Booking Through Thursday is a weekly meme which asks a bookish question which you have to answer. This weeks question is:
Do you read book reviews? Whose do you trust? Do they affect your reading habits? Your buying habits?
The short answer is yes I do read book reviews. The long answer depends on the book.
If the book being reviewed is one that I am definitely absolutely positively going to buy no matter what then I will not read any reviews until after I have read the book because I do not want other peoples opinions clouding my judgement.
If it's a book I am on the fence about as in not really sure whether or not I want to read it then I will read the reviews to get a general idea of the book but I will not read any with huge spoilers.
If it's a book I don't really like the sound of say one with a major love triangle (which I hate) I will maybe read the reviews including ones that give away all the major plot lines.
I read reviews on amazon, goodreads and other blogs. I wouldn't say it's a matter of trust when it comes to reading reviews more a matter of opinion. Reviews are people opinions and everyone has a different way of looking at things. This is why I don't really base my book buying on reviews too much. Just because someone else liked it doesn't mean I will and vice versa. I like to form my own opinions and not be swayed by other people's so much.
That's all for now.
I agree! I have a hard time following blogs when they're reviewing a book I definitely want to read, because then I jut have to skim it so I don't ruin it but that makes me feel bad. I do, however, have a few blogging friends whose opinion I trust but you're right, it's all a matter of opinion.
ReplyDeleteGood answer.
ReplyDeletehere's mine:
http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2011/06/booking-through-thursday.html
I partially agree with you, I don't like reviews with spoilers, however, if I'm unsure of a book I will see if any of my favorite book bloggers have reviewed the book, I find I can trust their opinions, more so than a professional reviewer who may not be as honest in their reviews as my blogging buddies.
ReplyDeleteI do rely on bloggers' reviews that have similar likes as me.
ReplyDeleteGood answers...thanks for visiting my blog.
ReplyDeletei'm glad to see i'm not the only one who has a process! thanks for visiting my blog have a lovely day! :D
ReplyDeleteVery good answer!
ReplyDeleteHmmm... you may have a point there Sally - reading the reviews about books you're not sure that you want to buy. I may adopt this practice to spare me the pain of buying books I end up not liking, but I don't know how I could be sure that I'm making the right decision. Oh well.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog. ^_^
I find myself doing that with comics--when I know I'm going to buy an issue (and/or review it myself) I do my best to avoid any and all reviews of it so I can enjoy the issue myself spoiler-free, and not have my opinion shaped by others'.
ReplyDeleteAlso, your post just reminded me of my finally diving fully into the Harry Potter books. I was a lukewarm reader of the series to that point--I'd read the first 3, and wasn't put off but wasn't sucked in.
But when the 5th book came out, I knew between reviews and other internet stuff, that the 4th book was fair game for spoilers. So I spent the next several weeks from that point reading the 4th book, dove within mere moments from the 4th into the 5th, and waited along with everyone else for the 6th and 7th books.
As always, thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting. :-)
I agree. Sometimes you just don't need to read the review to know you want to read it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you say about not reading reviews of books you'd certainly buy because you don't want other opinions clouding your judgment! :) It's hard to form a true opinion after reading someone else's.
ReplyDeleteNicely said!
ReplyDelete