Books like friends must be chosen very carefully.Bacon says that some books are to be tasted , some to be chewed and few to be digested.It is no doubt true that books contain pearls of wisdom and gems of thought.A good book is supposed to be the life-blood of a master mind.But there is such a flood of books in the market that it is very difficult to make a choice of good books.Most of these books are written with a view to making easy money. The greedy authors exploit the young minds with bad stories and detective fiction. That is why we have to be quiet alert while making a choice of books.A bad book can leave a very harmful influence on the young minds.It can be more poisonous than the bite of a snake or a scorpion.It is clear that the choice of books is not an easy thing.It requires patience , understanding ,experience and knowledge.Sometimes reviews about books are also misleading.All that glitters are not gold and we should not be taken in by appearances.We should make it a point to consult our educated elders about the merits of a particular book.We can read classics by great authors like Maxim Gorky , Shakespeare , Hardy ,Tagore and Tolstoy.We can read some of the epics.There is some merit in reading the masterpieces which have been awarded the Noble Prize.By reading good books we shall be able to commune with great minds.Our tastes will be healthier and our thinking would become refined.