I was almost afraid to read this today because I have a negative review coming out on Thursday for a book that's getting a lot of praise. But I think I’ve followed your framework—which I wholeheartedly agree with. I don’t like reading reviews that could have been written exactly the same whether or not the reviewer actually read the book. At the same time, I believe it's important to trust your own experience and judgment. There’s no single true reading we’re all trying to uncover, and the best books are the ones that make space for multiple interpretations.
I quote Anaïs Nin all the time, but I think she’s exactly right when she says, "We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are." When I write about books, I try to make my perspective clear—my state of mind, the proverbial baggage I bring to a book—so that my response makes sense in context. And I’m also working on not letting my fear of getting it wrong keep me from running my mouth all over the internet. 🫣
I'm so excited to read your Thursday review! I completely agree with everything you say here. I think (perhaps unfortunately) many book reviewers fall into the extreme ends of the spectrum when it comes to negative reviews. Some reviewers shy away from negative reviews for fear of hurting feelings or getting it wrong while others are sweepingly dismissive in a way that's not entirely helpful to the presumed audience. What your describing here is a sort of sweet spot between trusting one's gut and embracing a certain humility. I think that positioning makes the very best reviews, whether they're raves or pans!
I recently read Best of Friends by Kamila Shamsie, which I didn’t love, and after finishing it I was looking for reviews (both positive and negative) that might help me think through my thoughts. The NYT review for this book (which was mostly negative) had a lot of points I agreed with, but I was so frustrated to find that over half the review was spent in comparing the book to My Brilliant Friend. Why?? I don’t think Shamsie was trying to write a book like that at all. It also felt vaguely sexist to me - comparing the two books just because they both highlight women’s friendships. I think this really falls into your category of “wanting this book to be a different book”
I feel like I often find much more fair/good quality reviews on Substack, rather than large publications!
I know the review you’re talking about and it made me so mad too!! I think comparing two books can potentially be a useful way to review (it’s what I love about Tournament of Books) but in that case it was all wrong for exactly the reasons you pointed out!
Please write about the difference between discussion and debate more! We all need an English teacher to provide some helpful reminders of this in our current times :)
I have a tendency to judge a book by The Emotions I felt either towards the character or the story. I will give a high rating to books in which I connected with the characters or felt something about the plot. It does not mean that I think a book is bad if I did not connect. It just means I did not enjoy the story or found it fell flat. I think judging a book by this method is subjective and therefore there are no bad books. There are just books that I do not connect with. When I hear a book that I really connected with was rated poorly, I have a tendency to think that I really don’t care to know how to analyze a book properly. On the flipside, when I’m looking for a book, I read reviews and look for key elements such as lovable characters, fast paced, Paige Turner, etc. these key phrases stir up emotions for me and I ultimately select the book based on those phrases. I am sometimes baffled by books that are award-winning. I have picked up award-winning books and while beautifully written, I got so bugged down in the flowery language and spending two pages on the color of the sky and the leaves in the trees that it took me out of the story and I did not enjoy the book at all. . a
So so helpful, especially as someone who is often critical based on my personal taste vs. what the author is trying to do. I'd love to read more on this topic, especially coming from you!
I had a little chuckle when I read that you dislike similes. I just finished a book packed with them, and it's the reason *why* I loved it so much. A really good example of personal taste.
I agree with all of this. Am I going to review a Danielle Steel novel by the same standards I'd use a Booker-shortlist like The Safekeep? Of course not. That said, it can be hard sometimes to know for sure what an author * was * trying to do. I loved The Safekeep but think it suffered a bit from that---it was marketed as a horror/thriller and a lot of choices played well with that, but other choices didn't, and I both agreed and disagreed with a negative review about those choices and whether they worked for the novel. But I also thought part of the problem was that the novel wasn't always clear about whether it was all-in on being a horror/thriller or was trying to do more.
Also, I only post about WWII fiction (https://inbooksfascistslose.substack.com/), and I only do that for books that depict the subject matter with appropriate sensitivity and accuracy. If an author hasn't done that, I won't give a negative review; I just won't spend time on it. (...Ok, fine, the Danielle Steel post was just fun to write because it involved a lot of Sound of Music "research." I'm no saint.)
I look for reviews that are honest but kind, or at least sensitive. For example, I like knowing if the pace of a novel is exceptionally slow but I might still want to read it if the characters are complex and well-written. Great piece!
Always have much to think about after reading these. Sometimes folx are very enamored with a book and want everyone they know to read it. Many times, it is not something that I want to read and I usually tell them, "I probably won't read it. I don't think that is a book that was written for me or I don't think I am the target audience." When I say that, I am meaning many things but usually genre specific, WW2-unless it is super compelling premise, and most coming of age stories. I may also say that if it is one of those super popular books that is everywhere, and I have heard much about or something I have looked at but find it poorly written or not interesting (my opinion, only).
Maybe this is not the best thing to say...last week at work, someone called me an elitist when we were talking about a massive backlist bestseller which I thought was bad for lots of reasons including author's background. I never want to judge anyone for their reading-I just did not want to participate. My questions are: 1. What should I say? 2. How can you start a discussion about a book around both positive/negative aspects.?
Excellent advice. I remember hearing you say, some time ago, "think about what the author was trying to do" and that has stuck in my mind ever since. These basics are a great starting point. I highly encourage everyone to share critical reviews.
I love what you are doing in this space. Great insights. I don’t review books, but this type of thinking helps me understand what is useful for me as a reader to take from reviews. (Also love acknowledgement of taste differences- I love a short chapter!)
