Any book lover will tell you that there’s nothing that beats the pleasure of browsing the aisles of a bookstore and leafing through new books. Discovering new books and new authors (and liking them) is akin to El Dorado for a book lover. But just like everyone else, the digital age has given the book lover another set of eyes to find out what new books are getting released and where to grab them. Welcome to the world of book tracking and notification services.
Today, we have social communities built around books (Shelfari, GoodReads), online recommendation engines (e.g. What Should I Read Next), and online retailers like Amazon which can alert you when a book becomes available. All of them have their own way of notifying you of new releases. Some are tailor made around your interests while some are broad based with weekly or monthly newsletters. The five book recommendation websites mentioned below belong to the former and are like homing missiles when it comes to alerting you about new releases.
Track New Book
Tracknewbook.com is one of those neat book discovery websites that helps the book lover stay informed with a timely notification service. You can track a book by its author, subject, or your own keywords. You can track books across all formats from hardcover to audio books. But it’s the option of Seed Book (beta) tracking that had me interested in their offering. Seed Book lets you pick any book as a ‘seed’, and then you receive alerts on other books that are similar to the one you picked as the seed. It’s great for stumbling into new books and new authors, especially if your reading habits are very selective.
The Book Discovery service is also a unique install that you may not find elsewhere. It’s a browser plug-in supported for most browsers that recommends books that are related to web site you visit. For instance, if you visit Makeuseof.com you can expect to receive recommendation related to computers. It’s not always perfect though. (See Directory mention)
Book Buzzes
Book Buzzes is far simpler than the previous new book notification website. You just have to log-in and then enter your favorite author into the Author text box, choose what type of book you’re interested in and your locale, and thus create a ‘buzz’ which will land in your inbox as soon as it spots a new release. The book title in the alert is linked to Amazon. (See Directory mention)
Any New Books
This new book alert service also follows the same pattern. You have to select the genres you want to receive alerts for, and then they come into your inbox every week. You can select multiple genres of course for the once-a-week alerts. You can also opt for a general weekly email that will feature a generic selection of the best new books each week. You have categories for Kindle eBooks and audio books too. Sign-up is very quick with just your email address. (See Directory mention)
Author Alerts
Authoralerts.com lets you create a watch list of authors whose new releases you would like to be reminded about. The site uses news release information from Amazon. You get the information on new releases via email or a RSS feed. Ten alerts are allowed.
Wowbrary
Wowbrary treads a different path by focusing on U.S. libraries alone. You feed it your zip code and the service lets you know by email or RSS about your chosen public library’s newest books, movies and music. The service is free and U.S. specific. (See Directory mention)
Alert and notification services remove the drudgery from watching out for things yourself. Book lovers have more ways to keep track of books. Here are two more for you to read –
- 8 Bestseller Lists To Find Books To Read
- 4 Great Ways To Keep Track Of Your Expanding Book Collection
- The 7 Best Book Review Podcasts & Shows To Discover New Books
- How To Track New Book Releases From Favorite Authors
- 7+ Sites To Help You Decide Which Book To Read Next
The only thing you have to keep your eye on is your inbox. Let us know the value of book release alerts amidst all the other book web apps you may have encountered so far.
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5 Websites That Alert Book Lovers About New Book Releases is a post from: MakeUseOf
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