When the review is better than the book

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Quite often, the funniest reviews are written for the most truly terrible books. The kind of truly terrible books that people only read so that they can write a funny review, if indeed they read it at all.

Case in point:
David Lentz's review for Fifty Shades of Grey
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Have you come across any funny reviews? Post them here..

[Riona]

I love entertaining reviews; the more scathing, the better. I'll have to keep this thread in mind next time I come across one!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Oh this is wonderful. I wonder if she ever got to read the book....?

Maggie's Review of Fury (pun intended)
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Anna]

Well all reviews are better than this book.
Birth Control Is Sinful in the Christian Marriages and Also Robbing God of Priesthood Children!!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

I wasn't really sure what to make of that comment at first. I don't like the idea of ridiculing people for their spiritual beliefs, and I wasn't really sure that was on-topic.

THEN I CLICKED THE LINK.

The synopsis of this book is hilarious, regardless of the subject matter. And I'm all for ridiculing people for writing bad synopses. There are some quite funny responses too.

I don't think I have ever seen so many capital letters and exclamation points in one place before.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Jim wrote: "I don't really want to run down other people's work on Goodreads though. What if the author is on Goodreads and sees this thread and the anti-recommendation one? It wouldn't count for the woman with the £5k book, I really wouldn't care about insulting her. "

Authors do tend to track the comments made about them on here. They do so at their own risk, though. The site is set up for readers to discuss books, and we should be able to do that freely. If authors are going to take what's said to heart, this probably isn't the place for them.

[Anna]

Jim wrote: "I'm sure I saw that one somewhere else on the Internet because it was selling for some ridiculous price like £5k.

I really wish I had the talent to write creative reviews. I wrote one for a story ..."

I believe you have to be honest with your rating and review if not what the point? As long you are not trolling it should be fine.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Bird Brian has come up with this fantastic list of epic GR book reviews, which I hope he won't mind me re-posting here:
Book Reviews Hall Of Fame, by Bird Brian

There is at least one CR Group Member in the list too...

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Just came across this awesome review of Sylvia Plath's Ariel. You don't need to have read it to enjoy this "plain English" version in Paul Bryant's review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Karen]

First, Thanks for the link to the Fifty Shades of Grey review. Very good. So far, my favorite review in this category is Bird Brians review of The Fountainhead. Although this is one of my favorite books, he did an excellent and hilarious job of pointing to all the glaring logic errors in this book. I never thought about it until now but maybe logic and objectivism are not mutually exclusive.

http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Bernie]

Film Review of I am a Camera:
Me no Leica.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

This is one big spoiler if you haven't heard anything about the book, so be warned. I have the book, unread on my shelf, but I've now read so many reviews I feel that actually reading it is a mere formality at this point.

Anyway: Mark Monday's Review of Georges Bataille's Story of the Eye

Awesome, awesome review! [epileptics should be careful though]

[Martin]

Ruby wrote: "Authors do tend to track the comments made about them on here. They do so at their own risk, though. The site is set up for readers to discuss books, and we should be able to do that freely. If authors are going to take what's said to heart, this probably isn't the place for them."

It's always best to count to 100 and sit on your hands before replying/responding. Remember when we had to type a letter and mail it? Or pick up the phone? Too easy now to fly off the handle...

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Martin wrote: "Ruby wrote: "Authors do tend to track the comments made about them on here. They do so at their own risk, though. The site is set up for readers to discuss books, and we should be able to do that f..."

In what context, Martin? As an author or reviewer?
I note some of this discussion has disappeared. Not sure if that's because the person left or they deleted it themself.

[Martin]

I was speaking as a writer--best to not even read reviews of your own stuff, I'd say. (Well at least don't get worked up over stuff)

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "Quite often, the funniest reviews are written for the most truly terrible books."

Well, of course, there are all of karen's "Monster porn" reviews - a genre I don't have the slightest intention of ever reading, so I'm not even following karen's reviews (and so couldn't point to a specific review), but a certain other poster to this thread must be following them, and I see the reviews when she "likes" them.

As for general quality of reviews: Bird Brian, Paul Bryant, Mark Monday and, so far unmentioned, Ian Graye, are all great for reviews - sometimes cutting, often insightful, and always witty.

Jim wrote: "I don't really want to run down other people's work on Goodreads though.

