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I started my College Basics in 2019. Im majoring, in Creative Writing to become a Published Author, then Academia Professor. Noticed, good amt. of English Majors are Sensitive 😥🤧 to Language. I 👍 how u say FUCKIN & BULLSHIT. Dude, your Fuckin AWESOME.
There’s nothing problematic about your channel. I find the positivity and enthusiasm of your reviews refreshing - and I don’t even like american po-mo lit.
about "on not reading" I agree. There are some books we shouldn't spread. My grandmother had some books from the Satanic Panic about parenting to keep your kids from falling to Satanic Influence and making sure they don't listen to certain kinds of music (rock, punk, metal, some kinds of classical music like Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain and Ravel's Bolero) or they'll go to Hell. I was gonna turn them into a used book store to get some credit and new books, but opted to throw them in the trash instead, for fear someone would buy them and actually use them as guides to parent their children.
I've never thought that this channel needs more negative reviews. Your knowledge, insights and passion for literature give me a lot of inspiration and insights of my own. If you feel like doing negative reviews then I trust that they would be interesting to listen to but I don't think you should force yourself to do so. For me it's great as it is.
This is so interesting! I'd never given this issue a lot of thought, but I tend to agree with you. Having said that, I do talk about books I don't enjoy on my channel on my monthly wrap-ups. I only do that because I discuss every book I read on my wrap-ups or on my recent reads videos. But I know that I much prefer to talk about books I like or, at least, highlight what I think is good about books I don't like.
I've also been more comfortable, in the past, talking about books I dislike in wrap-up or more "collective" videos, somehow it feels less charged! I'll make sure to check your channel out :)
I think generally it takes more courage and insight to thoughtfully praise a work than tear something down. When it comes to articles and CZcams channels (but not casual conversation) I think calling out cynically mass-produced literature is often a way for people to get a cheap sense of unearned superiority. Shallow "take-downs" of really powerful classics are the worst of all, in my opinion; it's as if their function is to provide people with an excuse to not read beyond a certain level. I applaud you for your decisions with your channel. Thanks for not selling out!
I personally love when you review Discworld Novels. It's a fun alternative to more "serious" Books. Idk i just like that for several reasons, it just resonates with me :) but of course i like most of your content.
I understand your reasoning completely -- I enjoy writing reviews, mostly of the books I've enjoyed, but don't feel like wasting any more time on books I haven't enjoyed -- I'd rather just set them aside and be done with them. Fortunately, like you, I've become very good at selecting books that will appeal to me, and so rarely waste time on those other books.
I'm all in as a booktuber, talking about 95% of the books I've read, good, bad or indifferent. But if I'm down on a book, I try and explaining exactly why. I can usually derive some value even from books I ended up not liking or enjoying.
First comment. Unrelated but I just finished Infinite jest like literally an hour ago (almost fainted after going at it for the whole day~ the last hundred something pages) and was just watching your old video about it...anyway good videos as usual🤙 Also that last shelf is aesthetically pleasing.
To be honest, positive reviews and discussions are just much more interesting to me. Hearing someone's passion for something gets me excited and keeps me open minded. Negative reviews that just devolve into "I didn't like this" just don't really peak my interest that much. I'd prefer if the review still managed to build off the experience of reading the book rather than purely dismissing it, if that makes sense.
I have a written book review blog I've kept since 2013. I've given a couple negative reviews in the past but I don't do it much anymore. I have a rule with myself that I won't review an indie book if I can't give it a 3/5 (average) or better. Indie authors have a hard enough time, and most of them are bad by my standards but they're trying hard to make something cool and sell books. I have no problem giving a bad review to a popular Big 5 published book, though. >:3
Excellent point! I don't review many books from smaller publishers these days, sadly, but when I do I try to make sure the author is cool with the review being posted!
