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The free library at the laundromat had a whole shelf of slow burn novels
I was stuck at the Suds & Duds on 3rd street last Tuesday waiting for my scrubs to finish, and there was this little book swap shelf in the corner. Out of maybe 30 books, 8 of them were the first volumes of these long fantasy series I've never heard of. It got me thinking that physical locations like that are still doing the work of getting people into big, detailed stories without any algorithm pushing them. Has anyone else stumbled onto a good reading find in a weird spot like a laundromat or a diner?
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rosek734d ago
The algorithm actually gave me my best slow burn series find though.
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charles_green4d ago
That laundromat shelf is basically the last PUBLIC space for discovering books without an algorithm telling you what you'll like. Diners used to have them too, especially the ones with the greasy spoons near truck stops. I found a beat up copy of a Clive Barker collection wedged between a ketchup bottle and the napkin dispenser at a place called Mel's in Ohio once. Those random finds matter way more than people realize because they force you to actually PICK something based on gut feeling. The algorithm hates that because it can't predict what you'll grab when you're desperate and bored.
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