Week 5 Prompt

 Ebooks are underrated in the review world. I did not realize that there were any reviews done on them at all until this prompt. I think in terms of collection development this can hinder the access patrons have to a wider range of books. If librarians who are developing the collection have no way of knowing what people think of the book how can they accurately judge if it is a good fit for their collection? When developing the collection, a librarian must think of the community they serve. If they cannot read a review of the book it is a lot harder to decide if the book is right for the collection. Where I work reviews can make or break us buying some of our materials. I do have one question for those of you who are reading this, what genres have books that are published only in eBook form? I know about a few popular authors based-on patron requests at the library but have never dived into what genres get only this format for some of their books. I think eBooks need to be taken more seriously because patrons across all age ranges are starting to read them more and more. Librarians who develop online collections need to be just as informed as those who purchase print materials.

The reviews from the blog and Amazon were not well written and they make me wary of purchasing the book for my library. There are words and periods missing from them. I do not think either one was reliable. I got my hopes up for the second review because it appeared more professional. I think the reason I do not see them as reliable is because it felt like a draft someone wrote, did not proofread, and decided to publish willy nilly. I did get a sense for the book. It sounded like a Hallmark movie, but I pieced together both reviews to get a sense of what it should be about, and I do not think in a review that I should leave wondering if it is worth reading. The second review confused me more than the first review. The reviewer made it sound like they only liked it because it was the holiday season. If I were a collection development librarian that would make me not purchase it. I want quality books for my patrons.

These reviews make me want to read Angela’s Ashes. I have heard of Frank McCourt and his works but have never read them myself. I read the reviews that were provided and a few others online to get a sense of what people thought about the book. These reviews make readers want to know why the book is titled after his mother and what happened in this man’s childhood to lead to him writing about it. The professional reviews made me more aware of what was going on without outrightly saying what the reviewers thought. I could tell that the book had wretched and funny scenes without being told what they were. I would add the book to my collection.

I do not think it is fair that one type of book gets overly reviewed and others have none. It creates a divide in what people think they want to read. For all I know the eBooks are great works but since I do not see professional reviews, I would be hesitant to buy them for my collection. Due to this it greatly affects a library’s collection because librarians look at reviews all the time to purchase books. I personally like reading both good and bad reviews. I think it gives me a better perspective on how the community I serve would feel about the book. As to if it is appropriate, why wouldn’t it be? I would rather know a book is bad than buy it under the assumptions that it is some glorious masterpiece. I work at a smaller library and I oversee ordering databases, reference materials, and DVDs. Most of the first two I buy online databases for but for DVDs they are all print materials. I personally take some reviews with very little worth. When I am looking at movies to buy, I first watch the trailer to get a sense of what the producers want me to think of the movie. Then I look at critic reviews and lastly, I look at the reviews of ordinary people. Depending on what the message of the movie is depends on how seriously I take a critic review. I have learned that for movies it is better to look at viewers’ reviews for my patrons. They tend to like the ones that critics cannot stand but that those who have posted a review after watching it enjoy. Since I do not order books I cannot say if I think professional reviews should be used more. I know from talking with my coworkers that they all look at reviews, popular author websites, and library blogs to make their decisions. For DVDs I mostly look at Rotten Tomatoes, IMDB, the Dove Foundation, Pure Flix, PBS, Hallmark, and YouTube.

Personally, I like reading what readers have to say over professional reviews. They seem more down to earth. However, when I am looking for a good book, I tend to go with word-of-mouth suggestions, friends’ favorite reads, or the good old fashioned browsing the shelves. I love browsing bookshelves, even the ones at my own home. If I am looking for eBooks, I tend to just read the description of the book to see if it appeals to me. Online for my personal searching I like to look at some of my favorite authors’ websites, Goodreads, Amazon, and bookstore recommendations. I will say I look at Library Journal, Kirkus Review, Publisher’s Weekly, and a few others but I like reading the articles before the reviews more than the reviews. I think it is because I do not get to order books for the library I work at and feel like it is more of a way for me to know some recommendations for patrons that come in asking me for help finding a good book. I also get to look at them because my library passes them around at work to those of us who do any type of collection development.