Books
When buying a book the consumer is faced with several decisions. The first of these is what book to buy. Book reviews are plentiful, plus friends always offer their suggestions, but when looking for a place to easily search and find reviews, either for a specific book or for suggestions, bookreview.com is a good easy to use website for this. Another option, for those who like the bookstore ambiance, is to always just go out and browse through the local Boarders or Barnes and Noble.
Another decision that the consumer faces is where to shop. Consumer Reports has an article online entitled "Battle of the Bookstores" which gives very good research on the top bookstores to choose from; Amazon.com, bn.com, Barnes and Noble, and Boarders. Consumer Reports found for savings shop Amazon.com or bn.com, which both offer many more discounts than the actual stores. But if the bookstore ambiance is attractive they recommend Boarders because they have self-service kiosks around the store which can be more convenient and available than finding a clerk, and Boarders has a frequent buyers club that is free (compare with the $25 a year fee of Barnes and Noble).
If savings is the goal than Amazon.com is definitely a great choice but before buying a book from their website a quick price comparison can be done through Consumer Guide Products online. This can be accessed through "products.howstuffworks.com/books-types.htm". To compare, simply search a genre or search for a specific title or author. For each book there is a "Compare Prices" link that will take you to a page that displays many prices from different online bookstores. Many times Amazon.com will be the store offering the best price, but not always so it doesn't hurt to check.
Something to always remember with buying online is shipping time and costs. If a book is wanted right away it may be smarter to go to the local bookstore, but on the other hand if time is not an issue the convenience of ordering a book from home is bonus with online stores. When ordering a book online it is important to remember the price that the book is offered for can be deceiving because there will usually be shipping charges added on, so never take the price offered at face value when making this decision as sometimes with shipping costs added you won't save money and going to the bookstore could get you the book you want sooner.
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Children's Books
Children's books are books written for children but enjoyed by children and adults alike. Children’s literature includes a number of genres: modern fantasy, contemporary realistic fiction, historical fiction, picture books, picture story books and traditional literature. However, each genre has many sub-genres as well. For example, traditional literature includes folktales, fables, myths and legends. Genres can also be classified by two organizational methods which are length and complexity as well as content.
There are certain criteria to look for when choosing which books you want for your children. Factors to consider are pictures and artwork, story line, and information and teaching concepts. Children tend to like pictures, but too many pictures can be overwhelming. Overall, it has been found that young children enjoy modern fantasy and traditional fiction more than information based books. Therefore, it is important to consider genres and pictures when choosing children’s books.
In the United States, children’s books can win a number of awards. The most common and prestigious awards are the Newbery Medal (presented to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children published in the United States in the preceding year) and the Caldecott Award (presented to the illustrator of the most distinguished American picture book for children published in the United States in the preceding year). Books that have won these awards are trusted in the literature world so consumers can consider these awards when in the market for children’s books. However, a book does not have to win an award to be considered “good.” It does not have to be a best seller or on a recommended booklist, either. A good book can simply be one a child enjoys reading.
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