Wait... What?

So you know those moments where you kind of are just in such a shock by a discover you've just made? You know the ones.. Where you sort of just sit back and say, "Wait... What?"

Yeah, well that's kind of how I was feeling once I got onto Goodreads. 

In the beginning I thought it would be pretty pointless. But here I am, procrastinating all other things in life, just so I can sit here and continually add more and more to my account on it. I mean I've started adding people, seen new things to read, and have been wracking my brain throughout the day just to try to remember every book I've ever read! (Which is just a bit of work as I've read more than I can ever remember.)

And once I think I've discovered the features I need to in order to properly have a good usage of the program, I find an even better one! I'm an avid user of my Kindle app on my iPad, and now learning how to use my Kindle device, and they have a feature on Goodreads that goes through Amazon and brings up all the books you've bought or read through your Kindle. Do you know how fabulous that is? It saves me so much time trying to remember or look up my virtual library.

So basically Goodreads is actually a beautiful invention and you may not be seeing me in the human world for a while as I have so much to discover on there.

Goodreads! Perfectreads!

A few days I added Goodreads to my social networking world, and I was at first a tiny bit worried to addition Goodreads as yet another social networking sight on top of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

How was I supposed to keep up with it all? I already don’t like to post too much of my life online, and now I have to post what I read?

Fortunately, Goodreads lives up to its name and really surprised me!

I found old books I had read and ADORED, new books I wanted to read, and so much more in literally minutes. Its has been a really exciting start!

I have had a five- star experience on Goodreads. It reminds me a little of how Pinterest works. Goodreads has viritual bookshelves that you can share with your friends just as Pinterest has boards that you share with your followers. However, Goodreads knows you a little better and comes with recommendations and that means less pointless browsing for hours without end. OK but really… I am guilty of searching Goodreads for maybe a few hours!

It’s the newest way to find just that book you have been searching for! (and also 50 others)

I Might Just Be Obsessed With Goodreads

Ok, I'll admit it.  I really wasn't looking forward to signing up for Goodreads.  I remember thinking:

"Oh boy, this site definitely isn't worth my while."

As well as:

"I will literally never use Goodreads after the end of the semester."

HA! I was mildly wrong, to say the least.

Now, an hour and a half later after I've started adding books to my bookshelf, I really can't stop.  I.  Can't.  Stop. I probably look something like this:

The short story is yes, I have gone mad!  Mad with excitement.  One of my favorite parts (so far) has been browsing book titles that I had loved but forgotten about.  I absolutely adore YA literature, so it has been super fun for me to find books that I read and loved in middle school and add them to my shelf in a hopes of re-reading them in the near future (hopefully).

As a college student, I have been out of the reading-for-pleasure mode for a while now.  I just haven't found the time lately to sit down with a good book.  I think part of the reason is I haven't had a clue what to read! Most of my friends are, as you probably can guess, college students as well, so they're not doing a lot of reading either, which is difficult for me because  I usually rely a lot on book recommendations from friends.  I am excited to be able to browse the different titles and select new books.

Well, if you need me, I'll probably be using Goodreads and forgetting to eat dinner, or something.

I Was Wrong About Goodreads

I've always thought of reading as a sacred experience, and feared that interference from the internet would cheapen and degrade it. I went to the beach last week with my family and witnessed a few teenage girls drive up to the shore, run into the sand only to smash their heads together for a few minutes of 'selfies', and then jump right back into the car to drive away. I can only imagine the eye rolling and baby barfs that would have ensued had I been forced to actually view their posts: "Winter Break 2014 with my BeStIeS on the Beach #lolz #california #freejustinbieber..." but I digress... basically, I hate when people pretend to be something they're not on the internet and I could never bear to allow that kind of fraudulence into my reading life. But I was wrong about Goodreads: it's no place for shallow narcissism.

Things I loved about my hours (yes hours) of exploration on Goodreads today:

1. Bookshelves: While searching, I found many books I had forgotten that I read! I remember in high school I would forget plot lines and main characters of books that I had only read two years prior, and I started making my own notes about themes, motifs, main characters, etc. so I would have greater resources to prepare for the A.P. tests. How amazing that I can create a virtual shelf of books that I've read in the past and include all of those things in one place? Also, I can actually keep track of the books I've been saying I want to read for years.

2. LISTS: The 'List' feature is amazing, and is how I found many of the books I had already read. It categorizes books together based on different elements of the work and is amazing for finding future reads and Goodreads 'friends' with similar preferences to your own.

