Ring Around The Literati, Round One
As SC&A have promised, our review of literary sites is here for you to enjoy, hate, or simply ignore. Our thanks to all of you that sent in suggestions and recommendations.
We do not expect you to agree with all of our reviews- after all, perceptions and ideas vary. Nevertheless, we believe our reviews are fair, accurate and take into account the bloggers intent. These reviews are by no means meant to be exhaustive, but then again, only relatives or obsessed significant other's would even attempt that.
We wanted to review literary/book sites because we find them fascinating exercises in brilliance, lunacy, hubris, pettiness or reasonableness- and those were just a few of the adjectives we could come up with as we write these reviews. There were too many blogs for us to do in one post, so we will be doing at least two or three others on the genre. In this post, we are going to look at some of the bigger book blogs. We will look at others and we will also look at the smaller book blogs- ones we find just as interesting and relevant. We will also review the certiable idiots. No, there is no other ways to describe that 'ship of fools.'
BookGirl's Nightstand is a worthy attempt at democratizing what is a notoriously self centered genre of blog(ger). In an uncharacteristically understated way, BGN's relates to her readers as friends. She doesn't talk down to them and she doesn't present herself in carefully scripted way to her readers. She comes across as natural and accessible. That alone sets her apart from most other literary bloggers.
BookGirl's Nightstand is not the ideal book blog if you're looking for a deeper and more involved relationship with a book blog. Her reviews are short and lack a certain precision. That said, in her defense, she is talking to friends, and making referrals. We think BGN understands the nature of the blog- that her readers are more likely to be involved with her the less time they have to spend on her blog. We like her.
MoorishGirl isn't really a literary blogger- at least not in the classic sense. She talks about books, of course, but she seems to report on what others are saying about books. That said, she is an accomplished writer, and a better one at that. That gives her a certain credibility, of course and may explain her reluctance to 'dirty her hands' in what is essentially the slop pen that are literary blogs. It is one thing for readers to express thoughts and opinions about books. It quite another to be have the need to be regarded as the final word in what is and isn't relevant and au courrant. Serious published authors understand this and the best of them welcome critique and the opportunity to explain and express themselves. In fact, authors of note will tell you (often without being prompted) that their opinions have changed, or they see things differently and so on. We suspect MoorishGirl more than aware of that reality. We like her reviews, a lot- and her ability to express her admiration or being left wanting, for example, of a particular effort in a way that highlights and spotlights the works author and not herself. That may not give you a clue about her personality but it speaks volumes about her character.
MobyLives is a literary blogger of an altogether different stripe. He writes about books, book news and seems to actually ferret book news out himself. He's a smart blogger and doesn't attempt to curry favor or pander to anything or anyone. He is a published writer himself, but seems to have (refreshingly) kept his distance from the 'literary scene' and the Gauloise smoking 'literati.' Give that MobyLives a cigar. To top it all off, MobyLives has fun with it all. Mark Twain would be proud.
Bookslut is more than a blog, to be sure, but we aren't really sure if that distinction is noted by her readers. The ezine is a Disneyland of many things literary and the reader is sure to be drawn into an area of interest. SC&A believe that what makes the cornucopia of literary plenty work is the definition of the Bookslut site. While that definition and structure gets em through the door, it is the menu that keep them. The reviews are excellent, well written and on point. The site reviews fiction, non-fiction and even poetry. The interviews aren't quite as sharp, but then again, the subject of the interview has a lot to do with that.
We like bookslut, despite more than a bit of it's 'in' humor and Starbucks-like cache. The good news is that unlike that coffee house, even the Bookslut froth has substance.
So ends round one. Our next reviews shall be, as we say, more interesting.
We do not expect you to agree with all of our reviews- after all, perceptions and ideas vary. Nevertheless, we believe our reviews are fair, accurate and take into account the bloggers intent. These reviews are by no means meant to be exhaustive, but then again, only relatives or obsessed significant other's would even attempt that.
We wanted to review literary/book sites because we find them fascinating exercises in brilliance, lunacy, hubris, pettiness or reasonableness- and those were just a few of the adjectives we could come up with as we write these reviews. There were too many blogs for us to do in one post, so we will be doing at least two or three others on the genre. In this post, we are going to look at some of the bigger book blogs. We will look at others and we will also look at the smaller book blogs- ones we find just as interesting and relevant. We will also review the certiable idiots. No, there is no other ways to describe that 'ship of fools.'
BookGirl's Nightstand is a worthy attempt at democratizing what is a notoriously self centered genre of blog(ger). In an uncharacteristically understated way, BGN's relates to her readers as friends. She doesn't talk down to them and she doesn't present herself in carefully scripted way to her readers. She comes across as natural and accessible. That alone sets her apart from most other literary bloggers.
BookGirl's Nightstand is not the ideal book blog if you're looking for a deeper and more involved relationship with a book blog. Her reviews are short and lack a certain precision. That said, in her defense, she is talking to friends, and making referrals. We think BGN understands the nature of the blog- that her readers are more likely to be involved with her the less time they have to spend on her blog. We like her.
MoorishGirl isn't really a literary blogger- at least not in the classic sense. She talks about books, of course, but she seems to report on what others are saying about books. That said, she is an accomplished writer, and a better one at that. That gives her a certain credibility, of course and may explain her reluctance to 'dirty her hands' in what is essentially the slop pen that are literary blogs. It is one thing for readers to express thoughts and opinions about books. It quite another to be have the need to be regarded as the final word in what is and isn't relevant and au courrant. Serious published authors understand this and the best of them welcome critique and the opportunity to explain and express themselves. In fact, authors of note will tell you (often without being prompted) that their opinions have changed, or they see things differently and so on. We suspect MoorishGirl more than aware of that reality. We like her reviews, a lot- and her ability to express her admiration or being left wanting, for example, of a particular effort in a way that highlights and spotlights the works author and not herself. That may not give you a clue about her personality but it speaks volumes about her character.
MobyLives is a literary blogger of an altogether different stripe. He writes about books, book news and seems to actually ferret book news out himself. He's a smart blogger and doesn't attempt to curry favor or pander to anything or anyone. He is a published writer himself, but seems to have (refreshingly) kept his distance from the 'literary scene' and the Gauloise smoking 'literati.' Give that MobyLives a cigar. To top it all off, MobyLives has fun with it all. Mark Twain would be proud.
Bookslut is more than a blog, to be sure, but we aren't really sure if that distinction is noted by her readers. The ezine is a Disneyland of many things literary and the reader is sure to be drawn into an area of interest. SC&A believe that what makes the cornucopia of literary plenty work is the definition of the Bookslut site. While that definition and structure gets em through the door, it is the menu that keep them. The reviews are excellent, well written and on point. The site reviews fiction, non-fiction and even poetry. The interviews aren't quite as sharp, but then again, the subject of the interview has a lot to do with that.
We like bookslut, despite more than a bit of it's 'in' humor and Starbucks-like cache. The good news is that unlike that coffee house, even the Bookslut froth has substance.
So ends round one. Our next reviews shall be, as we say, more interesting.
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