Finding a new author or book can be an arduous task to say the least. eBook discovery is a hot button issue right now, and as the industry moves to the digital realm, it is increasingly becoming harder to broaden your literary horizons. Random House is seeking to solve this issue with the launch of its new Facebook App called BookScout.
BookScout basically lets users share their favorite books with friends and then receive reading recommendations based on their own preferences. One of the best elements of this site is the focus is not exclusively on Random House ebook titles, but all of the publishers out there.
The essence of the platform is not only to discover new ebooks based on your friends reading lists, but also read and purchase content. If you have “Liked” author pages in the past, you will get a listing of their books when you fire up the app. You can click on “Read a Sample” and read the first few pages of the book, within the Facebook App. When a particular book strikes your fancy, you can make a purchase. There is a large number of retailers participating in this program, such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, iBooks, Indie Bound, Target, and Walmart. You can either purchase the digital edition of the book or get the trade version.
The Facebook app description says “Make reading more social! BookScout will use your Book and General Interest ‘Likes’ to scout out a hand-picked selection of book recommendations just for you. When you ‘Like’ or ‘Add’ a book, the book is displayed on your Newsfeed. BookScout also allows you to share books with your friends, and check out what their bookshelves for recommendations. Don’t worry: Facebook spaces out your interactions with books, so you won’t be spamming your friends with every book you like. You can change your app privacy settings at any time.”
Bookscout launched today, and you can easily get set up by installing the Facebook App.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
