For What It's Worth


Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Tell Me Something Tuesday



Tell Me Something Tuesday is hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings and discusses a wide range of topics from books to blogging.

Question: Why I like to read book reviews?

Answer:

I love the book community and the idea that we’re all passionate enough about reading and books to spend all this time and effort (because it’s a LOT of effort!) sharing our opinions week after week – year after year.

There’s the obvious answer – I find new books and new authors through reviews but - I’m going to be perfectly honest – I don’t really add many books to my TBR from reviews these days BUT I still love them!

The truth is…

a) I already have so many books of my own to read that I’m not really trying to add more
b) I don’t have the same reading tastes of the vast majority of bloggers that I follow.

So why do I still like to read reviews?

I follow blogs more for personality than the books they read. Which is weird because I almost read exclusively book review blogs (with a few exceptions). You think I would read lifestyle blogs or something if I’m not specifically looking for new books to add but book bloggers are my people.

Here are a few of my faves & why I read their blogs despite not reading the genres they do (I hate doing this because I will leave people out – but if I ever visit your blog it’s because I love it lol)

Bark At the Ghouls (previously Bark’s Book Nonsense) -  reviews mainly horror. She’s honest, snarky and has cute book/pet pics. And she makes me want to read horror – even though I haven’t gotten around to it yet.

Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell – reviews mainly historical romance. Linda has been around as long as I have – which is so rare these days! I think she has commented on almost every single post I have ever written but I follow her blog because of her unflappable attitude towards blogging. She doesn’t get caught up in hype or drama and just plugs along posting almost every day – even after having a baby!

Du Livre – reviews a mix of genres but mainly YA fantasy. Amber is fun, honest and one of the most adorable people I’ve met in blogging. Visiting her blog just makes me happy. She’s also one of the few people that will make me go outside my comfort zone reading – because I trust her reviews and she knows my reading tastes enough to be honest about whether the book will work for me or not.

Greg’s Book Haven – Greg reads and reviews mostly thrillers but blogs about all kinds of things like comics, GoT, and other tv shows. I don’t read or watch any of it but I love (& am envious of) how varied and conversational his blog is.

Shooting Stars Mag – Lauren is probably one of the few bloggers that I do have similar reading tastes with. But she blogs about all sorts of things – local tourist spots, movies, shopping, crafts and she’s just a genuinely nice person that I’ve known since my early days of blogging.

Offbeat YA – My polar opposite in all things reading. We *met* because we had enjoyed the same book/author – I don’t think that has ever happened again in years lol But I love Roberta’s dedication to all things “offbeat” <- see what I did there? She is a tireless champion for overlooked YA books and authors. And man oh man can she write a fantastic mini review. I think she should write book blurbs for a living or be a professional reviewer.

 Jen Ryland – Jen is my blogging yoda – my blogging soul mate…we don’t love the same books but we dislike the same books. lol I trust her book recommendations and she’s my go to person when I’m having a blogging existential crisis.

So this is all to say that I still love reading reviews and visiting blogs even if I’m not entirely into the same books they read and I don’t know what I would do without y'all. It feels like having a group of people that *get me* in a way that my real life people do not.


The exception - Goodreads. If I'm deciding whether or not to read a specific book I read a lot of the reviews on there. I start with the 2-3 stars and then a few 5 stars to see what worked and what didn't so I can make my choice.

41 comments:

  1. I’m like you in that the blog review I read rarely end with me adding to my TBR (it takes a lot for me to decide to add to my insane TBR) but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying the reviews. I love to see what others are reading and what they think of it. And I so agree about Amber and Greg! Amber is a total ray of sunshine and I just love Greg’s easygoing, conversational style.

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    1. A review might get me to take a look - especially now that I use Libby - but for physical books, I just have way too many already but I still get excited to see everyone else's excitement lol

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    2. NOPE! I've met you and you are in fact an adorable human being and ray of sunshine!!!

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  2. Aw, thanks for the shout out. You know I love your blog and we DO have some similar interests when it comes to books, which is nice. I get most book recommendations from bloggers- but I'm also with you in that I don't JUST read blogs that post about books I read. Part of it's the personality, part of it's because it's bookish love regardless of the book, and part of it is because I've become close to a lot of these bloggers and I want to support them and their blog! And who knows? I might want to read a book they recommend here or there!

