Rules for choosing whether Non-Fiction book is of best quality.

1. RULES OF GAME
Non – Fiction Books
Non-Fiction Books
"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested"
- Francis Bacon

2. GOALS OF READING
Reading for Information
Reading for Entertainment
Reading for Understanding
a state of understanding less to one of
understanding more.
Source : How to read a book
“ A truly good book teaches me better than to read it. I must soon lay it down, and commence living on its hint. What I
began by reading, I must finish by acting.”
- Henry David Thoreau

3. FOUR LEVELS OF READING
1. Elementary Reading
basic reading or initial reading
2. Inspectional Reading
the art of skimming systematically.
3. Analytical Reading
preeminently for the sake of understanding
4. Syntopical Reading
able to construct an analysis of the subject that may not be in any of the books.
Source : How to read a book
“A book is a gift you can open again and again.”
Garrison Keillor

4. NON-FICTION BOOKS
• To develop rules for judging whether
Non-Fiction book is of best quality !
• Apply rules and share the result
• Identify Top 3 Books
1,472,548 books are published in Non – Fiction in 2011 in USA
Source : bowker.com
“There is no friend as loyal as a book.”
― Ernest Hemingway

5. Uncovering Rules – Avid Readers View
- Friends, Experts, Authors, Publishers, Librarians and Bibliophile
HOW I DECIDE TO BUY A BOOK :-
I find the reference to the book as part of another book, blog, article, tweet that I’m
readying that I find interesting.
I go to amazon and actually look at the contents of the book. I might search for
Rajesh Setty, Author and some specific keywords in the book
Management Consultant I google the book to see if the author has any video (TED talks, youtube videos
etc.)
1. ROII: Return on Investment I look at the author’s site or blog and also look at supporting materials for the book
for an Interaction. I spend a I also look at the other books the author has written
few hours reading the book
and as a business person, I
need to get a good ROI for
that effort. What is the return
as compared to spending the
same # of hours elsewhere? the credibility of the author w.r.t to the topic under discussion(is he a practitioner?) also helps, an
2. How does it make me a extensively indexed glossary also does help. examples are also a great aid - I look for such
better _______________: A things when I pick up a non-fiction book.
book has to make a lasting
change in some aspect of my
identity.
3. How does it increase my
capacity to contribute more?
4. How will it positively impact
my worldview on the topic of
______
“If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

6. Uncovering Rules – Ratings
1. Quantitative Ratings–
1. Leverage Rating Scale .General practice of ratings for Books is based on 5 point scale/4 point scale – E.g
Amazon, goodreads.com etc; Ratings by book readers/experts ; http://www.businesspundit.com/25-best-business-
books-ever
2. Few books review sites, publish weighted ratings overall as well. Eg- The average rating for each book is calculated by
mathematic average for the book (the sum of the ratings, divided by the number of ratings). The Top books are listed in
an order based on a Bayesian calculation, which takes into account all ratings , and is sometimes called a "weighted
rating." / http://www.adobe.com/communities/guidelines/faq.html
2. Qualitative Reviews by Registered Users/Experts - Huge collection of databases which publishes the Index of books based on
the reviews (Qualitative reviews) across the world against subject areas – History, Scientific,
3. Customized Rating Method I - Rankings Based on number of customer reviews on Amazon( a measure of Quantity), average
Amazon ratings(a measure of quality) & number of Google hits ( a measure of popularity). Consolidated rankings based on
these parameters ; Source :- http://www.noop.nl/2008/11/top-100-best-books-for-managers-leaders-humans.html ;
4. Customized Rating Method II - Public nominates, IIM editors validate the nominations, and the number votes determines the
respectability and ranking; Key factors considered include justification of nomination, sales figures, readers ratings and industry
impact as expressed in the global media. http://www.iim-edu.org/bestmanagementbooks/index.htm
“Judge the goodness of a book by the energy of the punches it has given you. I believe the greatest characteristic of
genius, is, above all, force.”
Gustave Flaubert

7. Uncovering Rules – Other Industry References
• The Elo rating system has been used in a crowdsourcing application for determining best quality photographs.
Brilliant Arc has created the "Keep/Toss" game, to 3 votes for photographs. Elo score is determined for all
photographs. The photographs with a score above a certain threshold are then selected for further processing.
• Academic journals are sometimes ranked according to impact factor; the number of later articles that cite
articles in a given journal. [ Source - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranking ]
• In politics, rankings focus on the comparison of economic, social, environmental and governance performance
of countries ( Driven by key performance indicators/Indexes) [ Source - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranking ]
“The love of books is among the choicest gifts of the gods.”
― Arthur Conan Doyle

8. Uncovering Rules – Ratings ( Book Clubs/Websites )
Source : readmorebooks.com.wordpress.com/how-I-rate-books/
“Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations.”
― Henry David Thoreau

9. The 7 Rules of Quality Books
1. Clarity of Thought : - Demonstrate in-depth understanding/
experience & perspectives. Leverages facts/references to
share.
2. Connect :- Topic Relevance need to connect with reader
lives/ situations.
3. Uniqueness of the Topic:- – Niche or Most Discussed topic ,
provides solution to a problem.
4. Outcome : - Practicality Tips/ Recommendations/ Insights.
Creates an impact on the lives of reader.
5. Research : - Detailed / researched upon with available
sources
6. Writing Style : - Language simple, easier, Narration Style apt
and Engaging.
7. Author Credibility : - Establish experience / Expertise
The worth of a book is to be measured by what you can carry away from it.
- James Bryce

10. Rules and Runs… MVP
1
2
3
4
• Surveyed 15 Respondents prioritized the 7 Rules
• AVG = Averaged the rating
• REP = Returns a repetitive values or most frequently occurring value .
“Judge the goodness of a book by the energy of the punches it has given you. I believe the greatest characteristic of
10
genius, is, above all, force.”
Gustave Flaubert

11. The 7 Rules of Quality Books – Expert’s Thoughts
“ The framework you have developed certainly looks elegant. Pl go ahead.
Later, if required, we can make a few small changes “ – Vedpuriswar
“ Find out how Booker or other prize winners are determined. Why reinvent
the wheel?
IMO, if the first 2 points are critical, then new authors such as JRR
Tolkien, Chetan Bhagat & Amish Tripathi would never have got their first
books published. And the 3rd would’ve eliminated the likes of Gabriel Garcia
Marquez B<O “
“I divide all readers into two classes; those who read to remember and those who read to forget.”
-William Lyon Phelps

12. Top 3 Books in Non-Fiction
“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”
― Marcus Tullius Cicero

13. We and Thomas Jefferson…
“I cannot live without books.”
― Thomas Jefferson

14. Key References
http://www.goodreads.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranking
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Football_Elo_Ratings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elo_rating_system
http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/bookreviews.html
http://www.bookchums.com/category-Non-fiction
11 Books Every Young Leader Must Read - John Coleman - Harvard Business Review
http://www.compassbookratings.com/
http://www.adobe.com/communities/guidelines/faq.html
http://www.businesspundit.com/25-best-business-books-ever/
http://www.noop.nl/2008/11/top-100-best-books-for-managers-leaders-humans.html
http://www.iim-edu.org/bestmanagementbooks/index.htm
http://www.forbes.com/2002/09/30/0930booksintro_3.html
http://www.bowker.com
http:// readmorebooks.com.wordpress.com/how-I-rate-books/
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/01/09/best-books-on-writing-reading/
“The only important thing in a book is the meaning that it has for you.”
― W. Somerset Maugham