Amazon & Goodreads join forces

Do you have a Kindle?  Belong to Goodreads (the online community of avid readers who rate and discuss books they've read with friends and community)? 

Good news for you!

After Amazon’s purchase of Goodreads (GR) earlier this year, the two book giants are joining forces to integrate Goodreads into Amazon's new Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Fire devices.  Learn more about this dynamic duo and what it means for e-reading:
http://www.fastcompany.com/3016746/fast-feed/amazon-launches-kindle-reader-with-goodreads-integration

If you haven’t signed up for Goodreads, you may want to check it out.  You can share as much or as little as you wish about yourself and the books you love.  I find GR helpful for stockpiling titles of books I want to read as well as checking out reader reviews before making book selections. I especially like GR’s ability to link my account with my Facebook friends who also use GRs.  Plus, its mobile app connects me with real-time updates on the go.  And it's always fun to learn what niece Kristen is reading at college or how girlfriend Linda finds new authors.

GR can be daunting for first-time users, so here's a good place to start unraveling it:
http://www.goodreads.com/about/how_it_works

Thanks to UK-based author and blogger Joanna Penn for reminding me about this new partnership through her newsletter: [email protected]

Joanna also points out that Amazon announced its MatchBook program that allows readers to purchase reasonably priced digital copies of print books previously purchased from publishers who opt in to this program. 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1001373341

How cool is that!  Can't wait to see how these moves might prompt the competition to ramp up offerings on other types of e-readers.