I’ve been involved in the online bookish communities for a couple of years now and I have to say that deciding to take that leap and put myself out there is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’ve always kind of felt like I was on the border of being nerdy - not quite smart enough to be really considered one but enough nerdy traits and quirks to keep me from being normal (whatever that is?!). But these communities have welcomed me with open arms, always supportive of me and my reading goals and ambitions as well as always there to inspire me to keep reading or to offer good book suggestions. I want to give back some and share some of my favorite bookish resources.
Book Tracking - my current favorite and most heavily utilized site for tracking my current reads, goals, and TBR stacks is Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/?ref=nav_hom). I really like the friend level of interaction on this site versus others that I have tried as well as the robust giveaway system. I’ve won several great books via the Giveaways, print and kindle edition alike. Another popular option is StoryGraph (https://www.thestorygraph.com/). I have a StoryGraph as well and I love seeing the charting options that other users are able to generate from theirs but I find I miss the social aspects on there as just not as many bookish friends have accounts.
Book Rental - Like many folks that are addicted to reading, I am working on a budget. Whenever possible, I prefer to cut cost and borrow books from my local library. I especially take advantage of the audiobook offerings through my two local libraries (via the Libby [https://www.overdrive.com/apps/libby] and Hoopla [https://www.hoopladigital.com/] apps) and have been able to cut out any paid audiobook services this way. There is sometimes a little bit of a wait when I place a hold on a book I’m interested in, but with a TBR stack like mine it is never a problem.
Book Subscription Service - I have been a Book of the Month (https://www.bookofthemonth.com/) subscriber for a couple of years now. When I was just getting started in reading for fun again a couple of years ago a friend introduced me to the idea and now I hardly ever skip a box. I really enjoy the variety of genres, authors, and types of books that Book of the Month exposes me to. i’ve found that there is still a good volume of books that I’m anticipating that they have featured but there is still a large volume of books, new authors, and types of books I wouldn’t usually reach for that BOTM exposes me to and that I end up loving. I discovered Alice Feeney through BOTM and now she is my FAVE. I also subscribed to Aardvark (https://aardvarkbookclub.com/) last fall and have been pretty happy with their service as well. It’s a little pricier than BOTM and there is still limited selection as they’re very new but their customer service rocks and I love their packaging.
Best Source for Books - I am a bargain hunter to my core. When I’m not purchasing new books through BOTM or Aardvark I price check Target, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon and go with the lowest. They all have various sales throughout the year. When I’m in search of used books (or don’t have a preference) I go to my local bookstore, eBay (lots of stores on there do b3g1 free or similar), BookOutlet, and Amazon.
Book recommendations - I’ve grown quote fond of several authors that i’ve discovered via BOTM and I read all that they release - Alice Feeney, Riley Sager, Lisa Jewell, and others. However I get far more recommendations and solid feedback on books from the friends I’ve made and follow on #bookstagram. They have awesome takes and I highly recommend adding the bookish community to your daily IG scrolling.
I hope you’ve found this helpful! Let me know if you’d like to see more blog posts like this and if you have any questions you’d like me to cover!
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