Weekly Book Chat Q & A - Reviews 101

From TGIF Reads
Q. Writing Reviews 101: What's your process for writing book reviews? Any tips or suggestions you would recommend to other bloggers?

I do not write reviews per se. In my weekly recap of the books read, posted on Mondays, I discuss the books I read - if I liked or disliked them and why. This is usually just a few sentences, which is why I feel this does not qualify as a "book review" - plus it's not a post dedicated to just 1 book - I also mention what I'm currently reading, and what I will be reading next.

The reasons I don't do reviews
- So many people already post reviews, and do it better than I ever could.
- I prefer to post book lists - lists of books I want to read (or have read), tied together by a certain genre or theme.
- I also don't want to start obsessing about writing a long review of a book - I would worry about making it comprehensive, my writing style and being thorough - 6 years spent at 2 different graduate programs guarantees that I'm going to be anal!

From Pen to Paper
Q. Friday Recommends - Pick a book that you've read, and have enjoyed enough to recommend to other readers.

Since this is the beginning of the month (December), I'm going to pick my favorite book read last month, which is one of my favorites for 2011, Before I Go to Sleep, S.J. Watson (discussed in Weekly Reading with An Amnesiac). I think fans of both Adult & Young Adult books won't be able to put this one down once they start reading.

Interesting Bookish Stuff Seen Recently
• Reader Confessions: I'm Sick of Blogger Gloating (at Reading with Tequila). My opinion - anyone who dislikes a blogger because they are "bragging" about advanced copies of books they've received or events they have gone to, should get a life! Recognize that you are drinking too much haterade and unsubscribe from their blog since it makes you feel so bad. And again ... don't worry, be happy :-)

• Why I hate Oprah's book club: a greengeekgirl rant (at Insatiable Booksluts) "... I'm one of the few people out there who doesn't think that everybody should read for entertainment." My opinion - Damn, seems there's always somebody who wants to tell people what they should or should not do - what they should not wear (no white after labor day), what they should look like (no tattoos and piercings) and now - what books they should like.

• I WON a giveaway ***yeah baby*** - THANKS Always With a Book. This is the 1st time I've won anything, and I love getting stuff in the mail. I got The Diva Haunts the House, Krista Davis.
  Domestic diva Sophie Winston is getting into the Halloween spirit - her decorations for a community haunted house are so good, it's scary. Not to be outdone, rival domestic diva Natasha is throwing a spooktacular Halloween party at her house. But when Sophie arrives, she discovers one of Natasha's guests dead in a Halloween display, and a pale, fanged party-goer fleeing the scene. Could the killer be a real vampire-the same one rumored to have lived in Sophie's haunted house back when it was a boardinghouse? Good thing a domestic diva never runs out of garlic.