Dear Mattia, I understand your perspective. However I feel that, depending on the context, sometimes there is also a sort of a "moral obligation" to write negative reviews. As you know, the literary world in Italy, as everything else there, is extremely corrupted. The only people publishing for the big publishers and being awarded the most important literary prizes are always and only the 'usual' people, the friends of friends. They are indeed very awful writers, but good marketing strategies have persuaded Italian readers that *that* is good literature. This situation has led to a sort of dangerous reaction. In opposition to the bad literature made of a dull writing style and telling the usual silly upper-middle-class love stories, a new generation of 'alternative' and 'independent' Italian writers has started to publish novels which employ an excessively convoluted and complex language and which narrate increasingly spectacular, unusual and bizarre stories. The results of this 'new literature' is an embarrassing attempted imitation of American post-modernism which is as bad as the 'official literature' they are reacting against, if not worse. Yet, once again, good marketing has persuaded a niche of readers (those readers who regard themselves as alternative and modern) that *that* is good literature. I think that one has not only the right, but also the duty to show why these increasingly popular novels are actually empty, shallow and just awful. I have recently written two reviews on goodreads which have received a high number of 'likes' (www.goodreads.com/review/show/2774705265?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1 and www.goodreads.com/review/show/3310671206?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1). The fact that I received so many likes, I think, is the sign that sometimes negative reviews are needed. Let me specify: I have no problems with not reviewing "50 Shades of Grey". However, I think sometimes one ought to review books which are advertised as "great literature" while instead they are just pretentious smoke in the eyes. What do you think?
I quite agree. I read somewhere that if you want to read a good book nowadays, just avoid bestsellers. While it's an overstatement, it definitely has some truth.
I agree with your different points. I write little reviews and articles in french and I'm often asking myself about what I should/want to review. Sometimes at first I want to write about something I enjoyed, or not, but I just don't find the right words, or worse: I do not think I have something interesting to add about what was said on it. I also think that bringing "negative" reviews is not the right thing to do, because I don't want to lose my time writing about something I did not like. The only reasons I would eventually do it is if its inner message is dangerous or wrong. I don't know if you understand xD Sorry this is very messy!
Not at all, and you raise a very relevant point: sometimes I read books that I enjoy a lot... and I just don't have much to say about them!! Should have mentioned it in the video ^^
Hey. I just started my own channel in español. And this is invaluable advice. I was already planning a whole video about Garcia Marquez's negative effect in latin american literature. But I'm now afraid someone might burn down my house. Thanks yo!
I don't think you just gush about the books you review - you seem to put a lot of thought into the reviews and talk about books I might want to read. I particularly like your author reviews when you rank their books - you did a really good one on Pynchon for example. You include negative as well as positive things and the context for your ranking really comes through. And I really must try to read Gravity's Rainbow this year!
That's actually why I like your channel. I don't think your point on negative videos and CZcams are wrong at all(I've thought of that point for a while). As for the positivity I feel the difference with your channel is that you are not saying every book is perfect you are willing to point out flaws. I've seen other reviews act like theirs nothing wrong with the media they are reviewing and it comes across as disingenuous.
If you are going to answer questions: why do you have a mysterious a clump of grey hair? (FYI your gravity’s rainbow series saved my senior paper this past week, Thank you so much for existing)
I still think I am using a different Skillshare than everyone else - I really didn't get anything out of it :( On negative reviews or talking about books you didn't like. I think there are different ways of doing it. The rant review is highly favored on CZcams, so I guess people tend to get so exhaustingly overboard I tend to not watch them (and do them, I may have in the past and may again if a book makes me). I prefer reviews that go at a book they didnt like the same they go at one they liked, calm and with examples and arguments. At least that is what I'm trying to do. I think it is important to share those thoughts as well, because otherwise we only leave the praise out there that might distort the picture. It's false modesty to think of promoting something bad. I think the better informed people are the better they can make a decision. ´ As a creator I think everybody can decide what to talk about, if you prefer to talk about the things you enjoy that's fine as you tell us and don't let us think you never read bad books. People who do that and view a 3 star book as bad and a waste of time make me suspicious anyway :D
You're perfectly entitled to review as and when you see fit. I review on Goodreads for most books I read, good and bad. Mainly this just gives me an indicator of what turns me off and on in literary terms but also, I don't think we should be fearful of reviewing negatively as well as positively.
Hey, dude. You being a Pynchon fan, what book should i read next? I've read Gravity's Rainbow and Against the Day and i have in my hands V., Inherent Vice and Bleeding Edge. Any advices?? I was thinking going for V. but all of them seem appealing...
@@TheBookchemist Guess i'll go for Bleeding Edge then, i liked Gravity's Rainbow but Against the Day it's one of the best works of fiction i've ever read in my life.
My humble suggestion for those who'd like to develop their close reading skills would be to learn to read slowly, to pay less attention to the flow of events and more to the quality of the writing on the page, on word choices, musicality, and the smallest atoms that make up the text. It sounds cliché and vague, but it really does improve what you get out of books, once you develop it as a skill. It's of course much easier to develop through re-reading, which, contrary to what intuition may suggest (I wasn't a fan of re-reading as an early-20s-person) is actually tons of fun, I'd argue much more stimulating and rewarding than first reading.
@@TheBookchemist it's great to read a book you loved a second time. I'm currently in that stage myself. Just finished 100 years of solitude and Siddhartha, which makes me feel like they go well together, in a way. However I have so many more books to discover that it's hard to do.
Is David Foster Wallace the most overrated post-war author? No one else comes to mind. Maybe David Eggers? But no one really reads him. There are authors that are a matter of taste, like Updike. There are authors who are less-talented, but write a book that people like, like The Alchemist. But purely overrated? Over-praised in his time? There’s no one that comes close in my mind. There are authors that are hyped and then forgotten, but the dizzying amount of seriousness towards DFW’s work is fascinating.
I think yeah he's a bit romanticized by fantod fans but Infinite Jest is not overrated. I just finished it and think it deserves every bit of hype it got.. the art sustains the author..
I deleted my comment by accident. Just as well as it was a trifle circumlocutory for what point I was trying to make lol. In truncated form, take the notion of ratings with a pinch of salt and don't get entrenched in the potential pitfalls of being to eager to trust the consensus on who is purportedly 'overrated'. You could miss out on some good stuff otherwise. :)
My knowledge of German literature is very superficial and scholastic - I know nothing about contemporary German literature! Speaking of classics I'd definitely recommend Morike's Mozart's Journey to Prague, and, well, Goethe (Werther and Selective Affinities). Novalis' Heinrich von Ofterdingen is pretty trippy stuff, ETA Hoffmann's stories are small gems (with The Sandman as an absolute must), and, well, if with German you mean German-speaking, you can't go wrong with Kafka!
I prefer positive reviews. I watch CZcams book reviews mainly after reading the book to gain a greater appreciation of the book. I tend not to watch negative reviews - so I do not subscribe to many booktuber channels. I prefer to read! Why highlight the negatives of a book when you can focus on those books you have a greater appreciation and enjoyment of?
I only read The Drowned World (which I didn't quite adore) and Kingdom Come, which was marvelous, and left a deep mark on me - I still think about it whenever I drive by any suburban mall. I'd love to check out some of his major works (Crash, Atrocity Exhibition) whenever my to-read list frees up a little :)
Lol so funny that you mentioned reviewing goosebumps. Did you know there are 2 goosebumps podcasts dedicated to going through every book? My personal favorite is “goosebuds” . It’s not meant to be serious, they’re mostly humor based. I’d love to see your take on them :) love the vid, love your channel, have a good day Edit: to answer your last questions, I think it’s important to also review things you’d give a “negative” take on. It gives the viewer a better idea of your taste as a whole and tells me if I can trust your recommendations in the future. Like you mentioned, there’s great value in talking about how something falls short or is bad if it’s done right i.e. without intentionally inflammatory titles or arguments. Idk, that’s just me.
Thanks for the recommendation, I didn't know about those podcasts :)! My favorite Goosebumps commenter so far is Troy Steele at Blogger Beware; his project is 99% humorous but he does offer some pretty interesting insight on a couple of titles in the series!
I recently listened to your review of Augie March and enjoyed it very much. I like Bellows but have never read Augie March so I'm getting a copy from the library. After I've read it, I'll go back to your review. I find your reviews thought provoking and worthwhile. I appreciate that even if you don't like a book, like the Bellows, your comments are serious comments and not snark. You're always respectful of authors and readers so I have no problem with a negative review of a book you didn't like. It helps me focus my own thoughts and learn how to approach literature.
you should check out a recent video by The Art Assignment where she talks about all content is inherently biased in some way. don't be so hard on yourself. your opinion is valued by many people, and your channel is a true gift to the world! thank you for all you do! her video is titled "why I'm slowing down." but, please, BookChemist, do not slow down! the world needs you!
You didn’t like The Scarlett Letter? :0 It´s one of my absolute favourites! :) I bought War with the newts on your recommendation, hope I like it. ;p eh eh
Don't change just for us, BC. You've got some fine natural style going for you aside from the terrific literary info you turn out. A blistering take down might be fun but only if you're really feeling it.
I think negative reviews helps us to think critically, instead of prasing a classic just because our school teacher told us to. You should be more brave. If you have solid arguments to sostain a negative opinion then angry people'll have to find a way to prove your arguments are wrong and, in the end of the day, one of the two parts will grow. But I guess that would make you lose subscribers and I suppose that's what is most important for you.
Thanks to Skillshare for sponsoring this video - the first 500 people who click their link will get 2 free months of Skillshare Premium: skl.sh/thebookchemist2
I started my College Basics in 2019. Im majoring, in Creative Writing to become a Published Author, then Academia Professor. Noticed, good amt. of English Majors are Sensitive 😥🤧 to Language.
I 👍 how u say FUCKIN & BULLSHIT. Dude, your Fuckin AWESOME.
There’s nothing problematic about your channel. I find the positivity and enthusiasm of your reviews refreshing - and I don’t even like american po-mo lit.
about "on not reading" I agree. There are some books we shouldn't spread. My grandmother had some books from the Satanic Panic about parenting to keep your kids from falling to Satanic Influence and making sure they don't listen to certain kinds of music (rock, punk, metal, some kinds of classical music like Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain and Ravel's Bolero) or they'll go to Hell. I was gonna turn them into a used book store to get some credit and new books, but opted to throw them in the trash instead, for fear someone would buy them and actually use them as guides to parent their children.
I've never thought that this channel needs more negative reviews. Your knowledge, insights and passion for literature give me a lot of inspiration and insights of my own. If you feel like doing negative reviews then I trust that they would be interesting to listen to but I don't think you should force yourself to do so. For me it's great as it is.
This is so interesting! I'd never given this issue a lot of thought, but I tend to agree with you. Having said that, I do talk about books I don't enjoy on my channel on my monthly wrap-ups. I only do that because I discuss every book I read on my wrap-ups or on my recent reads videos. But I know that I much prefer to talk about books I like or, at least, highlight what I think is good about books I don't like.
I've also been more comfortable, in the past, talking about books I dislike in wrap-up or more "collective" videos, somehow it feels less charged! I'll make sure to check your channel out :)
This was a thoughtful video. Will check out the article referenced at the start. It sounds interesting!
I think generally it takes more courage and insight to thoughtfully praise a work than tear something down. When it comes to articles and CZcams channels (but not casual conversation) I think calling out cynically mass-produced literature is often a way for people to get a cheap sense of unearned superiority. Shallow "take-downs" of really powerful classics are the worst of all, in my opinion; it's as if their function is to provide people with an excuse to not read beyond a certain level. I applaud you for your decisions with your channel. Thanks for not selling out!
I personally love when you review Discworld Novels. It's a fun alternative to more "serious" Books. Idk i just like that for several reasons, it just resonates with me :) but of course i like most of your content.
I understand your reasoning completely -- I enjoy writing reviews, mostly of the books I've enjoyed, but don't feel like wasting any more time on books I haven't enjoyed -- I'd rather just set them aside and be done with them. Fortunately, like you, I've become very good at selecting books that will appeal to me, and so rarely waste time on those other books.
I like your positive approach though in life many of the most stimulating discussions I have are disagreements.
I'm all in as a booktuber, talking about 95% of the books I've read, good, bad or indifferent. But if I'm down on a book, I try and explaining exactly why. I can usually derive some value even from books I ended up not liking or enjoying.
First comment. Unrelated but I just finished Infinite jest like literally an hour ago (almost fainted after going at it for the whole day~ the last hundred something pages) and was just watching your old video about it...anyway good videos as usual🤙
Also that last shelf is aesthetically pleasing.
Yo, second comment, I just started reading Infinite Jest today, guess I'll be back in a bit to re-watch his video about it.
@@Johanyo2 haha great...all the best and don't skip the footnotes, at least not the long ones, they're crucial and pretty fun. Enjoy!
To be honest, positive reviews and discussions are just much more interesting to me. Hearing someone's passion for something gets me excited and keeps me open minded.
Negative reviews that just devolve into "I didn't like this" just don't really peak my interest that much. I'd prefer if the review still managed to build off the experience of reading the book rather than purely dismissing it, if that makes sense.
I have a written book review blog I've kept since 2013. I've given a couple negative reviews in the past but I don't do it much anymore. I have a rule with myself that I won't review an indie book if I can't give it a 3/5 (average) or better. Indie authors have a hard enough time, and most of them are bad by my standards but they're trying hard to make something cool and sell books. I have no problem giving a bad review to a popular Big 5 published book, though. >:3
Excellent point! I don't review many books from smaller publishers these days, sadly, but when I do I try to make sure the author is cool with the review being posted!
Whats the name of your blog?
Dear Mattia, I understand your perspective. However I feel that, depending on the context, sometimes there is also a sort of a "moral obligation" to write negative reviews. As you know, the literary world in Italy, as everything else there, is extremely corrupted. The only people publishing for the big publishers and being awarded the most important literary prizes are always and only the 'usual' people, the friends of friends. They are indeed very awful writers, but good marketing strategies have persuaded Italian readers that *that* is good literature. This situation has led to a sort of dangerous reaction. In opposition to the bad literature made of a dull writing style and telling the usual silly upper-middle-class love stories, a new generation of 'alternative' and 'independent' Italian writers has started to publish novels which employ an excessively convoluted and complex language and which narrate increasingly spectacular, unusual and bizarre stories. The results of this 'new literature' is an embarrassing attempted imitation of American post-modernism which is as bad as the 'official literature' they are reacting against, if not worse. Yet, once again, good marketing has persuaded a niche of readers (those readers who regard themselves as alternative and modern) that *that* is good literature. I think that one has not only the right, but also the duty to show why these increasingly popular novels are actually empty, shallow and just awful. I have recently written two reviews on goodreads which have received a high number of 'likes' (www.goodreads.com/review/show/2774705265?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1 and www.goodreads.com/review/show/3310671206?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1). The fact that I received so many likes, I think, is the sign that sometimes negative reviews are needed. Let me specify: I have no problems with not reviewing "50 Shades of Grey". However, I think sometimes one ought to review books which are advertised as "great literature" while instead they are just pretentious smoke in the eyes. What do you think?
I agree :)
I quite agree. I read somewhere that if you want to read a good book nowadays, just avoid bestsellers. While it's an overstatement, it definitely has some truth.
I agree with your different points. I write little reviews and articles in french and I'm often asking myself about what I should/want to review. Sometimes at first I want to write about something I enjoyed, or not, but I just don't find the right words, or worse: I do not think I have something interesting to add about what was said on it. I also think that bringing "negative" reviews is not the right thing to do, because I don't want to lose my time writing about something I did not like. The only reasons I would eventually do it is if its inner message is dangerous or wrong. I don't know if you understand xD
Sorry this is very messy!
Not at all, and you raise a very relevant point: sometimes I read books that I enjoy a lot... and I just don't have much to say about them!! Should have mentioned it in the video ^^
Hey. I just started my own channel in español. And this is invaluable advice. I was already planning a whole video about Garcia Marquez's negative effect in latin american literature. But I'm now afraid someone might burn down my house. Thanks yo!
I don't think you just gush about the books you review - you seem to put a lot of thought into the reviews and talk about books I might want to read. I particularly like your author reviews when you rank their books - you did a really good one on Pynchon for example. You include negative as well as positive things and the context for your ranking really comes through. And I really must try to read Gravity's Rainbow this year!
That's actually why I like your channel. I don't think your point on negative videos and CZcams are wrong at all(I've thought of that point for a while). As for the positivity I feel the difference with your channel is that you are not saying every book is perfect you are willing to point out flaws. I've seen other reviews act like theirs nothing wrong with the media they are reviewing and it comes across as disingenuous.
If you are going to answer questions: why do you have a mysterious a clump of grey hair? (FYI your gravity’s rainbow series saved my senior paper this past week, Thank you so much for existing)
I still think I am using a different Skillshare than everyone else - I really didn't get anything out of it :(
On negative reviews or talking about books you didn't like. I think there are different ways of doing it. The rant review is highly favored on CZcams, so I guess people tend to get so exhaustingly overboard I tend to not watch them (and do them, I may have in the past and may again if a book makes me). I prefer reviews that go at a book they didnt like the same they go at one they liked, calm and with examples and arguments. At least that is what I'm trying to do. I think it is important to share those thoughts as well, because otherwise we only leave the praise out there that might distort the picture. It's false modesty to think of promoting something bad. I think the better informed people are the better they can make a decision. ´
As a creator I think everybody can decide what to talk about, if you prefer to talk about the things you enjoy that's fine as you tell us and don't let us think you never read bad books. People who do that and view a 3 star book as bad and a waste of time make me suspicious anyway :D
You're perfectly entitled to review as and when you see fit. I review on Goodreads for most books I read, good and bad. Mainly this just gives me an indicator of what turns me off and on in literary terms but also, I don't think we should be fearful of reviewing negatively as well as positively.
Where's the video explaining why you moved away from DFW?
Hey, dude. You being a Pynchon fan, what book should i read next? I've read Gravity's Rainbow and Against the Day and i have in my hands V., Inherent Vice and Bleeding Edge. Any advices?? I was thinking going for V. but all of them seem appealing...
I'd say Bleeding Edge, which with Against the Day is my favorite Pynchon. If you enjoyed GR more than AtD, chances are you'll love V. too ;)
@@TheBookchemist Guess i'll go for Bleeding Edge then, i liked Gravity's Rainbow but Against the Day it's one of the best works of fiction i've ever read in my life.
Good on you for keeping it positive.
As a literature Phd, can you give us some advice as to how to read books more critically?
My humble suggestion for those who'd like to develop their close reading skills would be to learn to read slowly, to pay less attention to the flow of events and more to the quality of the writing on the page, on word choices, musicality, and the smallest atoms that make up the text. It sounds cliché and vague, but it really does improve what you get out of books, once you develop it as a skill. It's of course much easier to develop through re-reading, which, contrary to what intuition may suggest (I wasn't a fan of re-reading as an early-20s-person) is actually tons of fun, I'd argue much more stimulating and rewarding than first reading.
@@TheBookchemist it's great to read a book you loved a second time. I'm currently in that stage myself. Just finished 100 years of solitude and Siddhartha, which makes me feel like they go well together, in a way. However I have so many more books to discover that it's hard to do.
Is David Foster Wallace the most overrated post-war author? No one else comes to mind. Maybe David Eggers? But no one really reads him.
There are authors that are a matter of taste, like Updike. There are authors who are less-talented, but write a book that people like, like The Alchemist. But purely overrated? Over-praised in his time? There’s no one that comes close in my mind. There are authors that are hyped and then forgotten, but the dizzying amount of seriousness towards DFW’s work is fascinating.
Jonathan Franzen is very overrated as well.
I think yeah he's a bit romanticized by fantod fans but Infinite Jest is not overrated. I just finished it and think it deserves every bit of hype it got.. the art sustains the author..
I deleted my comment by accident. Just as well as it was a trifle circumlocutory for what point I was trying to make lol. In truncated form, take the notion of ratings with a pinch of salt and don't get entrenched in the potential pitfalls of being to eager to trust the consensus on who is purportedly 'overrated'. You could miss out on some good stuff otherwise. :)
Are there any poetry critics with channels that you enjoy watching?
Posso chiederti se ne segui, quali canali italiani preferisci che parlano di letteratura?
Non ne seguo tantissimi ma ricordo diverse ottime recensioni e video interessantissimi postati da Ilenia Zodiaco! czcams.com/users/EvaLunaSulTubo
Dude! Can you recommend some good German literature? Recently I read Heinrich Boll's the Clown, and Gunter Grass' The Tin Drum. :)
Robert Musil, Hermann Broch, and Thomas Mann are some of my favorite novelists.
My knowledge of German literature is very superficial and scholastic - I know nothing about contemporary German literature! Speaking of classics I'd definitely recommend Morike's Mozart's Journey to Prague, and, well, Goethe (Werther and Selective Affinities). Novalis' Heinrich von Ofterdingen is pretty trippy stuff, ETA Hoffmann's stories are small gems (with The Sandman as an absolute must), and, well, if with German you mean German-speaking, you can't go wrong with Kafka!
Also if you liked The Clown, you should definitely read Böll’s earlier masterpiece, Billiards at Half-Past Nine.
I prefer positive reviews. I watch CZcams book reviews mainly after reading the book to gain a greater appreciation of the book. I tend not to watch negative reviews - so I do not subscribe to many booktuber channels. I prefer to read! Why highlight the negatives of a book when you can focus on those books you have a greater appreciation and enjoyment of?
Check better than food book reviews you ll find good stuff there
Have you read any J.G. Ballard? I would be interested to hear you views regarding his work. I find his stuff extraordinary.
I only read The Drowned World (which I didn't quite adore) and Kingdom Come, which was marvelous, and left a deep mark on me - I still think about it whenever I drive by any suburban mall. I'd love to check out some of his major works (Crash, Atrocity Exhibition) whenever my to-read list frees up a little :)
Are you still a PhD student? What do you do if you have to read a book for a class and you don't really like it?
Lol so funny that you mentioned reviewing goosebumps. Did you know there are 2 goosebumps podcasts dedicated to going through every book? My personal favorite is “goosebuds” . It’s not meant to be serious, they’re mostly humor based. I’d love to see your take on them :) love the vid, love your channel, have a good day
Edit: to answer your last questions, I think it’s important to also review things you’d give a “negative” take on. It gives the viewer a better idea of your taste as a whole and tells me if I can trust your recommendations in the future. Like you mentioned, there’s great value in talking about how something falls short or is bad if it’s done right i.e. without intentionally inflammatory titles or arguments. Idk, that’s just me.
Thanks for the recommendation, I didn't know about those podcasts :)! My favorite Goosebumps commenter so far is Troy Steele at Blogger Beware; his project is 99% humorous but he does offer some pretty interesting insight on a couple of titles in the series!
I recently listened to your review of Augie March and enjoyed it very much. I like Bellows but have never read Augie March so I'm getting a copy from the library. After I've read it, I'll go back to your review. I find your reviews thought provoking and worthwhile. I appreciate that even if you don't like a book, like the Bellows, your comments are serious comments and not snark. You're always respectful of authors and readers so I have no problem with a negative review of a book you didn't like. It helps me focus my own thoughts and learn how to approach literature.
Thank you Sherry - what a kind comment :)!
you should check out a recent video by The Art Assignment where she talks about all content is inherently biased in some way. don't be so hard on yourself. your opinion is valued by many people, and your channel is a true gift to the world! thank you for all you do! her video is titled "why I'm slowing down." but, please, BookChemist, do not slow down! the world needs you!
:D (I'll check out that video!)
Upvote for sorting your books by spine colour
You didn’t like The Scarlett Letter? :0 It´s one of my absolute favourites! :) I bought War with the newts on your recommendation, hope I like it. ;p eh eh
Persepolis would be great
A rare non book-review video!
Don't change just for us, BC. You've got some fine natural style going for you aside from the terrific literary info you turn out.
A blistering take down might be fun but only if you're really feeling it.
how old are you? :)
i like ur hair
I think negative reviews helps us to think critically, instead of prasing a classic just because our school teacher told us to. You should be more brave. If you have solid arguments to sostain a negative opinion then angry people'll have to find a way to prove your arguments are wrong and, in the end of the day, one of the two parts will grow. But I guess that would make you lose subscribers and I suppose that's what is most important for you.