Five Stories of Friendship and Favorite Books Found on Goodreads

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"Friendship," C.S. Lewis wrote, "is born at the moment when one man says to another, 'What! You, too? I thought that no one but myself…'"

We see a lot of those moments on Goodreads. Here you are not alone in your love of authors and books; here you can find entire groups of readers as caught up in other worlds and other characters as you are.
As Goodreads Turns Ten, we wanted to highlight some amazing stories from our members about finding kindred spirits and rediscovering the joy of reading. Read them below, and, if you have your own story, share it with us in the comments.

International Pen Pals

"Several years ago I connected with a woman from Germany named Carolin on Goodreads. We had read the same book, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, and started discussing it. Over many exchanged messages, we found we had a lot in common. And we just kept talking. We became very close. She would mail me surprises from whatever country she was visiting.

When I lost my first son, she was a great comfort to me. We never lost contact. Last year she flew all the way from Poland to Colorado to visit with us! We hung out and had an amazing time.

And it all started over a random book on Goodreads!"
-Leah K.

Guilt Free

"I stumbled into romance books as a guilty pleasure in my late twenties—and I do mean 'guilty.' I would never, ever, on pain of death to my e-reader, have admitted out loud what I liked to read. Instead, desperate for more recommendations but too shy to ask anyone in real life, I found Goodreads.

After meeting hundreds of like-minded readers and authors on the website, I stopped feeling guilty about my books. I even casually sorta-kinda dropped it into conversation with my sister one day to see what would happen. Lo and behold, she was a closet romance fan, too! Intrigued, I asked my mom and...yup! Now we trade recommendations and industry gossip and even go to conventions together. Goodreads for the win!"
-Z-Squared

Happily Ever After

"My brother Hani is getting married to a woman named Hind Al Essa. We all used to live in Saudi Arabia, but Hani and Hind met on Goodreads after bonding over the books of Fyodor Dostoyevsky, their favorite author."
-Hind

Origin Story

"I was always a reader. Some of my earliest memories are of my mother taking me to the library so I could pick out books to read on the weekends. I didn't know a lot of other people who read, so reading was mostly an isolated act for me.

Then, in 2007, I discovered Goodreads. Not only did I immediately join book clubs to connect with readers, I also started shelving and reviewing books. I didn't know it at the time but both of those activities would lead me to where I am now— a creator and moderator of The Next Best Book Club (TNBBC) and a small press book blogger/freelance publicist.

From the moment I created an account here, not a day has gone by where I haven't checked in to the site. Through Goodreads and TNBBC, I've met a seemingly infinite number of amazing readers and authors. I've discovered new and exciting books to read, and I've been able to introduce those books and authors to other readers, too!

I am so thankful for Otis and Elizabeth and the book haven they've created for us. My reading life exploded when I found Goodreads, and I don't know where I'd be today without it."
-Lori

From: Your Favorite Author

"I was engaged to be married in November. For the past few months, he had been keeping a secret that he was not ready to get married and was hoping to change his mind by the time the wedding day came. (Imagine that perfect plot of being left at the altar!) Thankfully, I found out and called off our engagement.

In order to keep myself distracted, I decided to pick up reading again. After a few tries, I found a book that was just daring me to read it—The Fantastic Fable of Peter Able by Natalie Grigson. I was so in love with everything about this book that I decided to message the author on Goodreads. She was like a celebrity to me, so I never actually expected anything to come of my message to her. But then I saw an email pop up on my iPhone! I had to catch my breath for the next five minutes. Natalie replied back…to me!

Since then, I've been so fortunate to exchange a couple of emails with her. I told her she was the reason my "internal monologue" was something I was no longer ashamed of! And thanks to the encouragement, I started my own book club. Natalie gave me the confidence I needed to open myself back up to literature."
-Elizabeth C.


See complete coverage of the Goodreads Ten-Year Anniversary Celebration, including:
Participate in our Hide-a-Book Day on September 18
The Best Books of the Decade, Chosen by You
Ten of Our Top Reviews of All Time
Ten Ways You Know You're a Goodreads Member