The August 24, 2012 column by Sam Sacks at THE NEW YORKER took issue with the use of the Acknowledgements Page increasingly found in published novels (and nonfiction, too, probably). You can read Mr. Sacks' well-articulated column here: http://is.gd/Gb9BYI. You've seen such pages with all the names listed on it.

I don't mind the Acknowledgements Page included at the end of novels I get paid to review. The simple matter is if you don't want to read the page, then just flip past it, as I usually like to do. One point Mr. Sacks didn't make is that debut novels often use long Acknowledgements where the author wants to thank all of their friends, family, and mentors. This is only natural. The first-time author is understandably excited and proud of their book.

I've used such pages in my past crime novels, although mine cite the area experts (firearms, forensics, you get the idea) who had any inputs to my novel. Even then, I manage to get some technical details fouled up. Since I write more stand alone crime noirs now, I've less need for using the page. The novel's dedication page and reference bibliography might be a better place to put some of the acknowledgments.