Nerdy Notion – Why I don’t use Goodreads.

Kate (@thenerdynovelty) 21 Comments

Hey everyone! So I thought I would start a new meme (?? is that what you call it) on this blog, called Nerdy Notion. Basically it’s just gonna be weekly discussion/thoughtful bookish posts!

For today, I thought I would talk about why I don’t use Goodreads.

Goodreads is like the ultimate place for bookworms. Everyone active on the site lives and breathes books.

idiva_gif_01

And I really did love it while I had it. Goodreads was perfect for me! I could get all of my book related feelings out, and I could read what others thought about books. Also, the site enabled me to keep track of what I was reading, and all my ratings/thoughts on books.

I used the site daily for over a year, until one day I realized it changed me a lot as a reader.

  1. I noticed I started to rush through books. My reading goal of 2015 was 100 books. That’s a lot for someone who is busy with sports and school. But I was so determined to finish my goal, that I started reading as fast as I could, to the point where I wasn’t reading carefully anymore. It’s a pain in the ass now, because there are a lot of books I didn’t read deeply, and now when I read the sequels, I don’t understand much. But just in general, it made me lose my appreciation for the books I was reading them, because the only reason I read them was to finish.
  2. Reading reviews sometimes changed my own opinions. This is kind of a weird (?) one. Not only did I write a lot of reviews, I also read a lot. Overtime, I realized that reading reviews sometimes ruined my reading experience. For instance, if I saw a friend write a long review about how horrible a book was, when I read it, I would tend to pick out the bad things, making the book much less enjoyable for me. Now, sometimes I go back and reread books I “hated” the first time around, and realize I like them way more than I thought. (i.e. The Raven Boys went from a 2 star rating to a 4 star rating)
  3. I felt pressured to read. I was friends with a lot of people who read 200+ books a year, (which still doesn’t fail to amaze me). I think seeing those people and their amazingness made me feel like a slow reader, and so I tried to read more. Again, that made me rush and not completely understand books, which caused even more problems for me.

…And, those are the 3 main reasons I decided to leave GR’s. I also should add that it was HELLA time consuming to write reviews multiple times a week, comment, and read other reviews. It made me focus a lot less on school, which resulted in some bad grades… (Don’t tell my Asian parents XD)

200_s

That said, I still think Goodreads is an amazing and wonderful site. It definitely has a lot of perks, and I know most people adore it.

But for me, I think I’ll stay off GR’s for a little bit. Truthfully, while I still miss my account, my reading comprehension has been off the charts, and I’ve really been enjoying the reading I’ve been doing.

If you use Goodreads, be sure to leave a comment about what you like and dislike about it! I’d love to hear what others think about it.

oie_6RorIraGmk6R

21 thoughts on “Nerdy Notion – Why I don’t use Goodreads.”

  1. Personally, I adore Goodreads. I have been struggling to make friends in the blogisphere (I’m working on it!!), but I find it easy to make friends on Goodreads. Plus, it’s a great place to find long-term reading challenges, which are more my speed than the short ones.
    However, I completely understand how other people’s reviews influence your own opinions! This is the truest for me with Literature (with a capital L)– If I don’t like it, but I read some gushing reviews from “smart” people, I feel like an idiot (Most Pulitzer Prize winners fall in here for me). I’ve just learned to push on through. I don’t read anyone’s reviews until I’ve written my own now.

    You stick to your guns! Do what is best for you– after all, it’s your book experience that matters, not others. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • I agree completely. Not that bloggers are mean and hard to become friends with, but GR-ers are much more approachable.
      And yes! If I see glowing reviews I feel stupid and think that maybe I liked a book more than I really did. But yeah, a way around that is to just avoid reviews, however it’s a little tricky when they show up on your feed… O.O
      Anyways, thank you for your wise advice. I still feel like weirdo sometimes without GR’s. XD

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  3. I think this was brave of you to mention. A lot of us use Goodreads, and I never thought of that before. I,only surpassed my goal of 100 books because I was out of school and working part time. Now that I’m back to school, the reading will slow down.
    When it comes to reviews, I just write one when I’m done with a book. It’s funny that Goodreads made you feel pressure, because my blog seems to make me feel more pressure. Goodreads is a lot more laid back for me. I’m a member of several groups but don’t really participate anymore (too busy with blogging), and I have forgotten to post reviews there because I usually post them on my blog first. But I can see what you mean. And I applaud you for saying it.
    You just keep doing your thing (I love that episode…”You Doctor yet?” “No, dad.” “You tell me when you Doctor!” 😂😂😂)
    I love your blog. And I would have been your friend on Goodreads, but I will always be your follower on here. 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • I think for you it’s a little different because you’re a blogger AND a GR’s user! When I used GR’s, it was the only platform I used to review, so in other words, it was my priority. So that same pressure you might feel sometimes as a blogger, was in a sense what I felt towards GR’s.
      But thank you so much! And if I had GR’s I’d be your friend too. 😀

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      • I totally see what you mean: GR was like your blog. Before you had one.
        Yeah, I only use it for my shelves, reviews, and to see what other ppl are reading (I get a daily email with my friends’ updates so I can see what they think of certain books…I’m not on there as much as I used to be)
        But I still think you were strong to mention it: a lot of people use GR, and you surprised me when you said you just couldn’t do it. I applaud you for your honesty. 👏👏

        Liked by 1 person

  4. This is SO interesting !
    I mainly use goodreads to document my readings, I rarely comment on anything *oups* but as you said, if I did it would be too time consuming. And as for my reading challenge I kept it at 50 this year which is achievable and comfortable, I actually I’m already over that number, but I prefer to keep it low because I don’t want to stress over number and forget to enjoy my books. For the review portion, what I do is write a few lines with my thoughts in them and only write the full review when it goes up on the blog so I never have to spend extra time on that.
    Great post !

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  5. Interesting! I didn’t join Goodreads for several years even though a friend was pushing me to because I didn’t see the point. Now I can’t imagine not being on it. However, I don’t really use it as social media/interact with others particularly much. I mostly find it useful for tracking my own reading and useful for things like lists of my top fantasy books or my top books of the year or whatever.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  9. The thing I love most above goodreads is finding new books and recommendations 😊 The amount of books I’ve found out about from there and loved is just amazing, i agree that it is time consuming! Luckily I don’t have school to try to focus on and I can just cruis the site while I’m at work(just don’t tell the boss 😆) Great post! I really enjoyed your reasons for leaving

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment