Looking for the least common denominator: Merged receommendations from The Storygraph

[hildea]

The Storygraph is a reading tracker and book recommendation site. Among other functions, it lets you list some usernames, and its machine learning algorithm will suggest books that all of those users might want to read *).

In the Storygraph networking thread, JSWolf said:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

What I'd like to see is recommendations from SG when we have everyone's book lists. See if what the system comes up with is acceptable.

I'm curious to see that, too. If you want to try it, drop your Storygraph user name in this thread, and I'll get some merged recommendations and post them here. Then we can gripe at how bad it is or marvel at how good it is


*) That specific function is only available to paying users -- ie. a paying user must make the request, but they can add all kinds of users to the list. All basic functionality, like importing book lists from other places like Goodreads, adding and reviewing books, and getting recommendations, is available to all users.

[John F]

Originally Posted by hildea

The Storygraph is a reading tracker and book recommendation site. Among other functions, it lets you list some usernames, and its machine learning algorithm will suggest books that all of those users might want to read *).

In the Storygraph networking thread, JSWolf said:


I'm curious to see that, too. If you want to try it, drop your Storygraph user name in this thread, and I'll get some merged recommendations and post them here. Then we can gripe at how bad it is or marvel at how good it is


...

This sounds very interesting (even though I am not a SG user, or intend to become one). Any chance you could post the results as different users get added; I would be interested to see how the AI algorithm changes as more users are added.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by John F

This sounds very interesting (even though I am not a SG user, or intend to become one). Any chance you could post the results as different users get added; I would be interested to see how the AI algorithm changes as more users are added.

That would be interesting to see.

[Desertway]

I'm very curious too. My SG name is Desertway.

[hildea]

Huh. First attempt (for us three):

Purple Hibiscus
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Ninefox Gambit
The Machineries of Empire #1
Yoon Ha Lee

على مقهى الوجودية: الحرية والوجود وكوكتيلات المشمش
Sarah Bakewell, حسام نايل

Second attempt:

The last one again

The Glorious Heresies
Lisa McInerney

The Incrementalists
Incrementalists #1
Skyler White, Steven Brust

I'm surprised the algorithm is suggesting a book in a language I can't read, it seems there's some room for improvement :-)

[Desertway]

The Glorious Heresies is a book that SG has recommended to me in the past. I bought it and it's making it's way to the top of the next read queue. The others I would be unlikely to read.

[Uncle Robin]

Originally Posted by hildea

I'm surprised the algorithm is suggesting a book in a language I can't read, it seems there's some room for improvement :-)

This happened to me quite a bit, it almost always means the book has been wrongly categorised as English. File a ticket and it will be fixed quite promptly. It doesn't hurt to check the "languages read" section of your preferences too.

EDIT: So that's definitely a glitch, for some reason recommending an edition correctly listed as Arabic instead of the English edition. Definitely worth letting them know.

[astrangerhere]

Hildea, if you run it again, include me. Looking at our profiles, I am more likely to have overlap with Jon than with you or Robin, but I am prepared to be pleasantly surprised.

[hildea]

With all four of us I get:

1. The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World
Riley Black
A nonfiction book (history, nature, science), that's informative and medium-paced.

2. The Incrementalists
Incrementalists #1
Skyler White, Steven Brust
A fiction book (fantasy, science fiction), that's adventurous, challenging, and medium-paced.

3. The Library Book
Susan Orlean
A nonfiction book (history, true crime), that's informative and medium-paced.


And a second attempt:

4. Some by Virtue Fall
The Seven Gods #1
Alexandra Rowland
A fiction book (fantasy), that's adventurous, funny, and fast-paced.

5. Partials
Partials Sequence #1
Dan Wells
A fiction book (science fiction, young adult), that's adventurous, mysterious, and fast-paced.

6. Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II
John W. Dower
A nonfiction book (history), that's informative and slow-paced.

Of these, 2 and 4 are books I might want to read. Maybe 1 -- I read very little non-fiction, but that one seems interesting. 5 seems meh from the description, but I might give it a try. 3 and 6 don't interest me at all.

Thanks for looking at the book in Arabic, Uncle Robin. Looking at it, I find it's listed in desertway's to-read-list (in Arabic), so if you don't recongnize it, desertway, you have probably clicked on it by mistake some time. (https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/...c-7f10bcf82c69)

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by hildea

With all four of us I get:

1. The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World
Riley Black
A nonfiction book (history, nature, science), that's informative and medium-paced.

2. The Incrementalists
Incrementalists #1
Skyler White, Steven Brust
A fiction book (fantasy, science fiction), that's adventurous, challenging, and medium-paced.

3. The Library Book
Susan Orlean
A nonfiction book (history, true crime), that's informative and medium-paced.


And a second attempt:

4. Some by Virtue Fall
The Seven Gods #1
Alexandra Rowland
A fiction book (fantasy), that's adventurous, funny, and fast-paced.

