As I thought more this morning about my previous post, a bit of a summary occurred to me.
(You always think of what you should have said, after you've said it, right?)
So here goes:
A Good Reading Experience is a partnership. It's very much like falling in love with another person, and it requires two things:
a) The right stimulus
b) The right response
That's why many book reviews fall short of being helpful.
"This book was great!" Doesn't tell me anything, because I don't know you, your values, your personality, and your background.
We often dissect the qualities of a given story, but we rarely reflect on the other side... the qualities of the reader who is engaging the text.
A "Good read" takes two.
Alan, you're right that a good read takes two. As a writer, book reviews scare me most of the time. It's impossible to know the qualities of readers. All we can do, as writers, is trust readers skills and judgments. And of course, make sure we present our stories clearly and well constructed. But in the end, this business is a huge leap of faith. Good luck with Primary Source!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Paula! And thanks for stopping by...appreciate it!
Delete