Newest Obsession: Small Demons

I love data. LOVE IT. Tags, taxonomies, spreadsheets, charts, graphs, numbers, collections, cataloging... you name it. I keep a spreadsheet of my reading statistics (which allows me to post annual reading stat posts like this one), have recently rediscovered the joy of tagging titles on LibraryThing (come join me!), and am the only person at work who doesn't groan when billing comes around at the end of each month.

So imagine my delight in discovering Small Demons, a site apparently dedicated to collecting information about my one true love (with apologies to my husband): books.


Small Demons allows users to create collections of books (anyone looking for a list of books featuring Wicked Stepmothers? Rendezvous in Paris?), people (Geminis, Oscar Winners, Comedic Influences), items (video games featured in Ready Player One), and pretty much any other subject you can imagine. But it also calls on members to tag books with the people, organizations, places and things contained in them, building a database of information about and quotes from books that is awe-inspiring and overwhelming and a downright rabbithole of entertainment.

Say, for example, I'm going on vacation to Cape Cod and want to read something set on the peninsula. Easy: I can search by Place for "Cape Cod." This will return 774 books that mention Cape Cod, whether it be the setting of the entire book or merely mentioned in passing, which I can then narrow further by specific location. Or if I've just finished reading two fictionalized biographies of Zelda Fitzgerald and I'm eager for more, I can search People for "Zelda Fitzgerald," and get 71 books that mention the star of the Jazz Age, whether she be the author (Save Me the Waltz), a key character (Flapper), or just mentioned in passing (A More Perfect Union).

I could get caught up in this site browsing or adding my own data and quotes (notably missing from the Zelda Fitzgerald page, for example, are both of the novels that prompted me to want to learn more about her). It's definitely a site that's still growing, but one with a lot of potential. Anyone else been browsing here?
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11 comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 13, 2013 at 11:05 AM

    I wish I loved spreadsheets and data! It would make my job a whole lot more fun if I did. :)

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  2. BethSeptember 13, 2013 at 11:07 AM

    Thanks for brining everyone down with you! Haha. I kid. This seems really cool. I'll have to check it out.

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  3. RedSeptember 13, 2013 at 3:41 PM

    This seems so cool (for nerdy people who keep reading stats in spreadsheets. *high five*)

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  4. Shannon @ River City ReadingSeptember 13, 2013 at 7:22 PM

    I've never even heard of this, but it sounds like something I could totally waste days in!

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    Replies
    1. Kerry MSeptember 16, 2013 at 9:29 PM

      Yeah, I had to step away after a bit, but it seems SO fun.

      Delete
  5. Jenny @ Reading the EndSeptember 13, 2013 at 8:54 PM

    Oh my God. This looks like the most amazing thing that has ever happened. I have to go investigate it straight away. I love categorizing things, it is the best.

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  6. SarahSeptember 14, 2013 at 11:23 AM

    Iiiiinteresting! I'm definitely going to have to play around with this soon. I can see it being a HUGE time-stealer.

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    Replies
    1. Kerry MSeptember 16, 2013 at 9:29 PM

      Yep. This and Edelweiss are my latest downfalls.

      Delete

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