I originally wrote this as a comment on a message board, but decided to steal it back and post it here. The topic was how do authors deal with negative reviews.
The best reviews are those that teach us something about the book, that have insight we didn't, that help us refine our own understanding or that make us think about things we might not have thought about on our own. (The worst reviews, generally, are those that only teach us something about the reviewer.) So thoughtful, intelligent reviews -- whether positive or negative -- are useful, even if we don't agree with them.
I don't often get to that goal in my own reviews; much of the time I just don't have the space. But it's what I strive for in my own writing and what I look for in the work of other critics.
If a review can make us think more deeply about a book, that's a good review.
Why don't you shut up?
Posted by: Guyot | January 29, 2008 at 06:42 PM
I tend to agree, David. And yes, I don't manage it most times either - my review of Martin Amis' Night Train is perhaps a good example of what a good review is not.
Posted by: De Scribe | January 30, 2008 at 03:55 AM
Hey, what are you doing slumming on *that* message board?
:D
Barry
Posted by: Barry Eisler | January 30, 2008 at 01:50 PM
At the very least, we can give prospective readers a feel for the book, both content and writing, and help them decide if they're interested in pursuing it. I know, I know, we don't set out to write "buyer's guides," but it's the least we can do.
Posted by: Clea Simon | January 30, 2008 at 06:19 PM
I only do good reviews when my corporate masters compensate me well.
RIGHT, BARRY?
Posted by: Cameron Hughes | January 30, 2008 at 07:58 PM
Clea, I think that's right, and that's what I do most of the time -- the book review as buyer's guide.
Posted by: David J. Montgomery | January 31, 2008 at 09:31 AM
I love how Monty refers to Barry Eisler's place as "a message board."
Sort of like driving a Ferrari F40, then saying you drove "a car."
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sounds awesome! and this post is just gorgeous!*
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