tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post5763949306126870982..comments2024-03-14T00:16:32.077-07:00Comments on 50 Books: BOOKS: What Do I Know. I'm Just a Book Blogger.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16613804843380827691noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-5345475615002082272007-05-08T19:26:00.000-07:002007-05-08T19:26:00.000-07:00Another POV on the issue. In case you're intereste...Another POV on the issue. In case you're interested :)<BR/><BR/>http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2007/05/what_is_the_role_of_blogs_as_b.phpAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-81127736382814962482007-05-07T11:48:00.000-07:002007-05-07T11:48:00.000-07:00After reading your post, it occurs to me that the ...After reading your post, it occurs to me that the one set of print reviews I bother with actually reads a lot like a book blog. The U of T's Bookstore Review is fabulous: it reviews regular and genre fiction, and tells you both the author's opinion of the book and enough about the plot to know if you'd want to read it yourself. It doesn't even confine itself to new releases. And I can pick it up on campus for free.<BR/><BR/>Basically, I like a print review that can do what book blogs do: interest me in trying something new.Poodlerathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07321965754766797983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-44763325535695923612007-05-03T18:22:00.000-07:002007-05-03T18:22:00.000-07:00They talk about other books and influences on the ...<I>They talk about other books and influences on the author, why the subject is or is not relevant now politically -- all sorts of things.</I><BR/><BR/>And blogs have the same potential - look how many English graduates have them. *g* What blogs have in terms of potential that one usually does not see in print reviews is the trust of a <I>person's</I> taste. I read this blog regularly, so I have the ability to know (roughly) how the writer's tastes are. I know we disagree on some things, I know she has tastes I do not. She can establish a continuum of interest. In that way, blogging has the potential to develop an even bigger departure from simplistic "is it good or not" absolutism - it's rare that we like a review so much that we see what else that reviewer liked and get to know implied tastes as well as explicit review statements, but with blogs we do it all the time.Jennifer Goodlandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02720493790784398743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-87594797427338425722007-05-03T17:35:00.000-07:002007-05-03T17:35:00.000-07:00I love a good book review, but the beauty part of ...I love a good book review, but the beauty part of blogs is that people aren't always talking about the latest. They'll talk about anything and everything.Bybeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10061186489010154661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-61317068804081306712007-05-03T16:16:00.000-07:002007-05-03T16:16:00.000-07:00Great post, DG. I generally like book reviews that...Great post, DG. I generally like book reviews that make it sound like the reviewer was at least as interested in reading the book as s/he was in sounding smart in the review. So the Times reviews hardly ever do it for me:)landismomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10328094347362872558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-5539852363012533662007-05-03T11:21:00.000-07:002007-05-03T11:21:00.000-07:00I much prefer sites like yours when I'm trying to ...I much prefer sites like yours when I'm trying to find the next great thing to read (or more often, when I'm not trying, since I already have a monstrous to-be-read pile), but I do like the sometimes greater depth and context that a lengthy printed review provides. <BR/><BR/>For that reason I continue to read the <I>Globe</I>'s "Books" section, despite the fact I always forget to note which books sound good before recycling the paper (another benefit of online reviews, I guess!).Jayneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08551443249138741315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-87691096888349107082007-05-03T09:48:00.000-07:002007-05-03T09:48:00.000-07:00I find it interesting that there is a boring and m...I find it interesting that there is a boring and mistaken generalization that the internet as a whole, lacks criticality.<BR/>Now this is not specific to the book reviewing community - I had a similar conversation with the head of a top Canadian art college about this very thing - I said "wow, isn't it amazing that some of the most-viewed videos on you-tube have millions of views, as opposed to an 'official' cultural institution like the (insert name of your city here) museum of modern art, or even some of the top galleries around the world, who get excited about audience numbers in the very low thousands", and the head of the art college said that he finds that you-tube lacks criticality ... <BR/>but then i've just realised fairly recently that being intelligent doesn't just mean being critical ... and then there is the opposing view that blogging is all about citizens becoming active contributors to media as opposed to passive consumers of mediaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-27605813366537288602007-05-03T09:27:00.000-07:002007-05-03T09:27:00.000-07:00Well, if that is how you feel you should check out...Well, if that is how you feel you should check out the book reviews at the Nation. Usually the books they review are academic and political, but every one I've ever read is anything but "hermetically sealed."