From cancelled books to ‘review bombing’, it might seem as though the website can make or break a career. But how influential is it really?Something dramatic happens on a social media platform every day. On Goodreads, the anachronistically designed website for logging, rating (out of five) and reviewing books, the dramas are more amusing, and they occasionally even draw attention from areas beyond the site’s supposedly book-loving users. The most recent featured Cait Corrain, the fantasy author who set up an elaborate network of fake accounts to post positive reviews of her own forthcoming book as well as negative reviews of authors she felt were her competitors. When citizen journalists uncovered her plot in December 2023, her book was cancelled, and she lost her agent and a future book deal.A juicy, postmodern story of self-sabotage, or a sad one about the intersection of the internet and mental health. Regardless, its stakes are relatively low: publicly harassing one’s colleagues is a sackable offence anyway, and it’s hard to find someone who really cares about the vicissitudes of the young adult literature world who isn’t part of the subculture. I’m not; I’m a professional critic, and an author of a literary novel. I’m a snob. I care about my book, and the authors I feel are my competitors. And while Goodreads has been around since 2007, its significance to the broader literary world remains steadfastly confusing. Does it sell books? Does it make and break careers?... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-02-17 09:00:10 UTC ]
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From cancelled books to ‘review bombing’, it might seem as though the website can make or break a career. But how influential is it really?Something dramatic happens on a social media platform every day. On Goodreads, the anachronistically designed website for logging, rating (out of five) and... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-02-17 09:00:10 UTC ]
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In an interview with Poynter back at the beginning of November, BuzzFeed book editor Isaac Fitzgerald said that the site will not include negative reviews. "Why waste breath talking smack about something? You see it in so many old media-type places, the scathing takedown rip. If you can’t say... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2013-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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His blockbuster Bible study, guiding readers to learn and live God's will, has sold millions worldwide since 1990. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-16 05:00:00 UTC ]
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First-time author Cait Corrain has apologized on X and announced she is going to rehab after losing her book deal and agent for 'review bombing' on Goodreads. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-12-12 22:43:34 UTC ]
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#book deal
In an October 30 message, Goodreads officials urged users to report activity designed to “harass readers or authors, or attempt to artificially deflate or inflate the overall rating” of books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
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After several critics complained of being quoted out of context on the covers of Jordan Peterson’s new book, the industry body has spoken out against the practiceThe Society of Authors (SoA) has spoken out against publishers misrepresenting negative reviews on book covers and the UK publisher... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-09-01 06:02:22 UTC ]
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A welcome revival of a 1980s comedy prophesying the collapse of the Soviet UnionHere is a revival of a 1983 film from the Georgian director Eldar Shengelaia (still alive at 90) and it is revealed as an intriguing, and perhaps even remarkable creation: a dapper, droll satire on Soviet... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-02-06 13:00:00 UTC ]
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“Essex Dogs,” the first novel in a projected trilogy by the historian Dan Jones, imagines a hard-bitten band of mercenaries hired to invade France on behalf of their English king. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-02-03 10:00:06 UTC ]
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‘Power of the Dog’ author Thomas Savage died in obscurity. It’s time to honor his work. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-02-15 12:00:36 UTC ]
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Bad Form Review and Penguin Random House's Lit in Colour scheme have jointly won the Discover award at this year's FutureBook Awards ceremony. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-19 17:09:55 UTC ]
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Australian dramatist David Williamson’s new book is a mash up of memoir and autobiography, which casts himself as a former ‘plunderer’ of other’s lives. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2021-10-20 03:57:12 UTC ]
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As we scour the past issues of the Book Review on its 125th anniversary, we have come across a lot of commissioned poetry — including this interesting specimen. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-04-23 15:47:00 UTC ]
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Wesley Barnes had posted several reviews allegedly accusing the resort of "modern day slavery" Continue reading at BBC World
[ BBC World | 2020-10-09 06:23:40 UTC ]
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Wesley Barnes sued by resort owner after posting negative comments on TripadvisorAn American man is facing two years in prison in Thailand after posting negative online reviews of a hotel resort.The Sea View Resort in Koh Chang accused Wesley Barnes of “a slanderous campaign” over the reviews,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-09-29 12:25:01 UTC ]
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Veteran biographer A.N. Wilson takes on one of the most popular, prolific and puzzling writers in English literature in "The Mystery of Charles Dickens." Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-08-06 14:00:54 UTC ]
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English-born Canadian theologian and prolific, influential author J.I. Packer, whose classic evangelical title 'Knowing God' has sold more than 1.2 million copies, died July 17. He was 93. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-07-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The Room Where It Happened, due out later this month if attempts to block publication fail, has received stinging early notices but is already Amazon’s No 1John Bolton’s damning indictment of the Trump presidency is topping bestseller charts in the US a week before its release, despite withering... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-06-18 11:54:13 UTC ]
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A historian, he was asked by the paper to judge whether a correspondent’s Pulitzer Prize should be revoked because of biased reporting. He said it should be. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2019-09-19 21:57:30 UTC ]
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Michael M. Levy, a scholar of science fiction and longtime 'Publishers Weekly' reviewer, died of cancer on April 3. He was 66. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The exacting editor of the high-brow magazine was a legend on the New York literary scene. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2017-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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