tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post7830968834979945867..comments2024-03-20T19:40:58.078-05:00Comments on The OF Blog: Five general tips to "old" book bloggersLarry Nolenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16001420558511460998noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post-47948575503272049282010-02-21T02:20:43.354-06:002010-02-21T02:20:43.354-06:00Eddie, I suspect we don't disagree as much as ...Eddie, I suspect we don't disagree as much as you might think we do. Look how I phrased things - "The third person is not your enemy," followed by focusing solely on an over-reliance on the 1st person by some.<br /><br />I use 1st person on a limited basis, mostly in an attempt to avoid certain awkward constructions. I write reviews under the presumption that it is my opinion that is being expressed and that there isn't an "objective" view possible. I just believe that when used correctly, a mixture of 1st and 3rd person can convey much about the book without placing the reviewer in front of the text. Those type of reviews usually annoy me. Borges is one of the few who could pull it off and he didn't use it constantly, as his personal anecdotes were designed to place the text in a more proper context.<br /><br />So I guess my comment here can apply to many of the other responses as well. All things in moderation...it's just that I don't believe that several reviewers know how to use 1st person in moderation :PLarry Nolenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16001420558511460998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post-50008042162409883752010-02-20T19:16:08.727-06:002010-02-20T19:16:08.727-06:00There's a fine line between preachy first pers...There's a fine line between preachy first person reviews and good first person reviews. If all the reviewer quotes is I... I ... I... and doesn't tell me anything about the book it makes me wonder. <br /><br />I like to branch out on other books, I don't always review them but I do like to try the occasional "different" book from what I review. <br /><br />All fairly good advice with a bit of snark.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post-40744495105797622702010-02-20T18:59:34.458-06:002010-02-20T18:59:34.458-06:00I can see your point regarding third person book r...I can see your point regarding third person book reviews, and leaving out the anecdotal bits (like which other bloggers liked it and how much hype it has received) - but I do think that these two things sometimes add perspective to a book review. For instance, if you know you're about to give a negative review for a book that has received a great deal of hype - well, you're essentially giving the discerning reader of your review two views in one. They then know that the book has received good reviews from other locations, but that you didn't like it for x, y and z reason. For me, this is giving the review readers the opportunity to exercise their own mind on whether this book is for them. If you just head right on into a negative review without any context at all, I think it can be more detrimental. Just my opinion though :-)Magemandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08986754628836562869noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post-33706226025694243042010-02-20T13:28:26.784-06:002010-02-20T13:28:26.784-06:00Disagree re third person, I have to say. Everythi...Disagree re third person, I have to say. Everything in the review is your opinion, and using the 3rd person is just a distancing technique to pretend you're objective. Particularly in extended piece (i.e. academic writing), I find it much harder to read stuff that uses awkward fictions like "this author considers". No, you mean "I consider." "Wrestling with the text" is inherently a subjective activity.<br /><br />Which isn't to say that lean, anecdote-free reviews are a bad thing. Reviewing the hype is just bad form because you're not concentrating on the text. I just think that an emphasis on third person style is tangential to the issue of concentrating on the text.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15446040693497057719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8068873.post-42603374167911659022010-02-20T08:10:25.033-06:002010-02-20T08:10:25.033-06:00I especially agree with the comment about branchin...I especially agree with the comment about branching out. While I don't call myself an old book blogger (I'm incredibly new to the game, after all), and I plan to mostly review fantasy novels, I do plan to stick other genre reviews in there too. Usually nonfiction, usually involving religion of some aspect of history that I'm interested in. But as much as I know that focusing on one genre might gain me a more focused group of eventual readers, it also prevents me from sharing info about other books I've enjoyed, books that somebody, somewhere, might be looking for an opinion on. Sometimes being specific just ends up making a person narrow.<br /><br />Of course, sometimes people find a good niche, a good following, and can get by without needing to branch out because people like what they dish out. But sometimes things get stale, and need something fresh and new to rejuvenate themselves.Tea and Tomeshttp://tea-and-tomes.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.com