I don't either, but sometimes it's best for all involved. The first time I overpaid for a free e-book was a horrible experience for me, and I hope my scathing review turned off other potential readers AND the author.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek- Please don't get the wrong idea about Karen's reviews. The vast majority aren't monster porn related at all! She's a book shop worker & readers advisory student who reads a LOT of different genres. Monster porn is a bit of a fun sideline :)

[Riona]

I love the monster porn reviews.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Me too! She has introduced me to a LOT of other amazing books, though.

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "Derek- Please don't get the wrong idea about Karen's reviews. The vast majority aren't monster porn related at all! She's a book shop worker & readers advisory student who reads a LOT of different ..."

I didn't know her background, but have read a bunch of her other reviews - but it's the Monster Porn reviews that keep me laughing! Besides which, you were looking for reviews better than the book, and some of her other reviews are actually about good books :)

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Very true.

Talking about book reviews, I've just seen (ie been spammed by) one of the most desperate ploys to get book reviews I have ever seen.

Basically, this guy's plan seems to be:
- I choose his book as a group read
- We all review his book on B&N & Amazon, blogs etc.... earning POINTS for each bit of publicity we give him.
-You even get points if group members add his book to their shelves (I wonder if the name of the bookshelf matters? I'm thinking "Will never read" for mine)
- The first 20 clubs to give him a certain amount of publicity "wins" his participation in a live chat
- One lucky book club gets to go out together for a free meal. (Not sure who's paying for flights and accommodation to make that happen).

Unbelievable. Here's the link, although I am loathe to give him any publicity: http://www.williamhaylon.com/win-a-50...

[Whitney]

Ruby wrote: "Very true.

Talking about book reviews, I've just seen (ie been spammed by) one of the most desperate ploys to get book reviews I have ever seen..."

Seems to be working. Thirty-eight 5-star reviews on Amazon, and a whole bunch of people marking it 'to read' on Goodreads. Sigh.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

How does someone read something like that and think, "Wow! What a generous offer!"?

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

What bugs me is that people will write more positive reviews because they want to win, and because they know the author's reading them.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

How much would you be willing to bet?
[she says, having seen his GR Author profile and knowing full well he's a long way from 15...]

[Whitney]

Ruby wrote: "How much would you be willing to bet?
[she says, having seen his GR Author profile and knowing full well he's a long way from 15...]"

Ahhh, he's a Harvard MBA, that explains the slick and soulless but nevertheless effective marketing campaign!

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "How much would you be willing to bet?
[she says, having seen his GR Author profile and knowing full well he's a long way from 15...]"

Come, now - aren't we all 15 on the Internet? OK, I'm really 21.

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "Come, now - aren't we all 15 on the Internet? OK, I'm really 21..."

Don't forget a champion kick boxer as well!

[Riona]

I'm secretly an eighty year old man.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Riona wrote: "I'm secretly an eighty year old man."

That's not as big a secret as you think ;)

[Riona]

Ruby wrote: "Riona wrote: "I'm secretly an eighty year old man."

That's not as big a secret as you think ;)"

Goddamnit. I wonder what gave me away?

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Just saw this in an Amazon review: "I don't like it when the author writes in the third person."

That's a very.... limiting (?) taste in fiction.

I did have a look at the preview, and yeah. It IS in the third person. I thought maybe she had mixed up her persons. But nope.

[Derek]

No kidding! Occasionally, I've come across something written in the second person. I can't say any of that has been good, and I think it would take an exceptional author to pull it off, but at a guess, I'd think third-person probably accounts for 70% or so of all novels.

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "No kidding! Occasionally, I've come across something written in the second person. I can't say any of that has been good, and I think it would take an exceptional author to pull it off, but at a gu..."

I was thinking that same thing when I saw Ruby's post. Second person is hard to pull off. I'm currently reading The Tiger's Wife, which wouldn't be bad except for the author's inability to reign-in the new writer's impulse to make their writing 'literary'. There is a very ill-conceived shift into second person during one chapter which makes no sense, it's basically a continuation of the first person narrative but with the pronoun changed.

The one story I thought pulled it off was in the book Let the Dead Bury Their Dead, which makes the top of my list for great books few people have heard of.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Manny's review of The Quran may just win the internet.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Derek]

Some people have far too much time on their hands...