I was telling my friend I didn't want to write negative book reviews any more. This is true. I will never write a mostly or primarily negative review of any book. If I find myself doing it, I will back off and have someone else do the review.
She asked why, and I gave a fumbling, stumbling answer, but thinking about it more, I decided I don't need to be a negative force about anything. I could worry that some bad book was not sufficiently chastised, but what good would that do?
It feels good to be negative, sometimes. When I got together with colleagues recently, to complain about others, it felt genuinely cathartic. If it weren't pleasurable, we wouldn't do it. But I have to think beyond that gratification.
3 comments:
I was taught in graduate school never to write a negative review. Who needs enemies, was the theory. Now, I would.
I have done so in the past. Once, I thought the book would be good and volunteered. The other, I just didn't know it would be bad and did an honest job, but had to go negative. Nobody has complained, though I'm sure they weren't happy.
I guess one really should not review a tenure book negatively. Or the book of anyone untenured
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