Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Need Something to Read?

Book Standard has an article about a website called Storycode. Storycode will tell you what to read based on a book that you "code." I tested it out. First you enter the last book you read and then they will ask you a series of questions about the book and you rate the book accordingly. Then Storycode will search its databanks and come up with a list of recommendations for you based on the book you had entered and how you answered the questions about it. I entered Snow by Orhan Pamuk and Storycode gave me a long list of recommended reading. Each recommendation had a percentage next to it to indicate, presumably, how well matched it is to Snow. Here's the top books:

  • Great Expectations, 81.68% (have read this three times and love it even more with each reading)
  • Girl with a Pearl Earring, 81.07% (have never read this but saw the uninspiring movie)
  • Saturday, 81.06% (have not read it but it is around here somewhere waiting its turn)
  • The Known World 80.97% (haven't read it but my husband did and liked it but I have no interest in reading it)
  • God of Small Things, 80.46% (read it, loved it)
I suppose Storycode did okay in recommending books for me but really, I am not lacking in reading material so I don't know how useful this will be for me.