What do bookshelves and reviews say about us?

Author Jody Hedlund had a discussion here about what our books say about ourselves.  In a world of Goodreads it's very easy to see what our favorite authors are reading.  Many authors have fairly diverse reading habits and it's not likely that everything they read will fit their target audience.  Should authors worry about what they post on their bookshelves?  Is it possible to offend your readers, or will they too have broad reading habits?  Does an author really want every book they read, and their impression of it, out there on the internet? 

Another question she brings up is rating books on Goodreads. As an author is it alright to leave poor reviews on books?  Is that considered unprofessional or mean?  Yet, if you only leave good reviews does that make you unreliable or misleading as a reviewer?

I know people who refuse to leave less than a three star review.  If they didn't like the book, they won't review it.  Simple, right?  Yet won't that leave false expectations on the book?  I know when I read reviews I want to read the one and two star reviews to see what they didn't like about the book.  That doesn't mean I won't read it.  Sometimes the issues people have aren't issues for me.  And sometimes they have good points and I'm warry about getting the book. 

Personally I like to have a wide range of reviews so I can get the best overall look at the book.  Yet I understand the worry about appearing mean or snarky for low reviews.  Is it enough to leave a well though out and polite, yet honest, review, or will it still give authors bad reputations?  And if so, what happens if authors only give good reviews to books?  How will that change readers perceptions? Or even authors growth, since we do rely on crits for improvement. 

As you can see I've got more questions than answers.  Has anyone thought about this at all?  What have you decided?  

On The Jellicoe Road

I’ve been wanting to do a book review on Melina Marchetta’s Jellicoe Road but have put it off several times.  Not because of lack of interest but because what can one say about such a book?  It was published first in Australia under the title On the Jellicoe Road, but when published in America the title was shortened.  For people who like to know genres it’s a contemporary YA.  There is some mention of adult relations and child abuse in the book so if that bothers you than be warned. 

It’s the story of 17 year old Taylor Markham who’s mother abandoned her at age 11 on the Jellicoe Road.  Now she attends a boarding school there.  She’s pulled into leadership of the territory war games they play each summer, but how can she take care of others when she can barely take care of herself?  And who is the man in the tree she dreams of each night? 

Unfortunately a little blurb fails to capture the true essence of the story.  It’s a fabulous book and I couldn’t put it down.  Marchetta’s writing was a subtle and sensitive combination of the lives that affect Taylor’s, both in the past and present. Since the story also revolves around the adults who influence Taylor’s life I think this book is much more than a YA.

 I highly recommend this book and hope you enjoy it.

Give Peace a Chance

By now everyone has probably heard of the author who didn't like the review given her book at BigAl's Books and Pals.  If not go over and check it out. It's a classic example of how not to react.  The author blames the reviewer, demands the review be taken down, and eventually resorts to name calling and swearing.

I've never had a piece published outside of my high school literary magazine, (Hey I had to start somewhere, and it was nationally recognized) but I can imagine the heartbreak at seeing something you love and have slaved over belittled.  Though I'm more of the hide in my closet and cry person than the lash out at everyone person.

A few weeks ago an another blog I saw a commenter ream the blogger, calling her naive and condescending, her post misinformed and elitist and telling her she had no business writing.  Now I don't know what the blogger did in private, cry, yell, rant, we didn't see it.  The blogger's response was along the lines of: thanks for reminding me things don't always come across as I mean them too.  I'll try to be more precise next time and remember not everyone sees things the way I do.  What easily could have denigrated into name calling and crudity was diffused by the blogger's professionalism.

Most of the time writing is a solitary pursuit.  We interact with other writers on twitter, blogs, websites and crit groups but much of that is on the computer.  It's easy to forget there is another person on the other end of the connection.  That person deserves respect and politeness.  Not just because we're professionals and this is our job, though that is true, but because we're all human and it's the right thing to do. 

What do you think about bad reviews, professionalism, and author/reviewer relationships?