What’s so *Bad* about Goodreads?
Personally, I don’t have complaints about the Goodreads app (I suppose I don’t use it that much), but many readers and authors do. Criticism ranges from poor moderation of reviews and books, their “buggy, outdated tech,” and the very fact that it’s owned by Amazon, which uses Goodreads data to assess its sales. As far as reviews, complaints are that the app doesn’t do enough to combat author harassment or stop questionably bad reviews (aka “review-bombing”).
A friend and author told me “The criticism is justified.” Someone gave her book one star, but the book had not been published! “No one but me had seen it. Their moderators did nothing about it. Nuff said.”
So what is the alternative? The Washington Post recently listed several possible apps.
StoryGraph
StoryGraph — “Because life’s too short for a book you’re not in the mood for.” StoryGraph doesn’t emphasize reader reviews. Instead, they rely on personal metrics and automated recommendations. Users fill out a detailed questionnaire for suggested reads. The “stats” tab will give you analyses of how and what you read, fun breakdowns such as mood and genre, and sharable colorful graphs. In other words, flash and color.
Tatum Hunter from the Washington Post says that, while the app isn’t big on community like Goodreads, “you can invite friends to a buddy read or visit the ‘community’ tab to view readalongs.”
The app is free; you can pay about 50 bucks a year for advanced features. You can also upload your Goodreads data, a big plus.
LibraryThing
LibraryThing is perfect if you want to also record music and movies along with books. It works on the web, and also iOS or Android. The app is free. The website offers:
- A warm and welcoming community of nearly three million book lovers.
- Join groups and talk with other book lovers.
- Our Early Reviewers program offers over 3,000 free, early-release books every month.
You can can’t upload your Goodreads data but there are several ways you can find your past and future reads to add them to your library. Hunter says:
Detailed book pages include links to relevant discussion threads, as well as crowdsourced suggestions for similar reads. If you share your location on your profile, the site will connect you with friends, bookstores and libraries.
Reading List
Reading List is anti-social. Just as the title implies, it’s simply an app list to add books and leave reviews. The perks include monthly stats and a “buy online” link that lets you purchase your books from Bookshop.org rather than Amazon. The app is free but you can pay up to $34 for a lifetime of features.
I like this idea a lot, actually. I have a list of books recommendations on my phone’s notes app, but this would be more useful.
BookWrym
BookWrym is similar to Mastodon in that it’s a decentralized online network, or a collection of communities. The website says it’s “‘Social Reading and Reviewing’ Decentralized.” It is free.
Hunter says:
One unique BookWyrm feature is the “books” tab — a feed that shows activity from other users if they’re engaging with a book on your shelf. BookWyrm is free and web-only. It’s clunkier than other options, but perfect for readers who want a homegrown online hangout. I’m not so sure. I didn’t care for Mastadon.
The End
You can try them out, similar to how people who once loved Twitter, aka Musk-X, are testing the waters of Mastadon, Threads, Tribel and Blue Sky. You may not like any of them. You may just decide to read a book instead of fussing with a new app. Personally, I’m all apped out.
Thank you for visiting.
Linda K. Sienkiewicz is a writer, poet, and artist:
Multi-finalist award winning novel In the Context of Love
Picture book Gordy and the Ghost Crab
Latest poetry chapbook: Sleepwalker
Connect with Linda: LinkTree