Everyone who's a reader loves that anticipatory thrill of opening a new book, settling into the corner of your overstuffed sofa, clearing one's mind, and sinking into the first line, the opening scene. Ah, to be introduced to new friends whose dilemmas will engage us far into the night and authors who reveal truths we immediately recognize as precisely . . . well, true.
So why is it that when readers want to share their enthusiasm for a great new book they've found, they post a review with the chapters outlined or the ending lines in quotations?
The purpose of a review is not to summarize the book. The purpose of a review is to entice or discourage someone from reading forward. It should be brief, to the point, and perhaps (in only one or two more paragraphs) related to a bigger issue that expands the relevance of the book. Tell us you didn't believe the protagonist, that the prose was too dense, that the storyline was non-existent, that the imagery was intense, but please, please don't paraphrase the book AND don't give away the ending.
rate
email
print
link to this page
Comments: 30
It's not a book report to prove you've read the book.
I love finding a new author (new to me anyway)that I enjoy, and finding he/she has written a lot of books - its like a gift knowing I have all those other books to look forward to
http://jennsbookshelf.blogspot.com/
The Book review piece was really a reaction to some long reviews on Gather with every chapter outlined. My rant, I guess. The ideas expressed here are not new or brilliant, just my feeling about reviews. Books are such an amazing resource, an amazing form of communication and vicarious living. I love books.
I disagree. Perhaps the SOLE purpose of an advertisement or a jacket blurb is to get people to read the book but a review should be just that: an HONEST assessment of the book that allows the reader to judge whether or not they'd be interested in the book. Of course the reader has to use their best judgment and consider the source of the review as well.
KEO: "I have a duty to get people to read and buy them."
A duty to whom? I cannot seriously consider any book "review" in which the reviewer feels it is their "duty" to get people to buy the book. As Sarah said above, "The purpose of a review is to entice or discourage someone from reading forward."
I also agree with some of Sarah's other points above. Unless it's a lengthy review in the NYT Book Review, I like book reviews to be somewhat concise, and stick to reviewing the book. If I wanted to read large chunks of text from the book, I'd buy it after the review convinced me to do so.
A book review gives an honest opinion on the merits of a book, the writing, the artwork, and the other merits or lack thereof.
I tend to think that a book review should include a brief summary to let the reader know what to expect and then add their own pros and cons about the content.
I wouldn't dream of divulging the ending.
My recent bookreview on gather was a first for me, but since it was non-fiction, my main question was more along the lines of how much is enough?
great post