Four book logging apps to keep you reading

A lot of us are feeling tense these days, to say the least. So when you’re being bombarded by disturbing news flashes or angry videos online, it might be a good idea to turn to an old-fashioned method of escape — like a book.

If you’re a dedicated reader, though, it may not be enough to simply read. You might want to track each book you’ve read and make notes of what you thought of it or what it said to you. You might want to recommend it to others (or warn them against it). You might like a way to find other interesting volumes to read. And if your life is crowded with other activities, you might want to set reminders to take time to read. Book logging apps can help.

For a long time, the most popular app for readers has been Goodreads. On this well-known site, people log their reading habits, give their opinions on what they’ve read, and hold discussions on their favorite genres. But while Goodreads is still a powerhouse, there are alternatives. Here are four apps that can help you track the books that you’ve read and find new ones. While the first two, Goodreads and The StoryGraph, emphasize reviews and community, Bookly and Bookmory concentrate more on helping you stick to your reading goals using timers, notes, and other options.

Before going on to alternatives, it’s a good idea to see where Goodreads is these days. Originally, it was simply a place where you could log the books you’ve read and let people know what you thought of them as well as find and purchase new books (from Amazon and other sources). Now, there are book groups and discussions, the ability to find out what your friends are reading, and the opportunity to ask questions of your favorite authors. If you are a writer, you can publicize new works (and hopefully sell more books) by giving out free copies, buying advertising, or interacting with your readers, among other strategies.

Unfortunately, in more recent years, Goodreads has also become known for “review bombing,” in which a book is flooded with one-star ratings and critical reviews, often for political or other reasons, and sometimes by people who have not actually read the book. This has put a pall on the app — and has generated a lot of conversation, both pro and con. In addition, the look of the site has become extremely busy and confusing, with ads taking up a large chunk of screen real estate. But perhaps that is how Goodreads remains completely free to use.

Of the three alternative apps listed here, The StoryGraph is the one that is closest to Goodreads. You can even move your existing data — books you’ve read and want to read — over from Goodreads; I tried it, and the process was gratifyingly simple. If you prefer to start from scratch, you can get recommendations by taking a survey that has you do things like choose up to five favorite genres and list the types of books you don’t want.

The StoryGraph’s homepage has much of the same information that Goodreads has — but is a lot less busy and, as a result, easier to navigate. It shows what you’re currently reading, what you have said you want to read, recommendations based on what is in your other lists, and what’s popular among other readers on The StoryGraph. Also, as with Goodreads, there are giveaways so authors can attract more readers.

You can see your reading stats and set up goals (how many books, pages, or hours read this year). There is a community tab where you can follow other readers and check out their reviews of books. And, as with Goodreads, you can select a book, and you’ll be shown a description and a rating based on community reviews. You can then click to see the reviews themselves. You can also view what other publications an author has available by selecting their name.

There are also buddy reads, where you read a book alongside up to 14 other people. And there are challenges; for example, to read a book published between 2010–2020 that fits your reader profile but excludes your most-read genre. And finally, you can also buy books through Bookshop US, Bookshop UK, and Blackwell’s.

A StoryGraph Plus version for $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year offers additional stats and priority support. However, the free version will probably suit most people looking for a simpler but still useful substitute for Goodreads.

With all the distractions we are faced with every day, it’s sometimes hard to keep your focus long enough to sit and read. If that bothers you, Bookly is trying to help.

Bookly is a mobile app whose purpose is not just to register what you read (in fact, the free version only allows you to keep up to 10 books in your records); rather, its main purpose is to encourage you to read by letting you track when you read, how long you read, and what you get out of it. Set a time when you want to be reading, and the app will notify you when that time rolls around. You can then time your reading session, pausing to add a quote, a thought, or a new word you’ve come across. You can even run ambient sounds while you’re reading. Once you finish a reading session, you can take some reflection time and write what you are thinking. Reading also earns you virtual diamonds — one for every five minutes of reading — which you can use to, among other things, unlock “awesome costumes” for “Bloo,” the app’s little mascot icon.

The app monetizes itself in various ways, some of which can get somewhat pushy. You can buy diamonds — for example, $2.99 gets you 1,500 diamonds. There is also a Pro version that costs $9.99 a month or $29.99 a year and offers cloud backup, reading reports, and personalized suggestions, among other features.

While Bookmory does let you log the books you read and the books you want to read, the emphasis here is on how much progress you make in reading that book. As with Bookly, you can register a paper book to mark your progress with pages, an ebook to mark your progress with a percentage, or an audiobook to mark your progress with episodes. You can register whether you have purchased the book or have it on loan. (Unfortunately, there is no choice to categorize a book as a free download from, say, Project Gutenberg.) If you’ve already got book lists in Goodreads or a number of other apps, you can import them.

Once you’ve added a new book, you hit the timer, and it starts to count down the time you spend reading. You can set a countdown if you need to remind yourself to stop, and you can make notes (or take a screenshot of a page). You are somewhat limited; for example, you can type in your own notes, but if you want to use text from a camera or photo, you need to either become a premium member or watch an ad. Tabs at the bottom of the screen let you write notes about the book, see what books you have read (they are registered as achievements), or share your ratings with others on the app or on Instagram.

Like Bookly, the emphasis here is on personal achievement rather than establishing a community of readers — and that’s fine, if that’s what you’re looking for. The free version lets you register an unlimited number of books and notes, set a reading goal, and do cloud backups. A subscription costs $2.99 a month or $28.99 a year and eliminates ads, does an automatic backup, offers you daily stats, and more.