I was almost afraid to read this today because I have a negative review coming out on Thursday for a book that's getting a lot of praise. But I think I’ve followed your framework—which I wholeheartedly agree with. I don’t like reading reviews that could have been written exactly the same whether or not the reviewer actually read the book. At the same time, I believe it's important to trust your own experience and judgment. There’s no single true reading we’re all trying to uncover, and the best books are the ones that make space for multiple interpretations.
I quote Anaïs Nin all the time, but I think she’s exactly right when she says, "We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are." When I write about books, I try to make my perspective clear—my state of mind, the proverbial baggage I bring to a book—so that my response makes sense in context. And I’m also working on not letting my fear of getting it wrong keep me from running my mouth all over the internet. 🫣
I'm so excited to read your Thursday review! I completely agree with everything you say here. I think (perhaps unfortunately) many book reviewers fall into the extreme ends of the spectrum when it comes to negative reviews. Some reviewers shy away from negative reviews for fear of hurting feelings or getting it wrong while others are sweepingly dismissive in a way that's not entirely helpful to the presumed audience. What your describing here is a sort of sweet spot between trusting one's gut and embracing a certain humility. I think that positioning makes the very best reviews, whether they're raves or pans!
Loved this!
I recently read Best of Friends by Kamila Shamsie, which I didn’t love, and after finishing it I was looking for reviews (both positive and negative) that might help me think through my thoughts. The NYT review for this book (which was mostly negative) had a lot of points I agreed with, but I was so frustrated to find that over half the review was spent in comparing the book to My Brilliant Friend. Why?? I don’t think Shamsie was trying to write a book like that at all. It also felt vaguely sexist to me - comparing the two books just because they both highlight women’s friendships. I think this really falls into your category of “wanting this book to be a different book”
I feel like I often find much more fair/good quality reviews on Substack, rather than large publications!
I know the review you’re talking about and it made me so mad too!! I think comparing two books can potentially be a useful way to review (it’s what I love about Tournament of Books) but in that case it was all wrong for exactly the reasons you pointed out!
So glad I wasn’t the only one irritated by it 😅
I haven’t heard of tournament of books, I’m going to check it out!
Please write about the difference between discussion and debate more! We all need an English teacher to provide some helpful reminders of this in our current times :)
I'll add it to my list!
I have a tendency to judge a book by The Emotions I felt either towards the character or the story. I will give a high rating to books in which I connected with the characters or felt something about the plot. It does not mean that I think a book is bad if I did not connect. It just means I did not enjoy the story or found it fell flat. I think judging a book by this method is subjective and therefore there are no bad books. There are just books that I do not connect with. When I hear a book that I really connected with was rated poorly, I have a tendency to think that I really don’t care to know how to analyze a book properly. On the flipside, when I’m looking for a book, I read reviews and look for key elements such as lovable characters, fast paced, Paige Turner, etc. these key phrases stir up emotions for me and I ultimately select the book based on those phrases. I am sometimes baffled by books that are award-winning. I have picked up award-winning books and while beautifully written, I got so bugged down in the flowery language and spending two pages on the color of the sky and the leaves in the trees that it took me out of the story and I did not enjoy the book at all. . a
So so helpful, especially as someone who is often critical based on my personal taste vs. what the author is trying to do. I'd love to read more on this topic, especially coming from you!
I had a little chuckle when I read that you dislike similes. I just finished a book packed with them, and it's the reason *why* I loved it so much. A really good example of personal taste.
I agree with all of this. Am I going to review a Danielle Steel novel by the same standards I'd use a Booker-shortlist like The Safekeep? Of course not. That said, it can be hard sometimes to know for sure what an author * was * trying to do. I loved The Safekeep but think it suffered a bit from that---it was marketed as a horror/thriller and a lot of choices played well with that, but other choices didn't, and I both agreed and disagreed with a negative review about those choices and whether they worked for the novel. But I also thought part of the problem was that the novel wasn't always clear about whether it was all-in on being a horror/thriller or was trying to do more.
Also, I only post about WWII fiction (https://inbooksfascistslose.substack.com/), and I only do that for books that depict the subject matter with appropriate sensitivity and accuracy. If an author hasn't done that, I won't give a negative review; I just won't spend time on it. (...Ok, fine, the Danielle Steel post was just fun to write because it involved a lot of Sound of Music "research." I'm no saint.)
I look for reviews that are honest but kind, or at least sensitive. For example, I like knowing if the pace of a novel is exceptionally slow but I might still want to read it if the characters are complex and well-written. Great piece!
Always have much to think about after reading these. Sometimes folx are very enamored with a book and want everyone they know to read it. Many times, it is not something that I want to read and I usually tell them, "I probably won't read it. I don't think that is a book that was written for me or I don't think I am the target audience." When I say that, I am meaning many things but usually genre specific, WW2-unless it is super compelling premise, and most coming of age stories. I may also say that if it is one of those super popular books that is everywhere, and I have heard much about or something I have looked at but find it poorly written or not interesting (my opinion, only).
Maybe this is not the best thing to say...last week at work, someone called me an elitist when we were talking about a massive backlist bestseller which I thought was bad for lots of reasons including author's background. I never want to judge anyone for their reading-I just did not want to participate. My questions are: 1. What should I say? 2. How can you start a discussion about a book around both positive/negative aspects.?
Excellent advice. I remember hearing you say, some time ago, "think about what the author was trying to do" and that has stuck in my mind ever since. These basics are a great starting point. I highly encourage everyone to share critical reviews.
I love what you are doing in this space. Great insights. I don’t review books, but this type of thinking helps me understand what is useful for me as a reader to take from reviews. (Also love acknowledgement of taste differences- I love a short chapter!)
As someone who writes book reviews here on Substack, this was really helpful. Thanks Sara!