Online Book Communities

Honestly, this is the first time I have heard the term "online book communities."  Delving into the world of technology was very limited until the last six months.  Today I am going to discuss five different "online book communities:" LibraryThing, Goodreads, BookLikes, BiblioNasium, and Shelfari.

LibraryThing

I taught for five years as a Montessori early childhood teacher (prek3, prek4, and kindergarten).  During those years, I began to amass a large amount of picture books. I had them organized neatly in my classroom (by unit, topic, or season/holiday), but I wanted a quick way to look through my books to find out if I owed a certain copy.  More than once I had purchased a book that I had already owned.  As I looked into programs online, I ran across LibraryThing. It was perfect for the job that I needed.  I begin to add all of my books.  I gave them tags just like the classroom organization that I had to make it easier to find. 

When I change grade levels, I began to organize the books accordingly.   I have a prek/kinder collection and an upper elementary (4-6) collection. The tags for books in the upper elementary collection are by genre. Users are able to sort books by collections they have set up like mine or by wishlist, currently reading, to read, read but unowned, and favorites.  Adding books is very easy, which is why I use this to keep my personal library up to date.  First click on "add books."  The member can search by USBN, which is typically what I do, or by title, author, LC card, etc... A list of books will appear to the right of the page. The user clicks the correct book, adds a tag and it's done.

  I have now had this account for five years.  I enjoy the automatic recommendations, "list you might like," and the ability to read member recommendations.  I have never use it to make connections or contact with other, but it is available to use.  This program how also has an app available.  I will continue to use this program and feel that it is a valuable resource, especially for teachers.

Goodreads

Goodreads also very user friendly.  I had no problems loading books into the systems either by looking up ISBN numbers or the title.  I really liked the feature of organizing the books by read, currently reading and to read.  Users can rate books as well as edit the shelf the book is currently located on simply by clicking [edit] underneath the word. I have included a screen shot to better illustrate this feature.

This online book community is directly linked to Amazon.  This gives a user easy access to purchasing new books, making recommendations, and adding Amazon book purchases directly into Goodreads.  It includes a space to add friends, follow people and have followers (like Twitter), and see books that friends are currently reading.  The program will also recommend books for a user after they have rated at least 20 books.  A user can even mark a book as "not interested."

The explore option is also a very usual tool.  It will sort books by author, title, or genre.  It includes top reviews and new releases in all genres.

Overall, this website is simple to maneuver through and easy to understand.


Shelfari

This online book community is more than tied to Amazon.  A user must sign in using their Amazon account to log in. After working with LibraryThing and Goodreads, I immediately felt that this website was not as user friendly.  The process for adding books was not as clearly defined as in the first two sites.  A user must search for a book.  Once the results appear, there is an "add" button under each of the results.  The following screen appears when a user clicks "add."

The user must chose a shelf (I plan to read, I'm reading now, or I've read it).  This page does make it easier to review rate a book, because the screen automatically has the options there while the user is adding the book.   It makes sharing with others easier as well.  By clicking the share tab, the user can give the information about the book out on Facebook or Twitter.  Shelfari allows users to add additional data in regards to the specific copy of the book they possess such as purchase date, purchase price, condition, whether it's a signed copy or has been loaned to a friend. Suggested tags are also included with each book add.
Users can start blogs or connect with other members using the community tab.
I admit I was frustrated at first attempting to add the books to the site, but once you get past the original learning curve of the page, you will find really good features (such as noting if the book as been loaned out). Teachers may find this to be a great way to keep track of who has a book checked out of the classroom library.  Of the first three pages, this one has the most aesthetically pleasing home page.  The books appear to be sitting on an actual shelf.  Users of Amazon will want to chose this online book community over any others due to its connection with their website.


Booklikes

Booklikes allows you to use Facebook to log in.  This website is more social than the other pages.  It appears to be blog driven. Users go to the shelf portion of the page to add books.  Like with some of the other pages, a user can make shelves for read, planning to read, and currently reading.  There is a place to review books, make a wishlist,  There is a link for group discussions.  It takes you to a discussion room page where you can join in groups and their discussions. This page would not be appropriate for elementary or even middle school students.  I can see high school and college students using it to discuss book topics.



BiblioNasium

Immediately, I noticed that this site was different from the other four sites.  Students, parents, and educators can all sign in and see different versions of this page.  I logged in as an educator.  As an educator, I had to set up groups, students, and enter in my books.  It was fairly easy to use and would be an asset for a teacher who does guided reading groups.  A teacher can suggest books, write reviews, make parent letters, find resources, print reports, send a message to students or parents,  set goals, and much more.

From an elementary students perspective this would be the website of choice.  It was made for children to use.  They can review and discuss books, take challenges, and find out which books are popular.  It is a social network designed for kids.  The recommended ages are kindergarten to 8th grade.  The overall design and look of the page is appealing to children.  The log in and search bar are large font; easy to see.  There are fun facts and moving characters.  In my opinion this is a great way to get students excited about reading, because two very important factors have been added into the mix: socializing and technology.

Just as a sidenote, I used SKITCH to screen shot and add arrows to the screen shots.  It is free to download and easy to use.  Here is the link if you are interested: SKITCH

In conclusion, the overall winner of this comparison is up to you.  What are your needs?  How is it going to be used?  For me, since I am established on LibraryThing I will keep using that program, but I am also going to give Shelfari a try.  I love the features and the access to Amazon.

What do you use?