Loyalties: Goodreads over Storygraph!

I haven’t yet used Storygraph, but I did have an encounter with it once. I was searching for something on Google, mayhap a book information. Storygraph was the first site listed in answer. I clicked it, assuming it was a blog that would give me insight into the book. And was thrown into a world of graphs and charts that instantly chased me away. I would swear my heart was pounding for two minutes after I left!

In case I haven’t mentioned it before, I do NOT like mathematics. And I find anything maths-related to induce PTSD of my high school days when I had to struggle with a subject I dreaded.

Anyhoo. The name of the site must’ve gotten stuck in some corner of my mind, because when people suddenly began to talk about Storygraph and it’s use of graphs and other visuals to track reading experiences, I quickly connected it to that scary site. Since then, especially at the start of this year, I’ve seen many readers make the comparison and declare: I prefer Storygraph to Goodreads ten times over!

If you go to TwitterX and type these two words in the search bar, you’ll likely be overwhelmed with tweets comparing both, most singing praises for Storygraph over GR. (*carries microscope* Makes you wonder if the Storygraph publicist isn’t encouraging the comparison so that more people can see that Storygraph is an alternative for Goodreads. Because really, the comparison of both felt sudden, unnecessary, and overwhelming; but more on that below!)

Why I’m A Goodreads Girl

• Say No To Change

First of all, I’m the kind of gal that doesn’t love change. I will typically stick with a thing as long as it still serves. So it’s no surprise that I’m Team Goodreads in this situation. I have my roots deep in the first app that introduced me to an accessible community of readers, and has inspired and served me excellently since then. For now, Goodreads has given me no reason at all to even consider leaving it.

• Nostalgia Over Novelty

Secondly, the constant need of people to compare both and then declare Goodreads is ‘trash’ also rubs me the wrong way. If anything, it has put a distaste for Storygraph in my mouth. I feel like you can swap to Storygraph, or use both apps, without the constant need, as it appears, to tear Goodreads down in the process. So of course, now I must give my own two cents to try to give GR a boost.

This behavior has led me to believe that overfamiliarity really is the motivator for hating on Goodreads here. People have enjoyed Goodreads for a long time and essentially no longer find it to be sparkly enough. Now that a new contender is available, they have the unnecessary urge to condescend to Goodreads, insult all its features, rave about all the new and shiny features of Storygraph, and jump ship.

Unfortunately, for me, these new and shiny features of Storygraph do not appeal to me. Why?

• Say No To Maths

I am very happy to never see graphs or charts again unless I absolutely need to. I am especially happy not to deal with graphs (math-related) when it comes to my safe place/activity: reading. I’ve also seen some likeminded readers say that they prefer to consume words than deal with graphs and other Storygraph visuals.

• Rounding Up Feels Fine

I also have never understood the wails over the fact that Goodreads doesn’t have .5 rating options. E.g. 3.5 stars instead of 3 or 4 stars. I’m typically happy to give books 1,2,3,4,5 stars without adding .5. However, on the rare occasions where I can’t decide between a 4 and 5 stars, for instance, I write the .5 in the review.

“This book was a 4.5 stars rounded up to 5! Or 4!”

A lot of people do this too, and writing it in the review holds the same impact for me as it would if we had the .5 rating option. So this feature being on Storygraph isn’t appealing enough for me to move to Storygraph either.

• Keep The Awards

There’s also the angry mention of the Goodreads Choice Awards. Every year, some readers get incensed when books they feel are great aren’t nominated for the GCA. It’s usually an emotionally-charged time, even though I don’t think it’s ever that serious. Anyway, last year, many people again touted that Storygraph is better than Goodreads because of this: Storygraph doesn’t hold a yearly award, they say.

Now, I’m not sure if it’s better not to have an award at all just because your chosen author didn’t win the GCA. Not everyone can be the winner, sadly, but for those that are nominated or that win, it’s a great achievement in their career. Why take that from them? You can simply ignore the GCA. At least on Storygraph, your faves won’t be winning any awards either, given that there’s none. Personally, I love the GCA. I think it heightens the sense of community in the book world since thousands of readers collectively fill the app to vote, even if my chosen author doesn’t win. The absence of an award show(?) definitely doesn’t make Storygraph appeal to me, either.

I also suspect that the Storygraph makers went on Goodreads to find whatever features readers were complaining about, and added it to their own app feature. I guess it’s smart for healthy competition, but on the flip side there is a reason Goodreads has been more successful than many other review sites for decades. Most people can’t deny that GR is very user friendly and has lovely features that continue to draw more readers in. So simply capitalizing on GR shortcomings isn’t enough to convert me from GR to Storygraph.

I am a Goodreads girlie and will remain so for as long as the app continues to meet my expectations, yay!

Do you have any thoughts on this two sites?