!. This one has only happened a couple of times!. Usually I will say that "I've heard this was good" or something like that!.

For instance, though I have read all of Charles Dickens' books (except his unfinished The Mystery of Edwin Drood), I haven't read all of Robert Louis Stevenson's novels and yet loved the many of his that I HAVE read!. Therefore, I don't have the least qualm recommending another of his books that I haven't gotten to yet!. I know and love his style of writing, so I may recommend it!. Of course, what I haven't gotten to yet is always changing, since I read every day!.

What I won't do now (as I said, I can't guarantee the first short while of my time on YA), is recommend something by an author I've never read, about a story of which I'm unfamiliar and that wasn't recommended to me by someone I respect!.

Okay, end of true confessions!.!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I hate those lists! It's obvious that they just cut and paste from somewhere!. I could make a list of all the books I've ever read and paste it into an answer everytime some asks for a book recommendation, but I don't!. I actually READ the question, then pull from my mental list of books what I think they may like!. Sometimes I will list a book that I've heard of and is on my bookshelf, but I haven't read yet, but I always include that fact in my answer!. If it's bad, I don't want to be responsible for another person wasting their time and money on it!Www@QuestionHome@Com

Um!.!.!.!.yes I am guilty of this and here's why: I worked at Borders for over two years, so I knew the genres and top selling authors!. I also knew information regarding the books, for example if they were in the news, or featured on Oprah!. So I felt informed enough to offer a title if asked!.
Currently, I am working in a library, so the same questions come up!. also I see what books circulate more often then others, so those are good recommendations to patrons!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

No, I can't, in all honesty, tell people to go read something I haven't read myself!. I sometimes do mention books from authors that do not particularly appeal to me (because I've read them and their style is not exactly my cup of tea) but they have quite a large fanbase and I don't think they are bad books!. They are just books that I found to be okay but that to others, depending on what they are looking for, may be a good choice!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I always alphabetize my lists!. That's just how I do it!. I only recommend things I have read/watched/listened to!.

also, I have Facebook and Myspace accounts, and I list my favorite books, movies, and music artists on them!. So, I may just go and copy that list, and paste it here, with a little revision based on specifics the person is looking for!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

The only time I recommend books I haven't read is when they are recommended to me by close friends who know my personal taste!. It usually means it's on my to-read list, but I haven't gotten around to it yet!.

also, these friends I have that I take recommendations from I can count on one hand so if I haven't read it, it's a good chance it won't make my list!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

No, i have never posted books reccommendations on books I have not read, and I never will!. I know that my list is one of the really long ones, but trust me, they aren't even in some particular order, I barely keep books in a series together!. I haven't even looked online for book lissts!. So I can tell you that people can always trust my book recommendtions!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I only recommend books that i have read and that i have liked!.!.!.I wouldn't want someone to read a really bad book from a title i got off of the internet because then they wouldn't look to my name for any more answers!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

No, I don't!. If I haven't read it, how do I really know it's good!? I do recommend books I'm in the middle of sometimes!. I personally think it's copy-pasted!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Overall, no!. Now, if I've heard good things about a book that I haven't read that sounds like what the person is asking for, I do add it, but always say straightout that I haven't read it!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I;ve only recommended books that I have enjoyed!.
I read a couple of books that Ophrah recommended and didn't enjoy them!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

No, if I haven't read it, I don't recommend it, not even works by authors I know well!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Only if it's by one of my favorite authors, and I enjoy the rest of the stuff they've written!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I only recommend books that I have read!. If you want real recommendations email me!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

only book I have ever recommended without reading is Native Son but I just read it to confirm my recommendation^^Www@QuestionHome@Com

i have not because that would be the wrong thing to do to people who r just asking for a opinionWww@QuestionHome@Com

No, I haven't!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I've read every single book I recommend and I do use a list, with links, and I use a short review but my list usually covers a meandering range of subtopics and I don't have them in any order!. I try to use a variety of links so the questioner has a wide choice of sources for future book searches!. Author sites, wikipedia, amazon, publisher sites, fan sites, iblist and so on plus I have a blog where I review books and if its a related question I'll list that too!.

