Sunday, March 31, 2013

Sunday Salon: Goodbye, GoodReads


So a lot of you probably heard the news last week about social book site GoodReads selling itself to Amazon. Amazon wants GoodReads' user data to direct its marketing better and to incorporate with their Kindle products, to use against competitors like the Nook and Kobo. Meanwhile GoodReads users get... I don't know, the knowledge that their data is being mined? I'm not sure what the benefit will be to users, but since it's a nice benefit to Amazon in their fight to put my employer out of business, I deleted my GoodReads account. It's possible that they have my data archived, but I sure won't give them any more. And you know what? It's just a website. I can live without a website. There are more.

I know a lot of people don't share my very strong views on the subject; I don't care. I've been through this ad nauseum on Facebook and to a lesser extent on Twitter. Do what makes sense to you. I can't pretend it's not going on but seriously don't even leave a comment about it because I'm spent. Writing this, I was tempted to delete it just to be sure to avoid "getting into it" with anyone else, but what the heck, I like to live dangerously.

Otherwise life is ticking along. I'm adding some new items to my Etsy shop this week, including a new sewn accessory (eyeglass cases) and some jewelry. My Etsy store is Etsy.com/shop/PandorasCraftRoom if you're interested. I've also started selling my bookmarks at the bookstore, so check those out at Porter Square Books if you're interested. Today is Easter and we'll spend the day with my inlaws, who leave nearby. I made a lime merengue pie for dessert.

March was a pretty solid reading month for me. I read only 2013 releases and enjoyed most of what I read. April will be "always-wanted-to-read-it" month though I have a feeling that a 2013 book or two will sneak in. I don't have a list as such but I'm starting with Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys and we'll see where I go from there.

What are you up to today? Leave a comment & let me know, and have a great Sunday. More Sunday Salon is on Facebook.

11 comments:

Blodeuedd said...

Amazon sucks, I said my bit.

I had a bad weekend :/ My antibiotics did not chase away the sickness so yesterday I stayed home while bf went to his parents for Easter dinner and is still there

Bryan G. Robinson said...

I'm completely with you with your thoughts on Amazon's takeover of GoodReads. I already had ditched them last year and I'm glad I did. As for today, I'm with my wife at her father's place in Maryland for Easter and probably won't get a lot of reading done. Oh, well... :-)

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

I view Amazon the same way I do Walmart, Home Depot, CVS and other Big Chains. Yes, they all contribute to smaller businesses going out of business, but in this day when families need to save $$ where ever they can I understand the choices some of us make.

Enjoy your week Marie.

bermudaonion said...

Happy Easter to you and your family!

I haven't decided what to do about GoodReads. I love their stats but am not a fan of Amazon. I'm going to mull it over for a while.

Sandy Nawrot said...

I've got a Kindle so I am hooked in to Amazon, but am not on Goodreads. I was thinking about using it as a replacement for the blog, since I'm not sure if I want to continue blogging...I can't decide. But now for sure I will not be signing up. That integration is just...creepy. I'm feeling like the world is becoming one Big Brother kinda place.

Trish said...

Sorry to hear you are leaving Goodreads. I have been long afraid of companies so large (and growing larger) as Amazon. But not long ago I learned something I did not know, which is that Amazon is a marketplace, and it actually allows small sellers to gain a wider audience by signing up. I don't know if they are like the early 20th Century corporate giants, that took on penniless folk and exploited their ideas, gave the idea-makers a pittance and scooped up the larger benefits for themselves...it could be that it is more democratic than that. But I kind of like the idea of a marketplace of small sellers. Barnes & Noble was once considered a titan, pushing out small booksellers, but now it looks like a very small player indeed. One could almost feel sorry for them, if they weren't pathetic in too many ways. (I used to work for them, full disclosure, so I know something whereof I speak.) I dislike the narrowing of the market for ereading, though Kindle was (and is) first in so many ways--the whispernet/ereading/listening capability is just what audio listeners have been wanting for so long...and it is a tremendous breakthrough. I give them credit for that and for being first in ereading. But remember, we can always go with another titan--the iPad if we want to sever our ties forever with these big book players. I actually think smaller bookstores (provided they consider selling gently used books) have an advantage here. They will be the only physical stores left standing, and used books will finally get their moment in the sun, and prices will increase.

As for reading, I just finished the delightful 2012 novel by Penelope Lively How It All Began, which I loved for it's light touch, human pathos, and love of language.

Happy Easter!

Anonymous said...

I was just getting hooked on Goodreads, linking to all my old reviews, but no more. I feel the same way you do about Amazon. I used to work for Barnes & Noble too and I don't think they are pathetic :) I love my Nook even of I don't use it much. Still prefer the paper :)

Ali said...

I'm not a big fan of Amazon these days, but I've always preferred LibraryThing to GoodReads anyway.

Hope your lime meringue pie was as delicious as it sounds!

caite said...

I share you feelings about Goodreads. Yes, i have long preferred Librarything...40% owned by amazon..but still I think it is terrible thing for readers...as a muse about on my post today.

Audrey said...

You know, I think you've convinced me to delete mine too. To be honest, I've never used it very much, but still ... and for all its data mining, the 'recommendatons' that Amazon gives me are mostly good for a laugh!

Kathleen said...

I was sad to hear about GoodReads but Amazon is getting more and more powerful. There are very few brick and mortar stores (even big ones like Barnes and Noble) in my neck of the woods anymore.