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. Yup to all of that! It's much more about personality to me.

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  3. Several of these are some of my favorites!!

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    1. There are soooo many more but tried to keep it readable lol

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  4. That is awesome that you read blogs that aren’t exactly compatible with you. I read all kinds of blogs, but I know I can always count on my trusted go to bloggers when they recommend a book. Hope you are settling in well and getting use to the Northwest life.

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    1. The weather has been amazing! Still exploring and finding new things :-)

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  5. That is a great point about reading reviews for genres you don't read--I read a lot of reviews/blogs for genres I don't read because I like the blogger, their writing, or just like keeping up with what they're reading. Great post!

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    1. The excitement over a book seems to be infectious even if it's not a genre you would read.

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  6. I read book reviews to see what others are thinking about books their reading even if they aren't the type of books that I read.

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    1. It seems to be true for a lot of us. I think we're all readers and that matters more than the genres.

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  7. Blogger pretends not to know who I am and now ate my comment?
    In any case lol that we hate the same books; when I think about that it is 100% true!
    Jen

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    1. We do!!! lol

      You don't need blogger - you have a direct line to me so ha! Take that blogger!

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  8. I mostly read reviews as a way to compare notes after I read a book. I don't have an IRL book club, so I do it through the comments. There are few bloggers, who can make me add books to my TBR, and I will always read their reviews before I read a book (because they have been vetted and do not put spoilers in their reviews.)

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    1. Oh yes! I definitely do that too. Which I hadn't thought of. It's interesting to see how we take away different things from the same book.

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  9. WHY DO YOU GOT ME OVER HERE HAPPY CRYING,,

    I feel like a lot of my blogging friends have different tastes from me too which makes reading blogs and understanding our friends likes/dislikes more fun.

    Speaking of your reading tastes, do you have Red, White and Royal Blue? It's a Karen book and it's making me laugh out loud.

    Kudos to Linda for being so crazy consistent!

    Also I want to know these blogging essential crises you and Jen have!

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    1. Ha! There are many blogging existential crisis lol

      Should I keep blogging? Does anyone care?? Why bother???

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  10. Du Livre is one of my favorite bloggers too. I always like to see how our reviews differ on the same book. I hope one day I can reach her amazing reading pace !

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    1. I usually read really fast but Amber has me beat these past few months!

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  11. "book bloggers are my people" I think there's something to that. Why on earth do I follow blogs or spend time commenting there when sometimes I don't even read the same kinds of books? I think like you said, because I just like their personality or just enjoy interacting w/ fellow book lovers. And blogging is SO time consuming- I think we really have to love it to do it. :)

    And thank you so much for the mention! I feel privileged to be on that list- and I love all those blogs too (Offbeat YA being the only one I'm not familiar with, and will go check it out posthaste)! :)

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    1. You must check out her blog! I think you would like it.

      It is weird to spend so much time on this since it's just a hobby but I really do believe that it's hard to find this bookish connection anywhere else.

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  12. I completely agree with this. I will admit that I've been slacking with commenting on blogs lately, but I am always around lurking. LoL Even if it's not a book I'd read, it's still entertaining to read someone's review. Sometimes I even find myself interested in a book I wouldn't normally choose for myself because of a review I read. But, I'll be honest, I only really trust the reviews from fellow bloggers that I follow. I don't tend to read all the reviews on Amazon or Goodreads.

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    1. It' rare for me to add books these days but every once in awhile I can be convinced to stray outside my zone. Especially now that I have Libby/ I'm more willing to try things with the library app.

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  13. 😭 😊 😘

    Writing book blurbs for a living wouldn't be so bad LOL. But a professional reviewer? Nope - if being a professional radio host taught me something, it's that certain things should remain hobbies. Doing them for a living kills all the joy. I'm flattered though! And same for me - I always have fun reading your posts, because they're so lively and straightforward.

    I have to admit I tend to read review for books I might be interested into, because I need to know if that would be money well spent...but I usually read your reviews (along with some other friends') even if the book is not my thing...then maybe I don't comment because I don't know what to say LOL 😳.

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    1. I hear you! I had volunteered at animal shelters for years but once I did it for a living and dealt with all the horrible human beings I was so burned out that I didn't do anything with them for almost a decade.

      Sometimes hobbies should remain hobbies!

      I do read reviews if I'm buying a book but I answered this question geared more towards why I read blog reviews even though they aren't for books I would typically read.

