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Do you, uh, Goodread(s)?

Like a lot of people, I’m on Goodreads.  And thanks to Goodreads I’ve learned some unexpected things about myself.

For example:  I’m a biblio-polygamist.  Uh-huh. *Nods sadly* I, too, find it shocking.

According to GoodReads (and I have no reason to doubt them) I’m “Currently Reading” seven books.  SEVEN BOOKS!  All at once!  I obviously have commitment issues I wasn’t aware of.  Or A.D.D.  Or some kind of sleep disorder.  The possibilities are endless.  So if you’ve been wondering about the lack of posts and reviews last month… well there you have it.

Anywhere, here’s a few things to keep everyone busy while I’m playing catch up.

  • TNBBC on GoodReads is hosting a fantastic conversation with Alan Heathcock about his short story collection VOLT.  He’ll be answering questions and talking about his work for  the month of November.  VOLT is on the top of my “Currently Reading” pile.  It’s dark and creepy and emotionally devastating.  I can’t wait to tell you all about it!
  • Speaking of Lori over at TNBBC – she’s a huge supporter of Better World Books.  Getting a headstart on your holiday shopping?  This organization donates a book to a community in need for every book you purchase.  That’s 2 gifts for the price of 1 (Gosh you’re generous!). And then there’s the whole good karma thing.   Just follow this link to start shopping!
  • Read all about the Review Haiku at BOOKRIOT.  This isn’t the first time I’ve heard of this – the Village Voice used to run film review haikus (usually for bad films).  They may still do.  It’s been years since I read the paper.  There’s just something about the 5-7-5 formula that lends itself to snarkiness, to paraphrase Amanda Nelson.  Here’s a link to her post. I highly recommend her haiku review for The Giver. Hilarious.
  • And KevinfromCanada has posted the results of the Shadow Gillar Prize.  And the winner is… not telling.  Go over to his blog and check it out.  Kimbofo at Reading Matters & Trevor at The Mookse and the Gripes (two of my favorite blogs) participated on the jury, so you can read more about the shadow jury & the selection process in their older posts.

    • And, please, use the comment section to share your story. Reading promiscuity is no joke!

9 thoughts on “Do you, uh, Goodread(s)?”

    1. Probably the best policy Amy. I used to be on LibraryThing but switched over to GoodReads because it seemed like there was more of a conversation going on over there. But I do miss the stat clouds LibraryThing has and the way you can see a breakdown of your books by male vs. female authors, etc.

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  2. Have you become hopelessly addicted to Goodreads yet? Updating book statuses and adding new books and checking to see if I own a book before buying it at a book sale and posting my reviews and ohmygod!

    (breathe)

    Thanks for the two mentions up above. So happy that you are liking what you see over at Better World Books. They are an amazing company with such good hearts. It’s all about literacy and going green with them! How can you NOT want to shop with them? And just wait till you make your first purchase. Your book sends you a letter, I kid you not!

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  3. Have a GoodReads account, but I prefer LibraryThing. GR’s emphasis on ‘rating’ every book leads to too many 2-star, 3-star, not a single word ‘reviews. 😦

    GR seems to be more Facebookish, imo. Love the ease of tracking a large and growing book collection on either site. And the recommendations and ‘similar books’ you can discover from them.

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    1. I have issues with the star review system too, RG. I never seem to find the happy medium. It’s why I don’t do rated reviews on my blog… I mean, how do you use the same rating systems for a genre book by an author like Seana McGuire against a book by Philip Roth or a non-fiction history book? The expectations for each are so drastically different.

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  4. I mostly use Goodreads to track books I’ve already read. On a few, very rare occasions, I’ll update on a book I’m currently reading. I refuse to add anything to the “to be read” shelf because it makes me feel like I’m planning my reading and I’m terrible at that…

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      1. Oh, and there’s that fear. I shudder to think what I might discover if I accurately count all the books on my shelves. Until now, I’ve been able to ignore some saying, “Ehhh, these were inherited, they don’t count! These were gifts, they don’t count! These are eBooks, they don’t count!” Once I make a proper list… the denial ends.

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