The Sunday Feed
As you read, so shall you reap!
Ever wondered why Facebook and Google are getting bigger everyday. Apart from the fact that they have given a very distinct reason to people for using their platforms, they are continuously evolving. A non-stop feed to consumer activity on their platforms has given them insights which all major companies will be ready to kill for.
If you really want to understand people, then you have to observe them for a substantial amount of time. We need to understand what they do, where they go, what they eat and what they read.
There are 2 motivations behind people reading books. Either they want to be entertained or they are looking for answers. Let’s take a look at the top 10 selling books of 2021. Maybe, we can find some hidden messages encrypted in their actions because the choice of your book reveals what entertains you or what you are looking for.
1. It ends with us — Colleen Hoover: Published in 2016, this book is not an ordinary romantic fiction, rather “a tale of love that comes with an unforgettable price.” Described as a brave and heartbreaking novel that digs its claws into you and doesn’t let go, long after you’ve finished it.
2. Dog Man: Mothering Heights — Dav Pilkey: Published by scholastic books, this book is about Dog Man and Petey, who are going through a crisis. Dav Pilkey is known to plant seeds of empathy, acceptance, and compassion through his Dog Man series and this book serves that purpose very well.
3. The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse — Charlie Mackesy: Published by HarperCollins Publishers, the book speaks a universal language of love allowing readers of all ages to connect with it. Featuring 100 drawings, this picture-based book has been described as an “object of art”
4. Where the Crawdads Sing — Delia Owens: Published by Penguin Group USA, it is about a girl who comes to they city after spending most of her growing years in the wild. She falls in love with 2 men and is learning the customs and traditions of the so-called developed society.
5. The Last thing he told me — Laura Dave: Published by Simon & Schuster, this book is based on thrill embedded in drama. It’s about an odd relationship between a wife and her stepdaughter who team up in pursuit of the missing man.
6. People We Meet On Vacation — Emily Henry: Published by Penguin Group USA, is about how long distance relationship is different from dealing with the person face-to-face. When things fall apart, Poppy has her final chance to make things right between her and Alex, who miraculously agrees on taking one final trip together, after two years of no communication.
7. The Cellist — Daniel Silva: Published by Harper Collins: Thriller built around plots in Russia. Victor Orlov, a Russian man who once enjoyed being Russia’s richest man, resides in London, plotting to wage war against those who have taken control of the Kremlin
8. How I saved the World — Jesse Watters: Published by Harper Collins, it’s about fairness and rise to fame in an American society that is so highly prejudiced and aggressively right-winged. This book by Jesse Waters gives the reader a tour of his life and how he rose to fame amongst the right-thinking Americans.
9. I Alone can Fix it — Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker: Published by Penguin Group, this book is about Donald Trump’s final year in power and the inner dysfunctional of the president. From the disastrous management of the pandemic to the response to George Floyd’s murder, the book makes some shocking revelations.
10. American Marxism — Mark R Levin: Published by Simon & Schuster, this book is about how government uses schools to spread political jargons like, “Democratic Socialism” and Progressivism.” Levin sheds light on the ways in which the primary elements of Marxist ideology are present in American society.
To sum up, the readers can be divided into 2 major groups. The first group where you have people who are still very much attracted to basic needs of love and thrill and want to hear stories about them. The other group comprises of people who want to understand politics and the strategies used by their politicians.
I do not have the figures to confirm if the 2 groups are mutually exclusive and how much of them fall in the common domain. What I can say with confidence is that if you want to write a novel, structure it around romance or thrill and if it is about realism, let politics flow freely and frequently!
Photo: Ichad Windhiagiri on Pexels