Keeping Track of Things Read

Posted by Melissa Howard Jun 25, 2007

In my last post, I mentioned the sense of virtue or fulfillment found in lists. One of the most regarded lists by its adherents is the life list of a birdwatcher. People look at the life lists with a sense of reverence. To know how many different types of birds a person has seen in a lifetime is like memorizing a sacred text to the avid birder. A runner’s log creates a similar sense of awe and a wondrous sense of satisfaction. At the end of the year a runner tallies up his or her mileage and finds that all those short runs still add up to an impressive total.

The internet has been a boon to readers who want to compile a list of all that they have read in their life. There are many different sites competing for the opportunity to store your list for you. Here are three of the most popular:

LibraryThing (catalog your books)

LibraryThing describes itself as an online service that helps people to catalog their books. It also connects people to others with similar ‘libraries’ and based on similarities make suggestions for books you might want to read.

LibraryThing’s list of features include:

You can search Amazon, the Library of Congress, and 70 world libraries.

You can tag your books with tags from places like Del-icio.us.

You can list your books on your blog.

You can import and export your data from most places.

You can you to enter up to 200 books for free or as many as you like for $10 a year or $25 for life.

Revish (review books)

Revish describes itself as a place where people can share their reading experiences as well as make lists, write reviews, and seek recommendations. In its FAQ Revish states that its primary function is as a place for writing reviews not for cataloging your collection.

Revish’s list of features include:

You can make a reading list and share it with your friends.

You can maintain a reading journal so you can see what you read and when you read it.

You can read reviews from other members.

You can join in discussions or groups.

You can list your books on your blogs.

A unique feature is one called Revish Connect which for a charge you can get free books from publishers and authors in exchange for reading and reviewing them.

Goodreads (connect with friends about books)

Goodreads has a mission “to improve the process of reading and learning throughout the world” by making it fun again. They operate on the premise that the best book recommendations come from friends who tell you how awesome the book they are reading is as opposed to random suggestions from a stranger.

Goodreads list of features include.

You can make a reading list and share it with your friends.

You can read reviews from other members.

You can join in discussions or groups.

You can list your books on your blogs.

You can import or export your books to a database.

You can add your friends to a friends list so that when they add reviews you are notified and can read them immediately.