Bobby Underwood
Why so many so-called book reviewers, feel no obligation to fellow readers.
Many readers rightfully complain — even in their own disappointed reviews, all over this site and many others — about being misled by all the good reviews for certain books, which is not limited to, but certainly includes the latest “must read’ from the mainstream publishing houses. I'm not talking about well-written, not well-written, exciting or boring, but the CONTENT of the book.
Reviews have sadly become in essence, the new “fake news” for those just looking for a good read, and good information about a book from reviewers. Often this happens because someone’s like-minded pals have piled on with tons of glowing reviews, other times because one of the Net Galley sycophants got it Free to read and they want another Free read so they can keep up their “reviewing” status.
More than one genre has been all but ruined by the current decline in standards — even allowing for genre and subject matter — for what is acceptable and what is not. Police procedurals, Noir, Thrillers, even the once sacred Western genre, have not been immune. Once unacceptable — even disgustingly repugnant — content has now become not only acceptable, but preferred. Think about that.
The mystery is why, if it’s so great, do so very many reviewers mask the content when they write their reviews? Could it be because very few of them want to come out and say outright — “There is graphic and disgusting violence against women and children in the book, some told in detail from a psychotic’s viewpoint, some told from three different perspectives throughout the book, so you get to experience the meticulously and brutally described pain and suffering and graphically excruciating bloody violence/murder/rape multiple times, and it was also filled with expletives throughout, and some sexual deviancy which was also graphically described.” ?
No, “code” phrases like “Very dark and disturbing,” “Gritty,” and “Violent but riveting” among others are usually used. This is because no reviewer wants to write out what they’re reading, because it sounds as disgusting and eyebrow raising as it actually is in reality. Reviewers need to realize that no, you don’t have to defend what you read, but you do, however, just morally, have some obligation as a reviewer to realize everyone is not of your ilk, and they need to know what’s actually in that book before they waste money and time on due to your glowing review that had little if any indication what kind of content the book contained.
Or is the answer more simple? Has one half of society — and let’s not kid ourselves about which half, and who is embracing this stuff — sunk so low, become so debased, so tolerant of everything but someone with traditional values, that many reviewers consider those not embracing this decline, and their own personal tastes — or lack thereof, depending on your viewpoint — not even WORTHY of a content warning?
Maybe a litmus test for reviewers should be this: If you feel uncomfortable writing out what’s actually IN the book, then fellow readers thinking about the book deserve you do so for them. Then they can decide for themselves if they want to read it. Just an opinion. Like Dennis Miller used to say, I could be wrong, but I don’t think so…
Many readers rightfully complain — even in their own disappointed reviews, all over this site and many others — about being misled by all the good reviews for certain books, which is not limited to, but certainly includes the latest “must read’ from the mainstream publishing houses. I'm not talking about well-written, not well-written, exciting or boring, but the CONTENT of the book.
Reviews have sadly become in essence, the new “fake news” for those just looking for a good read, and good information about a book from reviewers. Often this happens because someone’s like-minded pals have piled on with tons of glowing reviews, other times because one of the Net Galley sycophants got it Free to read and they want another Free read so they can keep up their “reviewing” status.
More than one genre has been all but ruined by the current decline in standards — even allowing for genre and subject matter — for what is acceptable and what is not. Police procedurals, Noir, Thrillers, even the once sacred Western genre, have not been immune. Once unacceptable — even disgustingly repugnant — content has now become not only acceptable, but preferred. Think about that.
The mystery is why, if it’s so great, do so very many reviewers mask the content when they write their reviews? Could it be because very few of them want to come out and say outright — “There is graphic and disgusting violence against women and children in the book, some told in detail from a psychotic’s viewpoint, some told from three different perspectives throughout the book, so you get to experience the meticulously and brutally described pain and suffering and graphically excruciating bloody violence/murder/rape multiple times, and it was also filled with expletives throughout, and some sexual deviancy which was also graphically described.” ?
No, “code” phrases like “Very dark and disturbing,” “Gritty,” and “Violent but riveting” among others are usually used. This is because no reviewer wants to write out what they’re reading, because it sounds as disgusting and eyebrow raising as it actually is in reality. Reviewers need to realize that no, you don’t have to defend what you read, but you do, however, just morally, have some obligation as a reviewer to realize everyone is not of your ilk, and they need to know what’s actually in that book before they waste money and time on due to your glowing review that had little if any indication what kind of content the book contained.
Or is the answer more simple? Has one half of society — and let’s not kid ourselves about which half, and who is embracing this stuff — sunk so low, become so debased, so tolerant of everything but someone with traditional values, that many reviewers consider those not embracing this decline, and their own personal tastes — or lack thereof, depending on your viewpoint — not even WORTHY of a content warning?
Maybe a litmus test for reviewers should be this: If you feel uncomfortable writing out what’s actually IN the book, then fellow readers thinking about the book deserve you do so for them. Then they can decide for themselves if they want to read it. Just an opinion. Like Dennis Miller used to say, I could be wrong, but I don’t think so…
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