Prompt - Week Five

The Chosen One

Look over the reviews - do you feel they are both reliable? Do they follow the guidelines Erin talked about in her presentation? How likely would you be to buy this book for your library?

     Both of the reviews are only reliable up to a point. The blog review does a good job of giving the book’s plot summary; perhaps it gives a bit too much detail. It does not have information regarding appeals and characteristics which are important for a book review. Erin’s presentation talked about the use of quotations – there were none in this review. In the Amazon review, the writer gives a great account of the appeals and characteristics; however, the plot summary is very weak. There was no use of quotations for the review. If I read either one of the reviews, I probably would not want to buy the book based on the information given.

Angela’s Ashes

How do these reviews make you feel about the possibility of adding Angela's Ashes to your collection?

     I was familiar with the book Angela’s Ashes because it was required reading for an English class at an academic library where I used to work. I had wanted to read it because it sounded like an interesting book; however, after reading the reviews, the memoir sounds so depressing, I think it would be difficult for me to get through it. I may still decide to read it someday because I do like memoirs and history and am interested in reading how others had to live in the past. If I wasn’t already familiar with the book and had to go by what I read for the three reviews, I would add it to my library’s collection. I believe it was a story that needed to be written. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography so that’s another reason why I would add it to the collection.

     While the three reviews for Angela’s Ashes were interesting, they were so long that I believe I received too much information about the memoir. It made me feel like I know what most of the book is about. There are direct quotations in each review, one of John Updike’s guidelines that was noted in Erin’s presentation.

Do you think it's fair that one type of book is reviewed to death and other types of books get little to no coverage? How does this affect a library's collection?

     I do think that it is unfair when one type of book is heavily reviewed while other books get little or no coverage. There are many reviews for Angela’s Ashes available online. I’m sure there are other noteworthy books that don’t receive the attention they deserve while some books are just full of hype and little else. This can affect a library’s collection because the buyers aren't made aware of the less-noticed exceptional books in journals, magazines, and websites that review books. They also may not be advertised as well due to the publisher’s financial limits.

     I am disappointed to read that e-Book only books are seldom reviewed in professional publications. There are many patrons at my library who only download e-Books and love to read romance novels. They don’t have much to go by as far as reviews go if the author is not well-known.

And how do you feel about review sources that won't print negative content? Do you think that's appropriate?

     I believe that negative content should be featured in book reviews. Some readers value other’s opinions, both positive and negative. I feel that something might missing if I can only read what is good. It is important to remember that every review reflects one writer’s opinion and that is all that it is – just an opinion. What one person refers to as a treasure may be another person’s extreme disappointment. I like to read through several reviews to get an idea how many are good, bad, or somewhere in the middle.

If you buy for your library, how often do you use reviews to make your decisions? If not, how do you feel about reviews for personal reading, and what are some of your favorite review sources?

     Unfortunately, I do not buy for my library. I wish I did! In the past, I did not read reviews for personal reading but I am now starting to read many reviews especially to choose books for my annotations! I want to read a book that overall is rated highly. I like to glance over the number of stars a book gets if I am in a hurry. I don’t have time nor do I want to read very long reviews. My favorite review sources are Novelist, Amazon, RT Reviews, Library Journal, and Publisher’s Weekly.