January 9, 2012 in WLP Wants To Know
I don’t know about you all, but I am pretty sick of the various Authors Vs. Readers bullshit that seems to happen once a month. If it’s not an author getting pissed off and emailing an blogger with a “take down that negative review”, it’s readers badmouthing authors. Where’s the class people?
Anything I wanted to say, Stacia Kane has. No wonder I love her. So thanks Stace, for doing this weeks rant for me 
October 16, 2011 in WLP Wants To Know
Anyone that knows me will tell you that I am not the most articulate with my emotions. I handle a couple well. I’m good with rage, hurt and, oddly enough silliness. My sisters and I would argue that this is our austere German and Scottish heritage shining through and yet I know Germans and Scotts who are emotionally well rounded.
Recently, a death of an acquaintance happened suddenly and without warning. To deal with the emotions brought to the forefront (grief, fear, sadness, anger) I did what I often do – dove into books.
Sometimes, for me anyway, having a good cry over a fictional character’s situation can help open the floodgates to my own emotions and help me to face up to and deal with my personal feelings surrounding whatever issue is bothering me.
The following are some of my favourite tearjerker books.
***Spoilers***
The “This is so Wrong” Tearjerker – Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Louisa May Alcott’s story of the March sisters during the last stages of the American Civil War is a poignant tale of life’s struggles and triumphs. My mom read this book to my sisters and I several chapters a night for several months when we were 10, 8 and 6. Little women was about girls and here we were sisters, not a brother in sight, just like the March girls. We loved it. (Side note: My dad is a trooper.)
One thing the sisters had to endure that we did not, petticoats excluded , was the death of one of their own. When Beth died my sisters and I lost it. We sobbed and sobbed. She was so good, wonderful and kind, everything a little girl should be and yet she died. DIED!!
I recently reread the book and still sobbed. There is something horrible about the death of a child, something so backwards and perverted that I think you pretty much have to be made of stone to not be effected.
The Self Sacrifice Tearjerker- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia series was a staple in my home. I’ve read The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, or had it read to me, so many times that I’ve lost count. However, every single time Aslan sacrifices himself to the White Witch and her minions to save Edmund I can’t keep it together.
You could probably argue that my response is directly related to my Christian upbringing, but I like to think that in most people the there is something so moving and unbelievable about one person, or large talking Lion, taking the onus for another that you cannot help but be effected emotionally.
The Gut Wrenching “How Can I Go On” Tearjerker – Lover Eternal by JR Ward
In Lover Eternal, JR Ward tells the story of Rhage and Mary two lovers that, by all accounts, should never have met, but through fate are brought together and then by fate (that fickle bitch) are torn apart by death. Although, the book has a fantastic happily ever after the scenes of death and loss that lead up to it are ridiculously sad. It makes me want to crawl in a ball and never leave my bed. I cry fat, ugly tears when I read this book.
The Joyful Tearjerker – The Hinge Factor by Erik Durchmeid
Erik Durschmeid’s essay on the events that lead to the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the subsequent fall of the Iron Curtain undo me.
I was 10 when, thanks to CNN, I watched free Germans dance a top a landmark that for decades had stood as a reminder of the oppressive Soviet Regime. My father cried and called his parents, German immigrants, and explained to us why this was such a momentous occasion. He told us the story of our Oma barely more than a girl, finding herself on the Eastern side of Germany, but in love with a boy on the West. Our Oma, I shudder to think of how, came up with $25 US dollars to pay a woman to show her the way into West German. The woman lead her to a river, pointed to it and said told her to swim. When My Oma died in 2004, she died still unable to swim, and yet somehow she crossed that river and left every single member of her family behind for love. The fall of the wall meant that she could return home and see the family she had been cut off from for over 40 years.
When I read Durschmeid’s recounting of the joy and jubilation that occurred that night when one off handed comment by a German official (“They can go whenever they want, and no one will stop them.”) ultimately lead to the end of 40 years of oppression and isolation I feel like I’m there. I feel like I can almost taste the excitement and new beginnings and I cry. Every. Single. Time.
