The StoryGraph: First Impressions

Happy Wednesday everyone! Today, I'm going to be talking about a website that's currently in beta, The StoryGraph.  I've seen it popping up all over the blogosphere and Twitter recently and needless to say I was intrigued by what I saw.  It looks like it could be the next Goodreads.  I enjoy keeping track of my reading and Goodreads offers a pretty decent platform to do that.  Sure, it isn't perfect - I wish there were half stars, better recommendations, and the app could really do with a bit of an overhaul.  I always enjoy checking out other users ratings and reviews along with going over my own reading statistics over the course of the year.  

The StoryGraph looks like it has a lot of potential to be a great, yet different, alternative once it has been finished. It describes itself as "a site for readers to find books that perfectly suit their mood."  Once I signed up for an account imported my Goodreads data, I couldn't resist going over my stats.  I love that while you're creating your account you can add your "ordered for you" preferences (the books that they think you'll like the most will appear at the top of your personalized recommendations list).  In a quick little survey they ask you for your favorite genres, the kinds of books you like to read about, characteristics you appreciate the most, genres that you don't like/ aren't interested in reading right now, and books that you're never in the mood for.  Isn't that great that it says "don't like/ aren't interested in right now"?  I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised there.  Plus, you can change your answers at any time.

Now, as for my reading statistics for 2020 according to StoryGraph I "mainly read fiction books that are adventurous, mysterious, and dark."  It's so cool that moods are a way that you can sort and characterize books and your own reading.  Honestly, I can't say I'm all that surprised by my top three moods.  My bottom three are "inspiring, sad, and relaxing."  It probably says something about me that I (mostly) read to relax, but rarely read any books that could be considered relaxing.

I'm also very pleased that it rates books based on their pacing as well on top of their mood.  It's nice to know what you're getting into whether it's a fast-paced adventurous novel or a slow-paced emotional and challenging book.

The StoryGraph also breaks down the length of the books you pick up.  Since the site is still in a work in progress, I'm wondering how it calculates audiobook editions or will in the future.  From what I can tell now, the audiobooks I've read currently appear as their print counterparts.  Also on a similar, since this is site in the works not all of my logged books from Goodreads are in The StoryGraph system yet.

These final two charts aren't that much of a surprise.  I know I read a lot more fiction than nonfiction.  I really ought to pick up more nonfiction in the future.  There are so many works of nonfiction that sound fascinating that are waiting for me one day on my tbr.  For my Star Ratings, I will say that it looks like my ratings are a becoming a little more critical on the whole this year and have been moving in that direction for a while now.  This year, I'm currently sitting at a 3.69 average of 5.0.

So far, The StoryGraph has really caught my eye.  I'll know I'll be going back and I can't wait to see what their site looks like when it's been finalized.  I can't say whether I'll ever give up Goodreads or not, but I have a feeling this new little website might be able to give it a run for its money.  It has so many great features from useful statistics to personalized recommendations going for it already, and word of mouth is a powerful thing.  It isn't quite there yet, but one day I think it may be a real contender to track your reading online.


Have you tried The StoryGraph yet?  How do you track your reading?  What are your top three moods of the books you read?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!