Reviewers' Circle discussion

I have to admit that when I first joined Good Reads I tried to list 'every single book' I've ever read, but quickly gave that up as not only impossible (at 33 years old, and with roughly 35-45 books read a year since my early teens, to make a conservative guess, there is no way I could every comprehensively list every book I've ever read even if I could remember them all) and that got me thinking... I used to enjoy writing book reviews at school. Not because I was a literary snob, but because it increased the enjoyment of the book (if there was any enjoyment to be had... I'm looking st you, 'Twilight'!), kept me in the that world for longer, crystallised my thoughts and helped me clarify what I had taken from the book, and also because I could later go back and read those reviews as not only a sort of personal Cliff Notes to that particular book, but also remind myself of why I enjoyed it and decide if I was ready (if ever) to read it again. A background in journalism also meant that I have a love for personal writing and also like seeing myself in print!
Having said that... Is wanting to write a review of every book you've ever read, as an adult and since joining Good Reads (to set some achievable and definitive parameters) akin to literary snobbery? No, I don't think so. That kid in me that used to love writing book reviews now sees the value in them more than ever... It is not enough to just be a consumer, when the world is built on consumerism and there is so much to consume. You have to take a moment, take a breath, and think, reflect, and give something back. I like to think that by putting my thoughts on a book down, even if it is one line (either because i didn't like the book, or it didn't touch me, or I didn't understand it, or I am simply in a hurry and am already engrossed in the next book), I am paying homage to the creative process of the the writer, and am honoring the book in some small way. And, selfishly, it is still the best way to clarify my own thoughts and feelings of the book, and helps me digest it.

The minute I joined GR I went into a frenzy mode of logging in every single book I'd ever read or could remember! Haha,so I am guilty of that. After the storm was over I did start to go back through and write reviews for some.

Some of the reviews are certainly smaller, lesser detail as to my true thoughts. But I'd also love to get back to some of these books, reread and review again.

However, I do love that feeling when you've just finished reading a book and your mind is screaming out to write a review.

Also like Jay mentions it's the perfect way to clarify your thoughts/feelings on the book.