Cheryl’s Comments (group member since Jul 30, 2011)

Cheryl’s comments from the More than Just a Rating group.

I agree - it's so satisfying to find someone who agrees with me when my opinion is in the minority. I do find myself hitting the "like" button readily on those reviews.

Good point. If a reviewer just says they chucked the book across the room or burned it, that doesn't give anything helpful. And an author *can't* just change everything about his writing, so it's good for a reviewer to focus on what is 'fixable.' And of course if some element or aspect is good, then the author knows *not* to change that!

Riona, we're there again. I check every day - but it's like, flickering, or something. No matter - just intriguing. The important thing is that we're all together!

Thank you for understanding that I meant Jane Eyre as an example, and for explaining some of the ways it can be considered a classic. Now of course, since I didn't know that stuff when I wrote the review, it didn't get included. But at least I did give it "More than Just a Rating."

Penguin editions can be helpful. There's also a line of Shakespeare very richly annotated on bright open pages of hardcovers in the YA section of my library. (The Shakespeare I read in high school was supposedly annotated but the notes were too academic and the whole thing was poorly designed with small font, cheap paper, etc.) There's also a line of supplements like Cliffs called "Spark Notes."

What's odd is that we were only featured for a little while (a few hours I think)... but we still got lots of new members. However you-all found us, Welcome! I am definitely happy, thanks!

Ok... Those are helping me, tx. The thread remains open of course if anyone has any other thoughts!

I was surfing a bit in the 'external links' and found "Consider the Author's Purpose." So, that's something I could use when I don't know what to say about a book. I could start by saying, for example, "This was meant to be a satire of the treatment of those suffering hunger in Ireland. But even if you don't know that, the black humor makes the point clearly." With that kind of an introduction to my review, I could probably go on well enough to talk about the voice, the method, etc.

surfing around the links is more helpful than the bottom example - some good nuggets in there, thanks for sharing!

I'm not sure how to articulate my question, but do you have thoughts on what kinds of criticisms are most helpful, how to phrase parts of your review so that the author can actually make use of your review?

I mean, simply saying that the descriptions were boring might not be so helpful, especially if the author over-reacts and stuffs his next work with purple metaphors.

Esp. for you creative people, what kind of feedback is most helpful?

I guess what I'm saying, in part, is, I wouldn't write in a review 'hated this classic because I didn't understand what was going on and what the issues were." Instead, I'd use a study guide, as I've mentioned before, and only then would I try to review the book on it's own merits, rather than reading it cold and reviewing it based on my (mis)understanding of it.

And I would mention what I found challenging about it, what elements of it I loved, what study guide I used, whether I wanted even more background or help.

Tx Tammy. I like Thomas's point above, too. Sorry it got kinda buried in the heated part of the discussion. He reminds us that the definition of a Classic is fluid and somewhat personal. For example, I finally read Jane Eyre last year.

There were bits of the context I needed help with, but mostly it was pretty accessible. I enjoyed it very much - but I still don't know why it's considered a classic. It was, imo, a pretty good romantic melodrama - but it didn't make me feel enriched, nor did it change my view of life, etc.

So, maybe we're not talking simply about Classics here. Maybe we're talking about books that we feel we 'should' read but that might be difficult for us, including classics.

We're now a Featured Group! Whoot! Welcome new members!

I don't know why, but for some reason I feel hesitant to reveal her name in this public forum. I'm going to PM you. :)

Here's a perfectly acceptable review of Machiavelli's The Prince. It talks about the book much the way I (and Sarah, if I understand her correctly) sometimes think about classics.

"I read this book, but that is not sufficient. It needs to be studied. I don't have the inclination. That is has lasted for over 450 years means it must be better than I found it to be. If you have a yearning to understand early essays on political science, perhaps this is for you. Still, I did see why it has lasted, and there are phrases applicable to modern times."

But sometimes what I like (or don't like) about any book, Elizabeth, is if I understood the allusions, or if the language was esoteric, or if the fact that I wasn't familiar with the context frustrated me, or if I felt I learned something about the period setting....

Sarah, talk about all that stuff - it might help me when I go to read the book!

The trouble is, many of us struggle through many of the books we feel we should read but don't enjoy. Maybe we didn't have a good education in vocabulary and history. Or English isn't our first language and the book depends on us understanding obsolete British conventions of class structure, perhaps.

Sure, if you aren't slowed down by the archaic language, or frustrated by the unfamiliar context, or blind to the Classical allusions, you're probably getting more out of the book and enjoying it more than I usually am.

But I admit, I haven't read Anna Karenina or The Scarlet Letter or Great Expectations etc. And I won't unless I can find a study guide (Cliff's Notes) to help me.

If I were to attempt to read, say, Heart of Darkness again, I'd probably have the same reaction I did the first time. I'd wouldn't rate it, because I wouldn't finish it, but I'd say that I was frustrated and bored.

If I read a study guide first, and then read the book, I'd feel more comfortable saying something like "I understand that one of the things this book is famous for is such 'n' so, but I found this aspect and that element to be problematic...."

So, to sum, I'd make sure first that I understood the book. Then I'd make my review personal and not worry about what everyone else has said.

Good advice. So, be honest, and maybe avoid being gratuitously insulting. I think I might put 'consider if the author is reading this' in my 'checklist of things to consider when attempting to write a thorough review.'

Beautiful review. Doesn't actually make me want to read the book, though, somehow. Hm.. Thanks for sharing!

Hi Lydia, Welcome! We don't talk much about specific books or recommendations in this group, but I'm sure you'll easily find other groups that do.

Meanwhile, it's definitely an accepted practice, when writing a review of a book, to compare it to the movie version(s).