Rarely, I'll use the long list but more normally I use pieces of the list to answer a question for a specific type of subject or reading level!.

I can see where it would make you wonder because its the same list everytime but its much easier and faster that way!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

As Thor is my witness, Norseheathen, I swear to you that I have never recommended a book that I have not read, usually at least twice!. I don't alphabetize my lists either because, though I do suggest the same books frequently (since they're all things I like) I customize every answer and I have never had the sense to make a master list so I have to sit around in my underwear scratching my head and pensively sipping my beer while I ponder the mysteries of each individual asker's request!.

I will confess to once responding to a part of one question which asked if we knew anything about a particular book by saying "I haven't read it but my mom really liked it"!. I have no way of knowing whether or not that was helpful but it was what I personally knew about that book!.

I will also say that there are a few people in particular who bug the crap out of me with their lengthy and generic lists!. It is, in fact, a pet peeve of mine!. I put a lot of thought into my suggestions and while they may be flawed they are at least specific!. I get downright hostile when I lose to a list that has been posted 10,000,000 times before!. It just doesn't seem like the right spirit to me and I resent it, not for the points but for the effort!. I also don't see how it can be in any way fun or satisfying to just copy and paste all night!. That sounds like sheer tedium to me!. I enjoy my pensive pondering and it gives me time to sip that beer between titles!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

While I'm a pretty prolific reader, and have quite a decent base of literature under my belt, I find that most askers aren't seeking what I can offer!. (add---> Because it's largely boring, admittedly!. Jeez, people!.)

Therefore, I've resorted to recommending books simply on their cover and size!. Even if I've read the book, I toss that knowledge aside and concentrate on book cover and length!. It's foolproof, really!.

For instance, if someone asks: "I like books that are fun, but smart!. Any recommendations!?"

My answer will be: "The cover of Boomsday by Christopher Buckley is very colorful! And it's over 300 pages, so he's probably pretty smart! Have Fun!"

Works every time!.

{Ahem} Obviously, I jest!. I've noticed this same trend, more worrisome to me is when one of the more questionable members recommends something like Ulysses by James Joyce!. "Really!?" I find myself asking, "You go from Twilight to Joyce in a week, CullenManiac!?" (CullenManiac does not exist as of yet!. Just my fictitious Twilight nerd!.) What worries me is I haven't read Ulysses for the simple fact that it's over 700 pages long!. Slacker!? Maybe, but still!. That admission out of the way, I have recommended Ulysses without having read it because the question was about banned books!. It's one of the more famous examples of censorship, no!? I feel justified in tossing it out there without having read it when I know it fits the bill!.

Another, less remarkable, trap that I get caught in is recommending the same work over and over and over again!. Sometimes I feel like I'm shortchanging myself, but it amazes me that people don't know who Bret Easton Ellis or Kurt Vonnegut are!. I feel like if I slap the name up enough maybe a few people will venture into the magical woods of substantial literature!. Maybe not, but what's the harm in getting a sense of fulfillment along with laughs out of the time I willingly waste in Y!A!?

Finally, I don't alphabetize my listings because I've never fully mastered the alphabet!. But how I envy people who have! [Again, I joke!.]Www@QuestionHome@Com

I get tired of the big, long alphabetized lists too--especially if it is the same damn list every time!. I have given a few lists--one for 'literature in a nutshell,' one for 'US history in a nutshell'--but both are comprised of books I've read and can safely recommend!. I get kind of disappointed when those lists get the same reaction as the big, long auto-lists that people spam all over the place!.

I don't think those recommendations _are_ genuine, and I don't think that people giving the lists _have_ read all those books--generally they're cited from another site, which is silly to me!. I try to personalize recommendations but keep to my literary interests, and I hope people can separate the wheat from the chaff!.

I'll recommend a book I haven't read if it's by an author I trust, and it'll come with the caveat that 'I haven't read this, but I know that Author X doesn't suck!.' That's as far as I'll go, though!.Www@QuestionHome@Com