Monday, August 8, 2011

Let's talk reviews, shall we?

So, sometimes blogging makes you feel like you're just babbling away into nothingness until you get some feedback (thanks to those who do leave comments).  I love sharing my opinions about good reads and even not so great reads but the question I have for you is this....does reading a review influence your decision to read or not to read?  Does it put the title on your radar?  Does a review help you refer a book to someone who might be interested in a particular genre or subject?  Just curious.....

Personally, I find that I read so many reviews and blogs that it does keep me informed on what is happening in the YA realm.  Even reading author interviews and tweets between authors form ideas in my head.  I find myself curious about many titles that receive both positive and negative reviews and often I want to read them myself just to figure out where I would be on this scale.  So the answer to my own questions - yes, reviews do influence my reading choices and I definitely pass on information to people who are seeking their next good read.

5 comments:

  1. Usually, reading a review about a book is what turns me on to it and lands the book on my 'to read' list. I like seeing the current trends in theme and title, as well.

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  2. Reviews are propably the single largest reason my TBR list is so huge. The better the review the more quickly I'm likely to read it. Although sometimes a bad review will pique my interest too, especially if it is an author I have previously enjoyed. I wonder how many we've recommended to each other on the strength of reviews?

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  3. I pass on reviews to people all the time. I also feel that reading blogs has made me a better "reading adviser" for teens -- and that's a big part of my job. Because just reading the professional magazines isn't enough( although I do that too.) A "real person" perspective helps to. I really like to see what teen bloggers have to say too -- that helps a lot.

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  4. Yep, reviews definitely influence me. I always find books I like by reading other people's reviews, and at the same token, I know what books to stay away from. I definitely don't think I could read the way I do without other people's reviews!

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  5. Reading reviews definitely helps me too! There are just so many books coming out lately that I don't really want to waste my time reading a book I won't enjoy. Plus, if I'm buying the book, I like know I'm getting my money's worth. Of course, there are some books by authors whose previous books I liked which I'll read without caring what others think. But, I think with especially what seems as a growing number of debut authors, it helps seeing what kind of ratings others are giving them.

    If I'm unsure about a book after reading its plot description, I'll usually see what others think of the book. If there are too many mixed reviews, I usually won't read it. If it looks like a light contemporary read, I'll usually know what to sort of expect from them so I don't really take reviews into consideration as I go lighter on them.

    lol, I guess I'm all over the place for reading reviews and taking them into account!

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