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Message: <blockquote data-quote="cybermonkey" data-source="post: 1265128" data-attributes="member: 14582">This has been an educational read for me this morning. I'm about to tackle a book and I thought I would be getting some information about what not to do. The only thing I got out of it, other than the amusing read, some people take themselves way too seriously.I have written movie reviews off and on for a number of year either for my college newspaper and for the weekly paper that I currently work for and I have followed Roger Ebert's guidelines for writing movie reviews and to some degree they can be applied to other reviews as well... (I modified to apply to book-review writing).1) Make no pretense of objectivity.Don't be neutral. A neutral stance comes across like a book review you write in high school instead of critical review.2) Don't be reluctant to introduce extraneous knowledge.I wrote a review trashing "The Fast and the Furious." I enjoyed the film up until the momment I realized that it was nothing more than an elaborate remake of "Point Break." Was that the intention of the screenwriter and director? Probably not, but that extraneous knowledge did influence how I liked the film.3) Don't be bashful about writing in the first person.This is your opinion, don't shy away from it.4) Don't predict which group of readers will or will not enjoy the book.The review is your opinion, you have no say about others.5) Don't distance yourself from the actual experience of reading the book.If you struggled with the book (whether grammar, layout or even the rules) then you have the right to say you struggled with the book. On the other side of the coin if you liked something about it, no matter how small, say what you liked.6) Don't overwrite the first paragraph.From Ebert's own words:"The genuine critic will write in such a way as to acknowledge that he had a subjective personal experience that he wants to share with the reader, and which reminded him of other films or other subjects. He will wear his knowledge lightly and never presume to speak for others than himself."In all accounts, Dana was correct in the initial reviews. However, Dana did cross the line starting this thread and asserting that there was something wrong with "dilettante publishers." Final Notes:The email issue should have died on Dana's end with a simple: "Thanks for taking time to read my review." If someone complains about a review you have written, let them vent. Don't keep adding gasoline to the fire.Didn't PT Barnum say: "There's a sucker born every minute"?</blockquote>

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