Sue Knott's Blog: Knott The Screaming Type - Posts Tagged "critique"

I tend to not say anything rather than say something critical(odd, I know, for someone who has written parodies, but I don't believe I'll ruin the day of an author who has earned million$).

However, I'm resolving to leave negative reviews when warranted. Because that's a good thing.

Rare is the book that can be loved by everyone. Chances are that people who enjoy high-minded literary works aren't going to like most popular fiction. And vice versa. Without the review criticizing a book for being too stuffy or too simple, how's a reader to know? A positive review isn't likely to mention the book's frequent use of seldom-heard multisyllabic words; a critical reviw might.

So, go ahead and leave negative reviews. Just be sure to describe in detail WHY you didn't like the book. Just saying "boring" or "hated it" doesn't really help anyone. But, saying "there wasn't enough sex" or "the dialogue felt stiff" will help your audience decide how they might like the book. And that's the real reason for a review, isn't it? Nobody cares about your opinion, they care about how your opinion relates to them.

If you like your movies more on the deep than fluffy side, Mud is an excellent choice. Reminiscent of "Stand By Me," only more intense, Mud brings that feeling of Middle School adventure and angst to life. It's a story of love and rejection, fathers and sons, hope and loss...including the loss of traditional ways of life of days going by. Glad to see Reese Witherspoon back to acting rather than stomping through the drivel of Legally Blonde and other formula movies in her recent body of work.

Sites like this one can be an invaluable tool for finding books that you will love. But, mere ratings -- rather than reviews -- can be deceiving. And a review need only be a few words to make it valuable. (I've offered suggestions for such words below.)

What Ms. Highbrow finds entertaining may not be what Ms. Lowbrow enjoys. And vice versa (though, Ms. Highbrow may be fooling herself and it wouldn't hurt Ms. Lowbrow to reach. Just a string of one-word comments can be far more helpful than a star rating. Some suggestions:

Gripping. Sophisticated. Funny. Amusing. Page turner. Eloquent. Tear jerker. Heart wrenching. Thought provoking. Spellbinding. Delightfully naughty. Disturbingly filfthy. Coarse. Boring. Predictable. Violent. Action-packed. Juvenile. Sophmoric. Chilling. Depraved. Immplausible. Inventive.

You don't have to tell the reader what the book was about. You need only tell them how it made you feel and why. The words you choose should give the reader an idea of your taste. (Ms. Lowbrow will likely choose common words, whild Ms. Highbrow will gravitate toward multisyllabic behemoths that will have us reaching for our dictionaries.)

If you have things you look for in a book (sexy, spunky, plot twister, etc.)...why not leave a comment that might help the readers (all 6 of them) of this post write their next review.