tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post4447982633451334583..comments2009-07-15T09:02:47.353-04:00Colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05155882653615842141colleen@bookphilia.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-9195932082180635032009-07-15T05:47:51.696-04:002009-07-15T05:47:51.696-04:00Tony, I don&#39;t think bitchiness is ever ok in reviews, specially not when one writer is discussing another writer’s work. i think a personal opinion is all a review should ever purport to be - because that&#39;s all it ever can be.( Saying that, Colleen is unfailingly amusing and I love reading her reviews!!)<br /><br />Colleen, I just did the page 40 test on The Princess Bride, The Gargoyle and The Man In The Iron Mask - thanks for that! I&#39;ve ended up with some stinkers based on page one!!celinehttp://www.celinekiernan.com/blog/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-66758607173597499412009-07-12T01:40:32.582-04:002009-07-12T01:40:32.582-04:00Definitely not an attack on you at all :) I&#39;ve just finished my number 50 for the year, which was Nick Hornby&#39;s collection of reviews for &#39;Believer&#39; magazine (&#39;The Complete Polysyllabic Spree&#39;), and both his book and the various blogs and Facebook groups I frequent have me musing about how nice you should be and how bitchy you can be when reviewing books (and when I say &#39;you&#39;, I am, of course, talking about people in general). This is getting pretty long for a blog comment though...Tonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07546287562521628467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-47910248947789156222009-07-10T20:23:47.327-04:002009-07-10T20:23:47.327-04:00The page 40 test: instead of reading page 1 of a book to decide whether or not to read it, read page 40. By page 40, authors have either hit their stride or fizzled out. It&#39;s only failed me once (Our Father, Andre O&#39;Hagan - shudder).Colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05155882653615842141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-49525303092164144872009-07-10T18:57:58.980-04:002009-07-10T18:57:58.980-04:00What&#39;s a page 40 test?celinehttp://www.celinekiernan.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-58195417592704065872009-07-10T10:06:41.510-04:002009-07-10T10:06:41.510-04:00I was blog-hopping today and got here from Books I Done Read. This blog is hilarious. Thanks for sharing!Jesshttp://discursivewords.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-89199297849612338342009-07-10T09:16:08.209-04:002009-07-10T09:16:08.209-04:00raych: thank you. I don&#39;t love them the most but I do enjoy them.<br /><br />Tony: I posted your comment about that other Curious/Creepy. Are you giving me shit? I don&#39;t think I mind if you are, but it&#39;s hard to get tone of voice here.Colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05155882653615842141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-44389198287340476272009-07-10T02:26:20.915-04:002009-07-10T02:26:20.915-04:00But that one moment in time has stereotyped them for ever. What if the reader of the vampire book had actually just finished &#39;Ulysses&#39; and was merely limbering up before taking on &#39;War and Peace&#39;?<br /><br />Yeah, OK, not very likely, but you get my point...Tonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07546287562521628467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4972764383963459152.post-19918429705411842422009-07-08T19:30:45.113-04:002009-07-08T19:30:45.113-04:00I love these the most.raychhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08321213376462899047noreply@blogger.com