There's more to love but I'll keep this short for now. The point is: Goodreads is cool, and I can't wait to keep exploring!

To Read or Not to Read

I can't keep calm! I am just too excited about all of this!

This blog post is going as a shout out to the "Recommendations" feature. 

After I had a speed session of rating the first books that popped into my head, I was so excited to be able to peruse through the "recommended"section. And you know what? I was able to find more books that I love reading through that list. Which meant that I could then I could rate even MORE. Seriously guys, I could have spent hours just searching through book lists and rating away. (But, unfortunately "aint nobody got time for that.")

Why am I so fired up about this recommendation feature? I am psyched because finding what to read next never has been the easiest for me. I sort of tend to just keep reading the same books again and again because I know that I love them. But it's time to expand those horizons! I love that technology has made it possible for a computer to systematically refer me to something that I might love based on other things that I love. Really, how cool is that? I can't even fathom the algorithm used to compile these lists. Thank you brilliant computer people for bringing this to me!

The next struggle is going to be to make sure that this feature doesn't just make my pile (read:shelf-full) of books that I want to read even bigger. Anyone have any recommendations? How do you find time to read leisurely as a student?

Oh, My Heart. . . This Could Get Intense

Several times over the years, I’ve heard my Mom say, “Jenna, you should get on Goodreads” or ask, “Hey, Jenna, have you checked out Goodreads?” Each time I would simply mumble something about having looked, but not being interested.

Boy, was I wrong! I have been a member of Goodreads for only a few days and I am already spending way too much time browsing new books and finding books that I had forgotten I read. I was also surprised to find that I have A LOT of friends on Goodreads. Several friends from years ago that I don’t talk to on a regular basis, but also several friends that I talk to all the time. I think the biggest surprise was finding out that my Mom’s profile photo is a picture of me in an old Halloween costume wearing a Mumu and a purple wig. Turns out I’ve been missing out on this incredible world!

The discoveries are endless!

As I was browsing books on a list titled “Books Everyone Should Read At Least Once”, I loved being able to click on a book that seemed interesting and see the many reviews given by my friends. I’ll be honest. I judge books by their covers all of the time. If the cover looks boring, I tend to have an immediate aversion to the book. My friends’ reviews of these seemingly boring books have helped me want to look past the cover and see what I can find within the pages. Now, I only wish I had the time on my hands to read, read, read! I have realized that I am way behind on the number of classical literature books that I have read. Gotta play catch up!

I look forward to exploring the many adventures that Goodreads has to offer. I sense an addiction coming on…

Getting Ideas from Goodreads

I hate to admit, but my digital and actual bookshelves have been disappointingly dusty as of late.  For about two months after returning home from my church mission, I felt like material that wasn't written by the hand of God was off-limits and sinful.  Thankfully, my dear aunt recommended a few really prime reads to me after the initial returned-missionary weirdness wore off.  So by way of My Antonia, I was reacquainted with the world of literature, and was soon hungry for more.

Isn't it nice then, that I signed up for this class?  I had an enlightening experience setting up my account on Goodreads this morning.  It was really cool!  I thought the “friends” feature, which allowed me to import my friends from Facebook and see what they are reading, was super neat.  It surprised me that a few of them even read, to be honest.  But I like this because if I ever don’t want to play the library gamble and hope that a random book is a winner, I have somewhere to search with recommendations from people I trust.  It reflects badly on them if the book they liked is actually really lame, but my friends usually have good taste, so that shouldn't be an issue.

I also like how the “bookshelves” bit keeps everything well-organized.  Gone is the Dewey-Decimal system—now everything is categorized neatly on the screen in a way that is MUCH easier to understand.  It’s like, “Hey, I just really want a twisted love story today.  I think I’ll go to my ‘Twisted Love Stories’ shelf!  Look, Vampire Diaries! Perfect.” 

I’m excited to start finding more friends and getting their opinions on books, as well as exploring the site to form my own.  The more people read, the more their minds are opened and their perspectives broadened.  Many Goodreads = even more great ideas.

Good Reasons for Goodreads

Studying literature in the digital age means integrating social media with one's reading life. Nowhere is this better evident than on Goodreads, the social networking site based on reading and books.

I've been active on Goodreads since 2008, and as I explained to my students today, this has been a significant benefit to me. Not only has it given breadth and depth to my literary life, but it has also deepened friendships and given me fresh reasons to discover and explore good books.

I'd like to explain in brief some key features of Goodreads and then invite you to begin participating in this literary social network.