Writing book reviews literally (no pun) fed me and paid my rent and tuition fees as I struggled through college. Most importantly, it was my literary training ground and opened my eyes to the dog-eat-dog world of professional writing.

I believe there should NOT be a dogmatic, general approach to writing a book review, since no books ought to fall within a general context,' (although they sometimes do).

I've described books in a panoramic manner (biographies) and produced a short verdict at the end. For others (non-fictions) I pounced on the nitty-gritty and took discrepancies to task while acknowledging the results of thorough research and poignant exposes. For works of fiction, which are closest to my heart, I tended to describe the general layout and point out admirable traits and/or weaknesses while taking care not to expose any spoilers.

When one reads a book for the first time, perhaps only about 10% of it is retained in short-term memory and about 1/10 of which serves as inspiration for the review. Therefore, we should be cognizant of this and be somewhat cautious to ensure a fair and informative review.

As fun as the job is, the book review actually plays a critical role in the marketability of the book and the author's future direction. Readers who read book reviews are generally open to be influenced by them. I like to see this as a responsibility to add a lateral-thinking slant to my critiques so as to both provide constructive feedback to the author and a useful guidance to the reader/consumer. (With a little practice and finesse, it is not as paternalistic as it sounds).

Knowing the book's content is paramount. It is easy and uncomfortable to notice someone who criticizes a book that he/she has not read from at least cover to cover. Understand the work from the author's perspective. There is a little leeway in the review to provide some of your own perspectives but should be respectfully and within limits.

The difference between a good book review and a fantastic book review is the work poured into generating it. Anybody can criticize and by extension, write a book review. Therefore a little research should enhance the quality of your review considerably. A little probe into the author's biography, recent works, writing style provide interesting insights and many ah-ha!' moments in understanding he/her work.

Sometimes I would seek out what type of review the book is asking for. For example, Michael Moore generally doesn't care if his books obtain a raving review or otherwise. It is thus not necessary to judge the quality of the content but the authenticity of it; as befits journalistic works and the like. Conversely, a new novelist would anticipate a thorough review of his works in the regular fashion. Spicy-hot works like Dan Brown's scream for a close scrutiny and review that speaks to large and diverse audience.

Lastly, it is important to remember one is reviewing the book; not the author. Disparaging comments about the authors is just not good etiquette.

Learn more about this author, Ernie Yap.
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