How Do You Manage to Read so Many Books?

Some years ago I had a long discussion with a book reviewer. You can probably guess the first question I asked: "How do you manage to read so many books?"

The answer did take me aback somewhat. "I read the first few pages, the last page and the dust jacket. That's all. Then I write the review."

Let's think about this. Does the book reviewer need to faithfully fulfill their assignment in just skimming a little off the top and guessing the rest? Clearly, there are two schools of thought.

The purists would be horrified that such a slap-dash approach be employed and for which the reviewer would be paid. Others might not be so harsh in their judgment. After all, look at how most people decide whether or not to buy a book.

When buying a book the first thing you probably do is read the dust jacket. If that appeals, then you scan through a few pages to check the size of the print, style of writing and anything else of interest. Perhaps you might even read the last page, just to see how it all finishes up. That's about all. Then you make a decision. It's a stab in the dark.

Over many years I've come to the conclusion that book reviews should not be taken as the definitive opinion of standard. Reviewers have varying views about subject matter, style of writing and so on. Everybody has an individual taste.

My conclusion is that you should select a book which has legible type, a good author and a subject which interests you. Somebody else's opinion is of lesser importance, certainly to me.

Getting back to the book reviewer, I'm not convinced that the entire book needs to be read. An experienced writer will quickly pick up the drift of a book in much less time than most of us imagine.