The title is basically the question. How do you decide what to read next? When your “to read” list dries up, where do you go looking for a new book? If you have more than one book you want to read, how do you decide which to read first?
I just push aside the mashed potatoes, and there it is!
I’ve gotten a lot of really good leads here on the SDMB.
I have a lot of pen-pals, and am never at a loss for good advice. (And, yeah, sometimes bad advice!)
If I ever get really low on my to-read-next list, I go to Project Gutenberg and pick something that sounds intriguing. That was how I stumbled onto Robert W. Chambers. My God, I had a good season reading all of his books! “The King in Yellow” is probably his best known today, but “The Hidden Children” is noteworthy for being a rip-off (“deeply inspired by”) Fennimore Cooper’s “Deerstocking” novels – only a million times better. The student outdoes the master!
And, now and then, I’ll take a flyer on whater Amazon.com has reduced prices on. They have frequent specials, and often books that are entirely free. Some of 'em are even worth reading!
I have a massive ToRead list (870 and counting) - so no chance of it drying up anytime soon! Most of these are recommendations from the monthly Khadaji’s Whatcha Reading thread and others here at the SDMB, GoodReads reviews from friends and a couple of newsletters - Shelf Awareness and Amazon’s Omnivoraciousblog. NPR programs like Diane Rhem and Fresh Air with Terry Gross provide material for the list as well.
I work thru the library books on the list via dated holds - having access to the Indiana Digital Media website helps as well. I don’t buy a lot of books, personally, but occasionally get them gifted; I try to bump those to the top of Mount ToBeRead (another lengthy list - 163).
I just go to the library and look around. I often come across something I’d intended to read but had forgotten about, or I’ll pick up something that looks interesting. It is always kind of a relief to enjoy a new (to me) author that I enjoy, as I can just work my way through their books.
I have hundreds of unread books, which I’ve bought over the years. My only fiction reads are SF and crime, so my reading tends to be: SF, something non-fiction, a crime/thriller novel, something non-fictions, SF etc etc.
I won’t live long enough to read all the books I already own.
Quite a few from here and the GB, especially if an Amazon link is included (curse one-click ordering!).
Sometimes I’ll browse the Kindle Lending Library, but finding something decent is a crapshoot. The categories are useless. I’ll look at the “Literary Classics” list and there’ll be modern SPA romance.
I’ll look for something (new or old) from an author I like. The “people who bought this also bought” feature can be quite helpful.
This looks like a fine moment to recommend the long series of ‘Khadaji’s Whatcha Readin’ threads.
In the ‘old’ days, I used to frequently browse bookstores and picked books by reading the back cover (I do judge a book by it’s cover, BTW.)
For the last few years, I have been rereading books that I read when I was younger. I will remember story or someone will mention an author and that will trigger a purchase. I almost always now buy used books. Amazon has a huge collection (possibly every book ever published?) and unbelivable prices (I can’t imagine making any money selling a book for .01 cents).
I still occasionally still go to the few remaining book stores and browse, but I seldom find a book that way. Today, I was lucky to find a new book in a series that I thought was dead (Pricilla Hutchins) and ordered that (expensive hardcover, too).
I did preorder all of the Harry Potter books, also.
I find it difficult to find new books and authors anymore. Maybe I’ll take some of the suggestions posted above and look there.
Bob
I have so many books in my lineup to read that this is never a problem. I’ll often go with type: if I just read a novel, then my next book might be a history book.
Whatever I find at Goodwill.
Goodwill, aye.
In the old days I would leave a bowl of porridge on the back step, and by the morning the little people would have left a book.
i don’t believe i ever had my read list dry up. at present there are about 20 books on my “to be read” shelves. also about 10 holding on my kindle.
Mainly Amazon suggestions and the library but two of my daughters (one a University librarian) and my eldest son share my tastes and we rotate books between us.
I look at the Kindle Daily Deals every day, and pick up a book about once a week. I’ve got a vast amount of books to choose from, as a result… because once I find one I really like I usually pursue everything by the author, so other things accumulate.
I just pick a title that sounds appealing and start reading. Sometimes it’s a winner, sometimes it’s not.
I read several blogs about books. There are also books I just happen to notice on the shelves in lbookstores or at the library, books my kids bring home, books recommended here on the board, &c, &c. And I often go back and reread books I read when I was younger.
I’ve mentioned this before and its incredibly nerdy but it works for me. I have a spreadsheet of all my books (3299 at last count, but some of those are magazines and articles) and I use a random number selector (http://www.random.org) to select my next book to be read on an alternating fiction and factual basis.
Currently reading: ‘As Towns With Fire’ by Anthony C. West, novel about and by a WW2 bomber crew member.
Next up: ‘1789: The Revolutions that Shook the World’ by David Andress.
And so the adventure continues. 
If any of you are truly adventurous, there are many sites that have books by new writers who are looking for comments. While I would agree, there is that danger of reading crap - many of these sites have a process where the “best” of the new works by new writers are ranked according to comments and reviews by other writers - and quite a few of these eventually find publishers, or at least go on to self publish.
This would be a cool way to read something totally new, or at least be in the forefront of discovering a new author.
If I may be so bold as to give my own link to my own book, “Fool Proof”, you can see the presentation format. Just click on "read the book’ and the chapters are there for you to read. Also, if you go to the top of that page and click on “books”, you can see the top rated books, in multiple categories. BTW, it is always FREE to read these books.
If, after reading the book(s), you feel inclined to comment, all you need to do is register (free) and go in and let the author know what you think, and give them a star rating of 1 to 6 - with 6 being the highest rating.
Just saying - if you are willing to give some new authors a chance - this would be a great place to start. There are many other sites similar to this, so there is always the option of checking them out.
Otherwise, if you like the more traditional route with well known authors, I think simply Googling “best selling books” is usually a good way to see what is new, popular and currently available.