tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post3116870818256590238..comments2024-03-25T08:32:46.324-04:00Comments on The Sirenic Codex: Is It Just Me: Reviewers' Philosophy on Legitimacy and ObjectivityAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045558423044874125noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-11553913893336749432015-02-09T21:51:07.747-05:002015-02-09T21:51:07.747-05:00I never read professional reviews. Maybe I should,...I never read professional reviews. Maybe I should, but maybe I'm a bit scarred from reading school books that bored me? I personally have more faith in amateur reviews and a cursory Goodreads check than in a professional review because I feel like I have more in common with Goodreads people's tastes than the professionals.My expectations for reviewers is pretty lax like you said. It's all about knowing the specific reviewer and what's okay for them. Even Mari and I have much different styles and preferences.<br /><br />-P.E.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17045558423044874125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-23417917020162457382015-02-09T21:47:23.086-05:002015-02-09T21:47:23.086-05:00I think that's the feeling that made me post t...I think that's the feeling that made me post this.I read a book I didn't like that others did, and a book I liked that others didn't, and I thought about how I had to justify it because I saw other's peoples highlights and lowlights but I experienced the book differently. This is pretty much the reviewer's dilemma. <br /><br />-P.E.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17045558423044874125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-4277259193444018452015-02-09T21:45:45.293-05:002015-02-09T21:45:45.293-05:002nd paragraph, I think personally, I can't hel...2nd paragraph, I think personally, I can't help it because I write my reviews with the maybe egotistical thought that they will be read, so they must be both entertaining and well-written (I fail at that too often) and something I'm okay associating myself with, which is where honesty comes in. It's a method of communication. Maybe in principle it's better never to consider it for anyone other than myself, but frankly I wouldn't write reviews for anyone than myself if I'm being honest because my favourite part of a review is posting it and having people's reactions, not writing it. <br /><br />Agree with the part about how the concept of audience is flimsy. But it's so commonly referred to that I wonder if it's there in so many people's heads, where did it come from and if it can be an actual thing without being a real thing. Maybe like an abstract concept type thing, because audiences do exist to some extent. I mean, that's how booksellers sell books. They have clients that come in and say, "I read this, I want this!" and they say, "This is for you!" or "I can't stand this!" would result in "You should stay away from this". Even if it makes little sense, it's something we seem to know intuitively. But maybe its abstractness is why we shouldn't take it further than that... <br /><br />(I know exactly how you feel. btw sorry took so long to respond, I saw this and was like, "Wow Hanna, thanks!" and then I was short on time and didn't see it again until now.)<br /><br />-P.E.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17045558423044874125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-41509882059507281072015-02-07T21:29:09.200-05:002015-02-07T21:29:09.200-05:00These are great questions for all of us in the boo...These are great questions for all of us in the book community to ask!<br /><br />In our opinion, because the vast majority of the book community consists of amateur or hobbyist reviewers (as opposed to professional reviewers -- meaning, reviewers who work for a publication or organization), the standards can be a bit more casual. That's not better or worse! Just a different tone. Personally, we find casual reviews to be more helpful than personal reviews when it comes to figuring out whether or not we would enjoy reading a story. However, we still believe there is a place and use for professional reviews too. Probably because they do have different standards (for example, not being allowed to DNF a book) and use different criteria (for example, they don't worry about "likability" of characters as much).We Heart YAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02418854853031344928noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-63363764624669119362015-02-02T00:15:46.071-05:002015-02-02T00:15:46.071-05:00omg I've thought about this SO SO much during ...omg I've thought about this SO SO much during my reviewing lifetime. It's not an easy question nor does it have a straightforward or easy answer. I think my favorite thing you said is this:<br /><b>"is there any merit in saying it is still a good book because I think that most other people would like it seeing as I am not most other people and it did not work for me?" </b> ——THIS.<br /><br />Sometimes I feel like I need to mention it in my review, yes yo might like this because this ___ might not bother you. but it bothered me. The harder thing to do is pinpoint when you like the book and everything on paper looks good EXCEPT you just for whatever reason don't connect w/ the characters. that's when its just tough. you just gotta post your rating and that's it. that's the tough part of being a reviewer, uu know? lol. <br />Great post!<br /><br />-Diamond @ <a href="http://diamondlovestoread.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Dee's Reads</a>Diamond Cronenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04945724440992897746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2496131500664070518.post-79385120682620008152015-01-31T11:55:34.943-05:002015-01-31T11:55:34.943-05:00Any opinion a reader or reviewer has on a book is ...Any opinion a reader or reviewer has on a book is completely valid because it's an opinion. It's wrong to say that it's not fair for a reader to say "I didn't like the characters in this book, and that's why I give it 3/5 stars." because, in their eyes, that book was not a 5-star (or even a 4-star) book.<br /><br /> I don't think reviewer's should consider other people in their reviews at all, because that's not what reading is about. It's about a connection between an author and a reader, and between characters and a story and the reader. Said reader's friends/reviewer friends should have absolutely no influence on their interpretation of whatever piece of art they're looking at. I think the moment a reviewer starts letting other people influence their opinions is the moment they start to lose the trust that they had in themselves to form a truly honest opinion. Even if a book doesn't have that many reviews, all that means is that the book isn't getting as much attention as it might very well deserve. It shouldn't at all influence what any new reader has to say about it.<br /><br />I think the whole concept of "not being in the right audience" is not a very concrete one for readers/reviewers. Obviously, an author (ex: an epic fantasy author) knows their audience, they know what type of things most of their readers have read, and what tropes they are probably tired of and etc. But as a reader, you really only have things that you prefer reading and things that you don't. Some people who prefer reading similar things as you (say, fantasy and science fiction) may be part of the same audience as you, but usually only for certain books. One person may also love reading classics, and another may not. Even well-known authors are always going to have people who haven't read a fantasy book (or a horror novel, or a comic, etc) in ten years, and suddenly they pick up this book and find out that they absolutely love it. What audience are they in? I mean, do we really even know? Everyone likes different things. So, all in all, it's really flimsy and undefined.<br /><br />(Feel free to reply with agreements/disagreements, since pretty much 80% of everything I say is pulled out of my ass)<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557425026050958378noreply@blogger.com