Here are some bookish links you might want to check out:
Book Sites
- Goodreads – Excellent source for peer reviews and ratings of books, online book clubs, lists, trivia – and of course, the ability to track your own reading with lists of books you have read, want to read and updates on the progress of books you’re reading. Invaluable. Check out The AWESOME Book Club Adventure, a book club I co-founded with Lin and Bia, and Very VIP Book Club which is just books I’m reading right now.
- The Storygraph – This is slowly starting to draw more attention. It’s got some similar features to Goodreads (you can import your Goodreads library when you create an account), but also has extensive reading stats that are really useful to track your reading. You can see how many pages/hours you’ve consumed in the past month, which genres you’re reading the most from, the authors you’ve read the most books from, how many books you’re reading from different lengths and pacing… and lots more. They also have reading challenges you can join and their interface for tracking reads I find easier to use as you can easily switch between editions on a mobile phone which makes tracking book format a lot easier (I read a lot of audiobooks, so I like this feature).
- Book Riot – One of my favourite online book destinations. Reviews, regular articles (like Buy, Borrow, Bypass and Critical Linking) as well as all sorts of interactive book-related ramblings. Always diverse; never boring.
- The Millions – A well-established online book magazine that covers pretty much every book-related thing you can think of. I also love that they have their top 10 book list on the home page all the time. It’s a great reference.
- The Guardian Books – Because I love The Guardian (it’s the only newspaper I read on a weekly basis) and the viewpoints of their writers tend to be quite interesting and well-considered.
- Huffington Post Books – All sorts of news and updates about what’s going on in the world of books.
- BookPage – A great source for book reviews, interviews, opinion pieces and giveaways.
- Bookish – Great place to find new titles you might not have heard of. I love their “Looking for a new book?” tool. Lets you find books similar to one (or two, or three) books you loved. Quite accurate, too.
- Better Book Titles – Tumblr devoted to re-creating book covers with titles describing the book’s content. My fave was the Game of Thrones cover with the title “Don’t Get Too Attached.” Highly amusing.
- Go Book Yourself – A book recommendation Tumblr blog – where the recommendations are made by real people, “because algorithms are so 1984.”
- Book Blog Meme Directory – Where you can find a roundup of book-related link-ups and memes!
- Book Reporter – Great source for upcoming releases, reviews and other industry news.
- Publisher’s Weekly – One of the go-to resources for anyone who works in or is interested in keeping up with the publishing industry.
- FictionDB – If you’re a staunch fiction reader, this site is your new best friend – lists of new and upcoming fiction releases and even a tool to help you find books you’ll love!
*For a list of blogs I enjoy reading, check out the sidebar!
Book Stores (Online & Physical) & Publishers
- BookFinder – The ultimate online book shop search tool. It’ll search by title, author or ISBN and will scour most online bookstores for you. The best part is it displays results sorted by new and used, with brief descriptions of condition, and prices including shipping. Excellent resource for textbooks and finding those out of print books you’ve been looking for.
- Chapters/Indigo – Great if you live in Canada. Reasonable prices, free shipping over $25 to your house or free shipping to a nearby retail location on any order. They carry the 7-year pen, Moleskine notebooks and cosy blankets, too. (Not to tempt you or anything…)
- Amazon (Canada) – Pretty sure no one needs an explanation of this one. New and used books (via Amazon marketplace from a variety of sellers), free shipping over $25 on new books from Amazon’s stock.
- Pulp Fiction – One of my favourite local Vancouver bookstores – carries both new and used books, though mainly used. Great selection, multiple locations and knowledgable staff.
- Waterstones, Foyles and Blackwells – UK booksellers that ship internationally. Blackwell’s has free shipping.
- Abebooks (Canada) – Pretty good source for used books, but again, shipping can be astronomical.
- Cleis Press – One of my favourite publishers. Based in San Fran, their books on sexuality and erotica are the best out there, and they cover a hugely varied range of topics, interests and lifestyles.
Facebook Pages
- Books Rock My World
- 84 Charing Cross Road
- Book Riot
- I Love Books
- Tattered Covers Bookstore
- HuffPost Books
- Vintage Books & Anchor Books
- Book List Challenges
- NPR Books
Bookish Podcasts*
- All the Books! by Book Riot
- Book Riot – The Podcast
- The Graham Norton Book Club
- Libro.fm Podcast
*You can find all of these by searching on whichever app you use to listen to podcasts.
Know of some awesome book sites, online bookstores or amusing Facebook pages that aren’t on this list? Do tell!