LibraryThing, GoodReads, Shelfari

[Brenda Branson]

Who is using which? How do they compare? Does anyone use more that one? I've started using LT which I really like. Then found Goodreads and I've found the other participants are more active in GR than LT. AND then I found Shelfari and I really like their cool bookshelf for the widget but there's a lot of advertising. I really have attempted to analyze any but if you have strong pros or cons about any of these or know of others, please share.

[Sarah]

I have Goodreads and LT. I like Goodreads more. I have more friends on there.
I use LT to put my books in. I use the library a lot, which makes Goodreads appeal to me more.

[Anna Balasi]

I love these sites! I'm on Shelfari and LibraryThing. I love Shelfari because of their cool shelf and easy upload of the books you've read. I enjoy looking at my Shelfari and rating and reviewing books, as well as telling people whether they should or shouldn't read a book.

LibraryThing is great for early reviews. It's amazing how so many books are being made available to bloggers pre-pub these days. I love the internet.

[Dani in NC]

I had accounts on all three sites. Goodreads is my favorite; it is easy to use and more of my online friends use it. LibraryThing has a LOT of info, but I'm a casual reader who doesn't need that much. Shelfari is my teenage daughter's favorite and is the simplest of the three. I like the look, but I've had problems with it. There were a lot of books that I couldn't add to my shelf because the system couldn't find them. I couldn't import my list from Goodreads after several attempts on different days. There also doesn't seem to be as much social activity on Shelfari as there is on the other two.

I would say use LibraryThing if you are in charge of a huge collection and like to keep track of it in detail. If you are a more casual reader, like pretty graphics, and like to check out your friends' reading lists, then go with Goodreads. If you want a very simple site that your kids could use, try Shelfari.

[Louise]

Hi Brenda,
I have profiles on all three of those you mention. I began using Library Thing, but forgot my login and password and then began a Shelfari-catalogue. And I do think that most of my books and my recent reads has been listed there. I also use their widget on my blogs, but unlike you, I do not find their widgets looking very good on my blogs. I have had a profile on GoodReads for a long time, but haven't got the patience to manually put all my books in there, because their system doesn't seem to be able to import my books from the spreadsheet I got off Shelfari. I do think I will give it some more tries though, as I think GoodReads look better than Shelfari ;o)

[Sally]

I like Shelfari on my blogs. I put it at the very bottom.

[Sarah]

I have only really used Library Thing, which is good and reasonably easy to use. The one problem I've had is trying to add ebooks and having to do it manually. Hoping they finishing their widgets for using on blogs soon, they only have a javascript one at the moment. This would be my only problem.

http://www.librarything.com/profile/sharrow

[alisonwonderland]

i have an account on LibraryThing - but i haven't been there for ages.

my sister introduced me to GoodReads - and i absolutely love it! most of my IRL book club are members, as are a number of my co-workers and family members. it's a great way to keep up with what each of us is reading. (while i'm sure there must be advertising, it's not bothered me in the least.)

[Louise]

I've actually managed to move all my Shelfari entries onto GoodReads. It was easy with a spreadsheet made automatically by Shelfari! But I will try an keep both of them updated.

[Sally]

I use LT and Shelfari; I like Shelfari best. The only reason I use LT was to get the advance copies. However, since I haven't ever gotten one, I may just quit LT. After all, it's redundant with Shelfari.

[Bernadette]

I tried LT and GR a year or so ago and found I liked GR more. I like the interface, the features, the ambience. So, I stuck with that and stopped using LT.

[cait]

I think that at some point I have probably registered an account on all three and checked them all out.

Library Thing is by far my favorite. I have been very lucky getting Early Reviewer ARC copies I must admit, but that is not why I love it.
Personally I love all the information and I love the forums there. I will admit it has a bit of a learning curve and maybe the graphics are not as pretty as some other sites but I find it just so flexible in how you use it.

It has the highest Book Nerd factor...and I am a book nerd.

[Zoealea]

I use Goodreads, because I liked the format better than LibraryThing and Shelfari, but I haven't really been updating my Goodreads.