<BR/><BR/>They talk about other books and influences on the author, why the subject is or is not relevant now politically -- all sorts of things.Hazel Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02776475158182294831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-85599319764994561072007-05-03T09:16:00.000-07:002007-05-03T09:16:00.000-07:00“We have a lot of opinions in our world,” said Joh...<I>“We have a lot of opinions in our world,” said John Freeman, president of the National Book Critics Circle. "What we need is more mediation and reflection, which is why newspapers and literary journals are so important."</I><BR/><BR/>I work as a magazine editor, and I have to tell you, it's not like there's some long vetting process for the people who write for them. They get hired the way most people do: a modicum of talent and because they know somebody. This arbitrary assignment of authority to print outlets is disingenuous.<BR/><BR/>However, I agree with AltoidsAddict. I enjoy reading book reviews that delve into the text and try to provide a context and give me some support of their opinion. I think reviews can be good reading in themselves, regardless of whether it leads you to a book. But I do like me some "stodgy and pretentious" sometimes.<BR/><BR/>This just sounds like more Internet-killed-the-newspaper-star hand wringing and that whole "what do the people on the Internet know?" bugaboo. Turns out we know a lot, so they should stop being so patronizing.Sassmasterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15360141438357032519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-65947017701268477512007-05-03T07:45:00.000-07:002007-05-03T07:45:00.000-07:00I ultimately disagree with this statement:Here's a...I ultimately disagree with this statement:<BR/><BR/><I>Here's another thing about so-called book reviews: why is it so damn hard for reviewers just to come out and say if the book was good or not?</I><BR/><BR/>And my answer would be no.<BR/><BR/>The best book reviewers recognize that taste is subjective. A book so thoroughly awful it has no redeeming qualities would probably not be reviewed at all; a book so perfect it has no flaws whatsoever hasn't yet been written. So the reviewer has been tasked with saying what the author did well, what s/he feels readers will relate to, comment on the book's theme and connections to other works, and other things that help readers determine if they would like the book.<BR/><BR/>Taking, say, a Jungian exploration of love among the Amish and leaving all that out for simply "This book is good, go buy it" misleads the reader into buying a good book, then discovering s/he hates it because s/he hates Jungian themes. Had the reviewer said, as they do, "This is an effective Jungian exploration of love among the Amish; Freudians might balk at the lack of significance given to butter churns," that would be a quality review. Reviews that say "this is good" without giving detailed reasons why are even passed over on Amazon's user review system because they are devoid of significance.<BR/><BR/>That's also why we still have a thriving literary culture: people by and large know what it means to recommend specific portions of a book, and why you need justification to like what you like if you want anyone to mimic your taste.Jennifer Goodlandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02720493790784398743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9931308.post-980560246319061892007-05-03T02:39:00.000-07:002007-05-03T02:39:00.000-07:00Funnily enough Colleen over at chasingray.com has ...Funnily enough Colleen over at <A>chasingray.com</A> has been talking about this as well. <BR/><BR/>Whilst I enjoy reading print reviews I find them terribly pompous sometimes. However, part of the enjoyment of the reviews is the manner in which I read them. Sunday paper in a beer garden with a packet of cigarettes. It's all part of a visceral experience.<BR/><BR/>Never has a print review convinced me to read a book or genre that I have written off. Online reviews have. <BR/><BR/>Why this here blog that you have encouraged me to reread some books I disliked, to see them in the light you and your commentors see them. It's made me a better, more thoughtful reader. <BR/><BR/>While all tastes aren't the same literary bloggers always infuse their posts with the basic love of books. Print reviews are written like it's their job (which I know it is but if I got paid to write about books I'd be the happiest ginger in the world).<BR/><BR/>Sorry for the essay.Rustybellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03928815167471515537noreply@blogger.com