Dear Goodreads

[wayfaringwordhack]

I read books in French.

You like to suggest other books I might like to read.

However, it is not helpful when the books you suggest are in German.

To the best of my knowledge, a French speaker does not a German reader make.

While I find it flattering you think that if I can read one "foreign" language I can read them all, 'tis not the case.

Please work on your algorithm.  S'il vous plaît, travaillez votre algorithme. Bitte an Ihrem Algorithmus arbeiten.

Thanks,
A Reader

Comments

[queenoftheskies.livejournal.com]

Goodreads often gets confused about a great many things.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Hehe. Well said.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

D'oh, how Anglo-centric can you get! "Oh, you speak a Furrr'n tongue? Then perhaps you'll want to read this other book. Don't know the language, but it ain't English--so you're bound to like it.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Anglo-centric is exactly how it came across to me, too!

[nipernaadiagain.livejournal.com]

May-b it works like the "people who bought this also bought that" and so you suffer for sins of people who read in French and in German?

In this case it is good I have not yet managed to settle in in Goodreads - as my reading habits might start off suggestions of Estonians books for Russians or, what is worse*, suggesting Russian language books to Estonians.

*worse, because due to the Russian occupation in past, suggesting Russian to Estonians is heard like: "You must speak the language of your masters!"

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Given that the site is Amazon-owned, it probably does have the "people bought this" kind of program behind it. It is just puzzling why they don't suggest books in either English or French. :-/

*worse, because due to the Russian occupation in past, suggesting Russian to Estonians is heard like: "You must speak the language of your masters!"

That is definitely something to avoid!

[frigg.livejournal.com]

Could be worse, could be Finnish. :p