Social reading is the new equivalent of reading in public. It's a way to share what you're reading, and how good or terrible it is. The website goodreads.com has a feature that allows you to sign in via facebook or twitter, so you can start sharing book recommendations with your friends. They have lists of great books for young adults, fans of historical fiction, and all kinds of different genres.
Social reading can also be a way to start a book group without leaving the comfort of your own home. Readups.com is a type of online book club. You can sign up with twitter, and get a book group going within minutes. This can be a great tool for university students to discuss readings. You can select something to read, set a timeframe for your group, and then start discussing.
I love a book that makes the world fall away. This past year, I discovered the works of Junot Diaz. He received the Pulitizer Prize for fiction for his immigrant-family saga entitled "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao". It is complex, multi-faceted, and an in-depth rendering of the immigrant experience. He shows us what it looks like to be entwined in the motherland of the Dominican Republic, and simultaneously living out the realities of immigrant life in New Jersey. He effortlessly combines these worlds. His short story collections are fantastic, and definitely worth your time.
If you are in search of good books, Booklamp.org is a site worth checking out. It acts like Pandora.com does for music lovers. Based on what you love, you are recommended other works in a similar vein. You start with a title that you love, and based on the elements of that story, you are recommended other books. For example, I started with "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz and was recommended other works that contained the same elements. You can also play with "StoryDNA" to adjust the elements that you are interested in. For example, the book I selected has five highlighted components: pain and fear, extended family, explicit language, deviance, and elements of time. You can adjust those elements to find books that are closer to your interests.
Social reading opens up a lot of different avenues for public libraries. Social reading makes it very easy to stay informed about new books and local authors. These resources can help patrons find books that their children or family members may enjoy. It can also help them find new authors and introduce them to newly acclaimed works. Most importantly, it helps spark interest in reading. Bibliocommons now has a social reading feature. You can log into your account, and make lists and comment about your favourite books. I did a bit of exploring, and have decided to post a list of my all-time favourites:
http://vision.bibliocommons.com/list/show/124175794_rania2/230892977_great_books
If you are looking for something new and great to read, this will give you a good indication of the books people are loving: http://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-fiction-books-2013
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