Goodreads or Badreads?

A few weeks ago Dr Burton asked me to write a post about Goodreads, a social networking site for readers. I smiled and agreed, but deep down inside I was not happy. When he asked how I was liking Goodreads I may have stretched the truth a bit. I said it was alright, and I liked that I have been able to connect with old friends and coworkers through the site. Currently that was the only positive I had to say about Goodreads, so it has taken a while for me to do some research on this site so I could deliver a positive post about the site. Dr Burton probably thought I had just forgotten to do as he had asked, but, also, two weeks later I am delivering his requested post on a site I pretended to like more than I did at the time.

Goodreads is a social networking site and library combined. Here you can keep track of what books you have read by shelving them, rating them and giving reviews; you can also mark what books you are currently reading and, my personal favorite, what books you plan to read. The site recommends books and you can search books, but, according to the creator of the site, you mostly find books you want to read or discuss books with friends that you find either by searching, linking Goodreads to your yahoo, gmail, hotmail, twitter and/or facebook.

At first I didn't like Goodreads. In fact, I started an account over a year ago, but I puttered out and hadn't been active for months. I was a little annoyed when I was asked to reactivate my account for this class because I don't particularly like this site. I felt like I couldn't find anything, there wasn't much on there and I wasn't active enough on the site to actually have it matter. However, since being asked to frequently use this site, I have discovered all that Goodreads can do. There are discussion forums that I frequently search for people discussion either Charlotte's Web or other children stories like it. I have also enjoyed getting back in touch with old friends' bookshelves. I also didn't realize how popular much press Goodreads has received over the years. They have a steady stream of publicity that has spread the word about Goodreads.

I didn't give Goodreads the best shot the first time, but this time around I spent more time becoming familiar with the site and all that has to offer. Anyone that reads and is interested in expanding and organizing their personal libraries should really give Goodreads a test drive. Be patient with the site, explore and use the tools available and you'll learn to like it despite any initial problems you may have with it.

Goodreads.com
Press Information
What is Goodreads?
How it works