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Get Breaking News on your cellThings we hate about book reviews
3:31 PM Wed, Mar 26, 2008 | Permalink
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March 2008
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Things we hate about book reviews Blurbs That Do Not Work For Me Dept. Categories
dallasnews.com
Entertainment Blogs |
For people who spend so much time reading, book critics sometimes seem to run out of words in a hurry. And then they fall back on cliches. Not that you would ever find any in The Dallas Morning News, of course. (Editor tugs at collar, looks down and to the side, chuckles nervously.) But over at The New York Times, where they apparently run a book review now and then, they are discussing words that should be banned from book reviews. See what they suggest, then come on back and add your own suggestions here. I am sure they will be lyrical and poignant, if not quotidian. (Props to GalleyCat for the spot.) |
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Comments
Posted by Clay Reynolds @ 6:43 PM Wed, Mar 26, 2008
NYT reviews are not usually held to 500-800 words, and a lot of venues run shorter than that: 150-200 word limits aren't uncommon. It's very hard to say something meaningful (and honest) about a book in such a short space. But the main thing to remember is that a book review is an opinion, hopefully an informed opinion, and a good reviewer is merely trying to be direct. Cliches are hard to avoid, as a result; but the truth is that one can say almost nothing with them, and in SOME venues (Not the DMN, of course) this substitutes for thought.