Mohammed ’s Comments (group member since Nov 29, 2010)

Mohammed ’s comments from the The Extra Cool Group! (of people Michael is experimenting on) group.

Simply because its so much better than Librarything that i joined first to have my online shelfs,reading log.

The shelf,reading logging plus all the groups,the good,smooth looks. The forum/blog side+ bookshelf/library combination is really good.

Nancy wrote: "Thanks, Brainycat! I meant to respond earlier, but work interrupted."

Heh when i thought i was starting to get slang like that :)

You learn new things everyday is not only a clichè.

Jimmy wrote: "Me too. Does anybody use the NOTES field? I use it for almost all my To Read books, to keep track of where I first heard of it. Otherwise I will look at the stack of to-read books and have no id..."

Thats actually a very nice idea you gave me. I tend to forget some of my to read books i dont have at home. Why i added them,who recommended them etc

Usually i use notes only to tag books as library books so i know they arent my books.

Nancy wrote: "Writing reviews for those ho-hum books is more challenging, I think."

Ho-hum books ? Does that mean the books you think are specially good ?

I try to review books i know my friends might find interesting to know how good or bad i thought it was. I cant review all books, im here to add my reads in online shelfs,talk to my GR friends and not to try to write fancy reviews. Thats a waste of time.

Ultimatly it depends if i have time to review every new read or in the mood for it. Usually im busy reading the next book to write reviews for every book i read.

Facebook is not so big over here mostly people use it to keep track of IRL friends who moved away,relatives. Dont see why you would need online to keep track of friends you meet daily. The college backround it was created is understandable you met alot of people in college that isnt your everyday friends.

GR is the perfect social network catering to my biggest hobby. Most the friends i have here are people i would like to meet and feel would be my ideal real life friends but cant because of they are on the other side of the world.

Online friends you find interesting but cant meet in real life is why GR is so regular part of my life. Of course not all my 100 friends are people i often talk to,see as regular online friends.

When people talk about the different way of social networks i see GR as the perfect example. Im here most for meeting other interesting GR people really.

Jim wrote: "It's basically a harvest festival, Mohammed. No weirder than any of our other holidays."

Thanks for the reminder i remember what it is now. I blame american pop culture for giving me the view that its a weird holiday.

Myself i feel a bit fake saying Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends. Its a weird foreign holiday that i never understood from my point of view.

I think i have forgotten why people celebrate it even.

Tressa wrote: "I've been an avid reader since I was a kid, but GR has prompted me to read even more because of the enthusiastic suggestions or because I can't wait to finish and join a discussion thread.

I neve..."

I havent always loved reading but when i fell for it i saw most of my friends in my everyday life didnt read unless they had for school. GR is godsend to me because there are many people like me who are passionate about reading. Alot of people to talk about reading. Otherwise it would boring for me.

Before this topic i didnt even know how much votes i got for my reviews this year. Because even its nice friends of mine like some of my reviews i dont care really.

Its self expression for me,there is no big approach when i write reviews. I just try to write fair reviews for the authors i read no matter its classic fiction 300 years old or a new book. I write reviews only for myself to see what i rate and what i dont think is good enough.

I dont accept authors as friends anymore because its all so fake,desperate marketing. Most of them are not members who actually doing anything in GR but try to sell their works.

Imo Goodreads wont work like its suppose for the readers if you are afraid to be honest to authors who are members. You cant only write nice reviews.

Of course the more friends you have whose taste you know and respect the more variation you have when you read.

Reviews wise it didnt change anything and i always review a novel only when i finish in my own mind. Sometimes i write them down in Gooreads.

Also i tend to be more effective when i know i have a book on currently reading. Its a constant reminder since GR is the site i check most often.

I review fiction in the same way genre or non-genre or classic doesnt matter. I try to review criticly. I give high rating only if its an important book of its kind or the best of its kind. A fun entertaining book but not much more i cant give more 3 stars. I cant give it as much stars as the best classic novel i have read or the best modern novels.

Doesnt mean im literary snob either who thinks non-genre,general fiction is better because they are mundane stories and not genre fiction. Usually i give 5 stars only masterworks of its type of story. If they cant equal that level i give them lower ratings. I rate both storytelling,prose,writing ability.

Thats why i dont understand people who give 5 stars to every book they enjoy reading....

I make shelfs only for books i read,plan to read. My taste decide. Like there are 3 shelfs for crime,hardboiled crime,Noir(hardboiled that isnt about detective). I also make solo author shelfs only for hugely important authors to me who are prolific enough to have alot of books.

I make shelfs for poetry,African Lit,SF,adventure,historical fiction,comics-manga,spy,non-genre etc

Only shelfs i have made to make order of my reading is the shelf for how many books i read in a year to keep track,possible purchase shelf.