Quote of the Moment:

Quote of the Moment: Who said this, and why? "I'm coming to realize EVERYONE can eat me."

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Book reviews and brain freeze



Have you ever been asked to write a book review and suddenly your brain freezes and you can think of nothing to write? You might resort to summarizing the plot, as students are often asked to do in class assignments, but is that really a review of what you thought about a book? Or why you liked it?

The following exercise is a bit of fun that may take the fear out of the process: a “generic” review filled with phrases similar to some that you’ve probably seen or even written yourself. If you use phrases like these, then you’ve expressed your thoughts effortlessly! (Although it’s easier to do if you enjoyed the book; it’s harder to write negative reviews.) Here you go: 

“This book (insert title and/or author) is a fascinating, humorous and bittersweet tale of a coming of age story with a haunting, confusing, creepy, muddled and very twisty plot. Life lessons are learned by the group of quirky, unique, strong characters that make you care about what happens to them and whether they all make it in the end. The action is clever, remarkable and unpredictable, with very dark moments and moments of lyrical, poetic inspiration that keep you turning the pages until the end. Whew. This book is well worth the read. I highly recommend this book. Truly well worth reading. A must read! Go and read it!”

You’ve probably guessed that the review is a random grouping of sentences from book reviews I’ve already posted on this blog. But it works, right? If something in one of these sentences expresses a point you want to make about a book, then it serves as a springboard for your own opinions and ideas. Use the springboard and lose your fears! 

Okay, this is probably one of my sillier posts. But hey, I’m on the flipside of an outbreak of intense yardwork and gardening, so give me a break… I think I need one…

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