1. I mostly follow along on what a trusted author says about certain books. That helps immensely because for starters they give the best recommendations that are 99% or almost always dependable. You can either find these recommendations at the back of the book, through reviews (via the net) or get them from trusted sources (friends, teachers...)
2. The subject matter is important. Does the book deals with issues or topics that interests you? This is important because you will not be able to finish a book you are not interested in. Or worse, its money flushed down the drain.
3. The table of content. When i search book on the net, i usually (always) look out for the table of content in a book. It gives a brief description on the subject matter of the book. If the table of contents don't spark an interest then it is wise not to pursue it.
4. I look at the bibliography or books the author quotes of mentions. I find this helpful because you kind of 'get' a rough idea on where the author builds on his ideas.
5. Buy books based on the author you trust. Trusted authors are different from favorite one in my dictionary. Trusted authors can be those authors you have never read before but who are deemed highly by most people.
6. Buy books according to your budget. After weighing all the above you have to know how much you can spend! I'm not good here and i do wish that I have an unlimited source of 'green stuff ' , well i wish i had them. But we have to work on our budget, this is important and vital.
I guess that's what goes through my mind when determining books to but. I guess this only works with particular kinds of book (Christian literature, nature). I hope this helps.
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