Are fair book reviews possible?
@morgandrake (2136)
United States
March 13, 2009 6:10pm CST
While I was working on my latest book review, I found myself wondering if it was even possible to do a fair and unbiased book review.
It might have been the fact that I could hear a voice in the back of my head saying "If you can not say anything nice, then do not say anything at all." I am not sure what one of my relatives said that, but I am sure that the voice is one from my childhood.
And with this particular book, it was natural to hear it.
The reason I considered writing a review for the book is simply the fact that the author rants and raves about a couple of bad book reviews that he recieved when the book came out; as in he gives links to the bad reviews...the freelance writer in me goes if I write a bad book review, will he give me free advertising too?
Probably not: my book review ended being a lot more favorable than I expected it to be. I actually found some merit in his book. Sigh. I am going to have to do my own advertising.
But over the years, I have done a lot of bad book reviews.
A few years ago, one writer that I know said that he would send a free copy of his book to legitimate book reviewers. What exactly is a legitimate book reviewer? I am betting it is one that you are sure is going to give you a favorable review.
Or at least it is if you do not know how books actually get sold. It is not the reviews that sell books, it is the word of mouth. Even a bad book review can sell books (calling something a train wreck makes people curious for some reason).
So it probably does not matter what my opinion of your book is, you just have to get people curious enourgh about it to sell copies.
2 people like this
3 responses
@underdogtoo (9579)
• Philippines
15 Mar 09
I don't think that there is ever a fair anything much less a book review. Life is not fair and every person is biased. When you write a book review you bring all your biases with you and it colors what you say. The way I see it, you bias could be helpful to someone. cheers!!
2 people like this
@jend80 (2071)
• United Kingdom
16 Mar 09
re the referance to an "legitimate book reviewer" - maybe they meant some one who genuinely worked as a book reviewer for a publication or somebody who actually writes reviews and not just posting brief descriptions on a website/blog while claiming to be a reviewer in order to blag freebies.
@ElicBxn (63252)
• United States
14 Mar 09
LONG before there was internet, and I was in a tiny Trek club, I did a book review of a book that was SO BAD. Heck, this guy didn't even LOOK at a MAP!
I know Texas is a LARGE state, but this guy had these people fly 250 MILES from IH-45 to the mountains of west Texas - 250 miles would've barely gotten him to West Texas (which is just north of Waco Texas) and THEN the MORON had them fly SOUTH to El Paso - and if you look at a map of Texas, you know there is NO place in Texas you can fly SOUTH to get to El Paso....
Top it all off - he had the Astrodome (which was new when he wrote the book) in a SAGE covered plain - I'm sure that's a BIG surprise to those in low, WET Houston!
I couldn't even really FINISH the book it was so full of these kinds of mistakes and I gave it a TERRIBLE review.
1 person likes this
@morgandrake (2136)
• United States
28 Mar 09
Anyone who can not be bothered to do proper research about their story setting deserves a bad review.
1 person likes this
