EOTO #2 Reaction Post

During this round of presentations, the topic that I found extremely interesting to learn about is the history of book reviews. As someone who enjoys reading book reviews are usually a deciding factor for me for if I want to spend time and money on a book. So learning how book reviewing originated was not only very informative, but also an extremely interesting topic for me.

The first thing to know before learning about the history of book reviewing is what a book review is. A book review is a summary, not a commentary. A book review should be a critical evaluation of the book that should take into account the strengths and weaknesses of the author as well as the reviewer's own personal opinion.

The guide for boo reviewing has changed a lot since it's early days. By 1920, the use of bylines became a standard practice, as well as editors recruiting more outside contributors. However, the books-as-news mentality still stayed and was the guiding mentality for how books should be reviewed.

The first book review appeared in the New York Times in 1896 and was a review of Sir George Tressady by Mary Augusta Ward. In the early days, books were seen as a form of news. However J. Donald Adams changed the way we think about books.

J. Donald Adams has a long career working in the publishing industry. He worked for multiple news companies before eventually working as an assistant editor for the New York Times's The Book Review in 1924. He held this position until 1943 and later became the columnist for Speaking of Books, which was a weekly that contributed to The New York Times' The Book Review. During his time as a columnist, he contributed over nine hundred essays. He made reviews more opinionated and expanded the coverage of books. 

Image of John Leonard

John Leonard became the executive editor of The Times Book Review in 1971. As he continued his career as a book reviewer, he also championed women's literature. He was also the first critic to review works from Nobel Prize winners. Leonard did a lot for the book reviewing field, and during his career, he was able to bring in new reviewers.

Today, book reviews are a staple in our society, with reviews sometimes being the deciding factor if a person decides to read a book or not. Reviews can hold a lot of power a sway the sales of books. With the creation of sites such as Goodreads and BookBub it is easier than it has ever been for people to share their own personal reviews of a book and read the reviews of others.

With how widespread book reviews have become, it is important for people to understand what a book review is supposed to be. With more and more people contributing to book reviewing, it is easier than ever for people to share their opinions. With this, people who read book reviews should be able to know the difference between someone's opinion and a general critique of the work.