5. Partials
Partials Sequence #1
Dan Wells
A fiction book (science fiction, young adult), that's adventurous, mysterious, and fast-paced.

6. Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II
John W. Dower
A nonfiction book (history), that's informative and slow-paced.

Of these, 2 and 4 are books I might want to read. Maybe 1 -- I read very little non-fiction, but that one seems interesting. 5 seems meh from the description, but I might give it a try. 3 and 6 don't interest me at all.

Thanks for looking at the book in Arabic, Uncle Robin. Looking at it, I find it's listed in desertway's to-read-list (in Arabic), so if you don't recongnize it, desertway, you have probably clicked on it by mistake some time. (https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/...c-7f10bcf82c69)

Its interesting, that many of the subjects (history, science fiction, etc.) that I have a lot of made it, but there was somehow NO romance, which you read a ton of.

[Desertway]

Originally Posted by hildea

With all four of us I get:
Thanks for looking at the book in Arabic, Uncle Robin. Looking at it, I find it's listed in desertway's to-read-list (in Arabic), so if you don't recongnize it, desertway, you have probably clicked on it by mistake some time. (https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/...c-7f10bcf82c69)

Ah. It looks like something went wonky with my Goodreads export / Storygraph import. The book in my GR To-Read list is the English edition: At the Existentialist Café: Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails. Fixed now on SG.

[hildea]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

Its interesting, that many of the subjects (history, science fiction, etc.) that I have a lot of made it, but there was somehow NO romance, which you read a ton of.

Yes, that's interesting! I tried suggestions with me and only one other user, and refreshed several times. I got no romance suggestions for you or desertway, but in the suggestions for me and jswolf, I got a couple SFF romances/romance-adjacent:

Kit Rocha: Deal with the devil

C.M. Caplan: The Sword in the Street


About the non-fiction: The help text for creating buddy reads says:

Who would you like to do a buddy read with?

Enter their usernames in the box below and we'll suggest books that we think the group will love.

Each person needs to have at least one book on their To-Read Pile.

so the machine learning is looking at our to-read-piles instead of (or in addition to?) our reading history. At first glance, that seems reasonable, but I tend to be more ambitious when planning what future me should read than when deciding what current me is going to read So I have a lot more non-fiction books and heavy-ish books in my to-read-pile than in my reading history.

Also, when I abandon a book because it is too heavy for my current mood, I put it back in my to-read-pile. Victor LaValle's The Devil in Silver is one of those -- well written, but dark and depressing, which I'm not often in the mood for.

I guess I should suggest that they use reading history instead for the buddy read suggestions. Unless I'm atypical in being overly ambitious on behalf of future me...

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by hildea

Huh. First attempt (for us three):

Purple Hibiscus
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Ninefox Gambit
The Machineries of Empire #1
Yoon Ha Lee

على مقهى الوجودية: الحرية والوجود وكوكتيلات المشمش
Sarah Bakewell, حسام نايل

Second attempt:

The last one again

The Glorious Heresies
Lisa McInerney

The Incrementalists
Incrementalists #1
Skyler White, Steven Brust

I'm surprised the algorithm is suggesting a book in a language I can't read, it seems there's some room for improvement :-)

Can you do this again with my books added please? It should be possible to tell the system to ignore specific recommendations so can you ignore any that are not English? Thanks.

[Uncle Robin]

Being il maestro di maestri of misanthropes, buddy reads are mystery to me. But when I mentioned this thread to the founder she replied:

Would it be possible for you to tell them email in to support@thestorygraph.com and one of us will explain everything to them that they can then share with the group?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by hildea

With all four of us I get:

1. The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World
Riley Black
A nonfiction book (history, nature, science), that's informative and medium-paced.

2. The Incrementalists
Incrementalists #1
Skyler White, Steven Brust
A fiction book (fantasy, science fiction), that's adventurous, challenging, and medium-paced.

3. The Library Book
Susan Orlean
A nonfiction book (history, true crime), that's informative and medium-paced.


And a second attempt:

4. Some by Virtue Fall
The Seven Gods #1
Alexandra Rowland
A fiction book (fantasy), that's adventurous, funny, and fast-paced.

5. Partials
Partials Sequence #1
Dan Wells
A fiction book (science fiction, young adult), that's adventurous, mysterious, and fast-paced.

6. Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II
John W. Dower
A nonfiction book (history), that's informative and slow-paced.

Of these, 2 and 4 are books I might want to read. Maybe 1 -- I read very little non-fiction, but that one seems interesting. 5 seems meh from the description, but I might give it a try. 3 and 6 don't interest me at all.

Thanks for looking at the book in Arabic, Uncle Robin. Looking at it, I find it's listed in desertway's to-read-list (in Arabic), so if you don't recongnize it, desertway, you have probably clicked on it by mistake some time. (https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/...c-7f10bcf82c69)

If my books were included, I might consider 2 or 4.