The Imbalance of Book Reviews

In a world where reading has become more and more popular a pastime, it can feel overwhelming to keep up with all the new books hitting the shelves-- both physical and digital. Every day, the library I work at receives multiple new books to catalog, stamp, and place on the shelves for patrons to browse. In all this, patrons might ask: "How is a book chosen?" "What makes a book 'good enough' to purchase for the library?" "Why do you buy books from that author but not this one?"

For my side of the operation, sitting at the reference desk, I handle requests from patrons for a variety of titles from New York Times bestselling authors to independent publishers. Regarding authors such as James Patterson and Danielle Steel, purchasing their new books is a no-brainer. Patrons will be asking for it regularly as soon as it is published, if not before. But when it comes to the hot titles from less popular authors, or books no one's heard about, how do you make that choice? You listen to the reviews. But how can you listen if the reviews are not front-and-center news?

That's the case with many electronic-only publications today, as well as independent publications. For Holly Rayner's e-book, The Billionaire's First Christmas (or TBFC), reviews can only be found on Amazon, Goodreads (itself an Amazon acquisition since 2013), one blog, and the author's own website.

When the Kindle first debuted, it was $399. That's a pretty penny for a lot of things, so who would buy it? According to Jessica Tripler (2016), "people who read a LOT, and could save money and space by buying digital" (Book Riot). Romance novels have always been hot sellers, but putting them on digital for the devout fans serious enough to purchase an e-reader created a boom in sales. In a presentation by the Romance Writers of America in 2016, they found that 89% of the romance novel industry gets their sales from digital purchases, and more than 50% of their books published digitally are independently done (RWA). It's no secret that indie authors see fewer figures than big-name guys out there in the print world, and the lack of reviews isn't doing them any favors.

When it comes to digital acquisition, things go beyond my wheelhouse. We rely on databases such as Hoopla and Libby to provide for our patrons. Hoopla has its own collection that the library pays for patrons to have access to (with more monthly borrows as of recently!). Because of this, there's not much stress about digital acquisition at my library. Hoopla isn't our only digital resource, so patrons can choose what platform they borrow a book from, and there are plenty of books to find!

In comparison to Angela's Ashes, the great diversity of platforms publishing reviews of the books-- and from veteran book review companies as well-- practically ensures that these reviews will be seen by a wider audience than TBFC. The greater the visibility those reviews have, the more likely my library regulars will come to me with a list of books they heard talk about on Booklist, Good Morning America, and many other sources.

While the reviews of these different books are certainly unbalanced, I don't believe that it is necessarily unfair that one is reviewed more than the other, and on more "reputable" websites and platforms.

The trouble with books that are released only electronically, especially for indie authors, is that their readers are limited to the ones who have access to devices such as Kindles and iPads. If your budget has never seen the purchase of an e-reader, and if you aren't planning to get one anytime soon, you may never read digital books. Because of this, it makes sense why any reviews of digital books will be solely digital-- that's where the intended audience is. With Amazon taking up half the review platforms for TBFC, it's a smart move. With ownership over Amazon and Kindle, they're likely to ensure that reviews are posted to their own websites.

For me, I depend on reviews before I add a book to my To Be Read list most of the time I do my book browsing. A majority of my browsing is done on Goodreads, where I look up books that interest me, read the reviews, and add them to my TBR in one spot. Rarely do I ever walk into a bookstore (a special treat whenever I excavate free time from my life), and then I simply read the description on the dust jacket to make my decision. Reading reviews is a great way for me to make my choice because I take time to read both the positive and negative reviews, which helps me pick out things I don't normally like from the books I read.

Negative reviews are important in the reading world because if you refuse to publish them, readers may be disappointed that a plot device, writing style, or trope that they don't like is in a book that they thought was going to be good. If they end up not liking it, what are the chances that they will turn to the same review source again for another book to read? Is refusing to publish negative reviews a form of baiting, by making the audience believe that the book is a good one for them to read no matter the flaws or personal preferences of the reader? Or is it the reader's responsibility to browse multiple sources before making a decision? Should we hold them to that? 

In my view, certainly not. Many of my avid-reading regulars hear of a book from a single review source and immediately write it down. Most of the time, I never hear back from them whether they liked it or not. It shouldn't be the reader's responsibility to vet a book like they're doing research for a paper. They hear of a book that sounds interesting, and they come in to see if we have it available. That's all there is to it. But if they end up not liking a book that a source told them was good, they may not return to that review source for a while.

The book world is a whirlwind of reviews and platforms. In my opinion, that world is steadily growing, what with the pandemic creating more readers out of an era of stuck-at-home boredom and devout reader platforms such as BookTok. The publishing world is growing to meet them, publishing new books at a greater rate than many of us can keep up with! It can be easy for many good books to fall through the cracks, to never see the light of day on Kirkus or Booklist. But in the end, the right book will find you, no matter where it is.

Romance Writers of America. (2016). Why are romance sales so grossly under-reported? RWA. https://bookriot.com/why-romance-readers-love-digital-books/

Tripler, Jessica. (2016, August 11) Why romance readers love digital books. Book Riot. https://bookriot.com/why-romance-readers-love-digital-books/