ARCs and Library Thing

Yesterday I received an advance reader's copy (ARC) of Jeffrey Ford's new novel The Shadow Year from Library Thing.

If you haven't already, at least take a look at Library Thing. If you're into books at all, you owe it to yourself to check it out. You can catalog up to 200 books for free or become a life member for $25 and catalog as many as you like.

What's the point? Seeing what other people are reading, getting recommendations, reading reviews, networking with other people who have similar interests. Geek stuff, as my wife says.

Library Thing also has an Early Reviewers program which allows you to request ARCs of forthcoming books. You don't have to review the books you're sent, but the chances of getting future books are greatly increased if you review the books you've been sent. I've been sent three books and have reviewed one. The reviews don't have to be long or even positive. But realize that most of the time Library Thing receives between 10 - 25 copies of each title with hundreds of reviewer requests for each title. Still, it's a program worth checking out.