Do You Read Book Reviews?
And my latest interview with Heather Ann Thompson, in which I fangirl over a historian I have long admired
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Do You Read Reviews of History Books?
As you may have already heard, the Washington Post announced last week that it would shut down its books section and lay off its book critics. This is, of course, another step in the effort by Jeff Bezos and his minions to destroy what is left of the once-storied Post. But it is also the latest in an alarming trend of cuts to book reporting and reviews across the board. Local newspapers have been reducing or eliminating their book reviews for a long time. The Associated Press ended its reviews in September. The National Book Critics Circle has been raising the alarm about declining book reviews for 20 years.
Things seem to be particularly bleak when it comes to historical nonfiction reviews. With so few reviews, period, history books are rarely included. And those that are reviewed are typically books by the same small list of bestselling authors.
This has me wondering: Do you, smart and thoughtful DTP listeners, read book reviews? Where do you like to read them? What do you like in a book review?
Let's have a conversation in the comments!
New Episode, With a Long-Admired Historian
It was a real thrill for me to interview Heather Ann Thompson about her new book, Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage for the most recent episode of Drafting the Past. I've been a fan of Heather's incredible research and gripping narrative style for a long time now, and I crossed all my fingers and toes before I reach out to invite her on the show. I'm so glad she said yes! This is a really good one, especially if you love narrative history and need a little pep talk about its value. Listen here.
[Editor's note: If you purchase books through links to bookshop.org, Drafting the Past gets a small cut that helps to keep the show going. Thanks for supporting this podcast and its guests!]
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To your question, I do read book reviews to get an idea of what other scholars have to say about a given book and see if there are any historiographic leads I should follow to situate the book better. Or, if I'm including a book on a course list I like to read the reviews to see what they say about the book's approachability and readability.
That makes sense! Do you ever read them for fun, or about books you're interested in for fun?
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I read, and write, book reviews. With publishers writing a lot of hype for social streams, reviews are key to making informed purchases. The loss of newspaper reviews is complementary to journal publishers determining reviews are not open access. Website reviews, like the Australian Policy and History network helps with sharing news about new books, but the public reach just isn't there.
I so agree, Deborah! So many people pitch themselves as knowledgeable experts these days, and reviews are really helpful in figuring out what I might be interested in reading. Where do you write reviews?
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I do read book review. New York Times, Wall Street Journal, along with professional journals specific to historic interests.
That's good to know! NYT and WSJ are definitely the stalwarts remaining, and I'm glad they still seem to be making space for book reviews.
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I like reading book reviews, sometimes, I think, more than reading the books themselves. I'm especially a fan of the sort of book review that builds on the book to do something new, like those in the New Yorker or the New York Review of Books, and those that provide an introduction to a field I know little about. The kind of reviews in Reviews in American History, sometimes, are the best way to keep up with a field.
I'm the same way! There are some reviews (more for fiction, probably) that I read even if I know I'll never read the book. I also like ones that add some more, although it drives me crazy when it seems like the reviewer forgets to actually review the book!
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Yes, I definitely read book reviews. I read them as a writer, to see who is writing in my field, and as a reader, to see what I want to read next. Because I write at the (very niche, I know!) intersection of Japanese and Jewish histories, I read reviews from the Jewish Book Council, Discover Nikkei, Densho, and the Jewish Review of Books.
For those of us writing cross-over or trade books, one thing I find helpful about reading reviews is that it gives me ideas about people who might blurb my books. I think this would be relevant too, for people publishing with academic publishers, but maybe less so. I know blurbs are (maybe?) on the way out, but either way, it's good to know who is working either as a writer or reviewer in fields related to mine, since it never hurts to broaden our networks, I think!
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