Another reason why I hate people
I just read in galleycat that this blog http://www.theoldhag.com/index.php was named by Forbes as one of the best book blogs. It's almost unreadable, and, like in most book blogs, she doesn't really review the books, she writes jokes about the books. In fact, you can see in the Misfortune review she barely reads the books she reviews--she makes two major mistakes (she had a link to a correction).
And this is the problem with the world today. People pretend to review books and then get praised by publications like Forbes (where I couldn't get a job I was qualified for because I wasn't white enough, or at least that's what I was told off-the-record) celebrate them.
Writing joke reviews, and writing glowing reviews for your pals, along with an inflated sense of self-importance, seems to be the raison d'etre for the book blog. And that's why I don't read them. Overall, (and I'm talking about the popular ones, like elegant variations, and that one by the guy who hates Steve Almond) they are adding nothing to the critical conversation about books. And yet I keep reading about how super-awesome these book blogs are. Stop it, media people, just stop it.
And this is the problem with the world today. People pretend to review books and then get praised by publications like Forbes (where I couldn't get a job I was qualified for because I wasn't white enough, or at least that's what I was told off-the-record) celebrate them.
Writing joke reviews, and writing glowing reviews for your pals, along with an inflated sense of self-importance, seems to be the raison d'etre for the book blog. And that's why I don't read them. Overall, (and I'm talking about the popular ones, like elegant variations, and that one by the guy who hates Steve Almond) they are adding nothing to the critical conversation about books. And yet I keep reading about how super-awesome these book blogs are. Stop it, media people, just stop it.