      I'm like a PI when I'm going to buy a book. I probably read too many reviews then lol

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  14. I read 1 and 2 star reviews to see the negatives people write about the books as that tells me more about the writing, characters, plot etc than gushing 5 star reviews! It helps me make an informed choice about future reading! I like seeing what my blogging friends are reading and I do sometimes pick up things I wouldn't normally read based on their reviews.

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    1. Me too! I know people hate those 3 or below star reviews but I find them so helpful and actually buy more books with those than 5 stars.

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  15. I enjoy reading blog reviews because I love seeing the thoughts of others, especially when it's a blogger I follow a lot because I trust their thoughts a little bit more. I agree that I tend to go to goodreads if I'm planning on buying a book because that's where I can scope out people's thoughts and help guide me about whether I should put my money in for a new book. I would say reviews convince me to buy many books but I am trying to be better, but even if it doesn't convince me to buy, it's good to see their thoughts on books.

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    1. Agreed! I just like seeing people happily talking about books - whatever they are!

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  16. Gosh, we are old in the blogging world, so old. When I think back of those I first interacted with...I do not think anyone is left. I found new ones along the way and then those went away. Sad. But here we still are! :D Wohoo.

    Haha, I should not add more books, but I still do ;)

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  17. I enjoy the book blogging world even though I've been taking more breaks. I do add a lot to my tbr as I just love to try almost anything. Oh and I love several of those people there too! You are also one of my fave bloggers and I enjoy all your posts and comments!

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  18. I follow every single one of these blogs! I love that Greg can talk comics with me, and I love his feature about bad movies. He's hilarious! I don't read a lot of thrillers, but I appreciate his reviews and enjoy how he writes them.

    Jen feeds my TBR Monster every week or so when she does her posts about new releases. I love and hate her for it!

    Roberta and I don't read the same books either, but I love her obsession with Dr. Who, and how she always uses GIFs from that show in her posts. Her TTT posts are always fun to read!

    I love that Amber is a dedicated blogger! I now associate the name Matt with Amber's blog, since she'll use his name to comment when hers isn't working or available, haha. Mamber? Ambett? I'm always bad at combining names!

    Lauren and Lina don't typically read the same things I do, but there blogs have always been a constant and I enjoy their personal touches. Bark's is always good for a pet picture!

    My second attempt at blogging has been drastically different from my first! The people, the blogs, the content...everything. I love that I've made new friends, because I still keep in touch with others that no longer blog, and enjoy where I'm at right now. Blogging is work, and it does take a lot of time, and we don't always have enough of it. Right now all my kiddos are at home, and I want to give them as much of my attention as possible, so most of my blogging is done while they're asleep.

    I do like reading other book reviews, but only for books I don't plan on reading, or that I haven't heard of before. I'll also read reviews for books I've already read, because I don't want to spoil anything for myself. Even non-spoilery reviews can tell you a lot about a book. I like going into them without knowing anything!

    Lindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? 💬

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  19. Same!! No one I follow has quite the same taste as me. You're one of the few bloggers I've even read a few of the same books as lol. But I like following book blogs because book bloggers are my people now. But I definitely use reviews on GR to help me decide when I'm considering a book, and there are some bloggers whose opinions I trust more than average if they've happened to have read that book or if they review a new-to-me book.

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  20. Same. I'm about 30% the books and 70% the people when visiting blogs, lol. In my current reading/blogging slump, the thing I've missed most is the people.

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  21. I actually love reading reviews, its probably my favorite thing about book blogging, I love seeing their personality that shines through in those reviews and seeing structure, humor and more.

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  22. I actually had the chance to meet Lauren (Shooting Stars) when she was in NY and I love her. She's just as sweet in person as she is over at her blog. I always love to read her book reviews, too, though our tastes aren't very similar. But I don't think that always matters, like you said, because it's the way a blogger conveys what they've read that can sway me to pick up a book I might not have read otherwise. Does that make sense? I need more coffee :)

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  23. I am actually the same. I don't always read the same books as some of my book blogging faves, but I follow for their personality or to show my support. And I don't always add books to my tbr right away but sometimes after a while, seeing them across a lot of book blogs with positive reviews draws me in!

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  24. Yes, I think book reviews are invaluable fir weeding out books I would have wasted time on. 👍✨

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