LibraryThing

A long time ago, in a blog far away, I mentioned a web site called LibraryThing. I was there again this morning, adding in a backlog of books I’ve read. I saw the widgets they have and decided to give one a try. Hopefully you’ll notice it along the left side.

LibraryThing is another one of those quirky internet sites that you don’t quite know why it works. But it does and people do some odd things with it. Me, I just use it to list the books I’ve read because I suffer from CRS. (Can’t Remember...Stuff)

If you visit my library, you can see the ratings I’ve given various books. You won’t see a lot of bad ratings (I think I’ve only got one listing with one star) simply because I don’t waste time talking about books I didn’t like. I mention it because you’ll notice a lot of books don’t have ratings. It isn’t a reflection on the book, it’s just the way I think. I haven’t bothered to rate most of the “fun” books -- books I read just for relaxation. I’ve read countless books by Tom Clancy and W.E.B. Griffin and I can’t remember one that I didn’t enjoy. I can’t even remember which ones I’ve read (hence the reason I use LibraryThing.)

In addition, others without ratings are simply because I read them so long ago I can’t remember them well enough to give them a fair rating. (I think that covers the CRS thing.) The ones with the ratings are the ones that made an impression on me. I think of them as the “serious” books -- the ones where I learned something. Most (but not all) are non-fiction. Three stars is good, four is outstanding and the ones with five stars are simply the best I’ve ever read. I’ll stop overexplaining it now.

Clicking on one of the covers in the widget will take you to Amazon and (theoretically) earn me some money if you buy it. I spend it faster than I earn it...but that’s life. Reading has always been one of the great joys in my life. And I can truly say that being retired and having the extra time to read has been wondrous. If I can steer you to a good book, well -- like Jimmy Buffet sings -- that makes the day for me.

Don Brown
July 1, 2008