Now, that is a good Tearjerker.
What are some books that make you cry the ugly cry?
October 15, 2011 in WLP Wants To Know
As someone who hops the fence between author and reviewer, it can sometimes turn ugly. Writers need to vent about bad reviews, and reviewers need to vent about nutjob authors. I get it, and as long as it’s all vague and no names are mentioned, I don’t take any issue with that stuff. I’m Switzerland (which means you should send me all your money 
)…at least most of the time.
Recently I’ve seen a couple things that have completely chapped my ass and I’m done staying quiet. One was an author bemoaning a bad review. Not only was the reviewer–someone I like–called out by name, but the comments that were thrown about were school-yard-like. I get that the review hurt your feelings, but the reviewer didn’t attack you, didn’t call you a hack, didn’t say you sucked worse than the date they gave it up for at prom. They didn’t love your book. And that’s okay. People are allowed to not like your book, and they’re allowed to say so. Guess what? If they say it publicly, there’s still a bunch of people who might otherwise not have heard of you or your book that have now.
But…what’s worse than that is a reviewer trashing other reviewers. We’re supposed to all be on the same team here, you know, the one that tries to get good books into the hands of people who will like them. A relatively new reviewer talked about someone not liking a book because it used too many fifty-cent words and went so far as to say they shouldn’t review (among something less polite regarding their education). I’m sorry. What?
I consider myself pretty well educated. I have a degree in chemistry from Purdue (3.46 GPA, thank you very much), graduated high school summa cum laude, 33 on my ACT, and so on. But I can tell you without a doubt that if a book comes off as hoity-toity (technical term there), I probably won’t like it. It’ll get under my skin because it tends to feel like the author trying to show off how smart they are. It’s rude. It’s the reason I quit reading the Eragon books after #2. Paolini went from being this bright, fun teen author to trying to let everyone know he wasn’t a kid anymore. Not that book 2 sucked, but it had lost the magic of #1, and I think his insistence on utilizing his vocabulary to the fullest was part of the turn-off.
Here’s the deal: a reviewer can dislike a book for any reason. They’re human and they’re allowed. Hell, a reviewer can disdain a book and refuse to read it based on the title or the cover or the blurb, they sure as hell can not like what’s inside the pages. As an alternate example, back when I reviewed everything (including stuff I didn’t like), I had to DNF a book I got from a publisher. I wanted to like the book. It was supposed to be sexy and creepy and…everything I could have asked for in a novel. Except…it wasn’t. For me, the sex was never sexy. The creepiness never materialized. I didn’t connect with that book on the level I needed to. I know for a fact other people loved it. Does that mean I need to make it my life’s mission to get laid in the most haunted places in the world so that book will resonate better with me?
No. (Though…it does kind of sound like a fun life goal.)
As a reviewer and as a person, I can hate a book for any reason. I once hated a book simply because the heroine’s name was Lisa and she was too perfect. Every time I turned a page I wanted to rip it out, crumble it up and burn it. (I was still very angry about a certain Lisa in my past. Over it now, feel free to send me Lisa books for review.) In that case, the reasoning was totally illogical, but it still affected my enjoyment of the book. And that’s what matters.
A reviewer’s job is to let readers know why we do or don’t like a book–it’s not to love everything we read. Readers read reviews to find out if the stuff the reviewer likes lines up with what they like, or the opposite. To not say why you don’t like a book means you’re doing a disservice to your readers. That’s not what you’re here for. Besides, there are easier ways to suck up to authors.
***Note: I did not review the “book of Lisa”. 1) I wasn’t a reviewer at the time and 2) the likelihood of someone else having a similar issue with the book would have been so remote that my review would have benefited no one, and as such I wouldn’t have posted one. (This concludes your peek into the inner workings of my messed up brain.)***
September 25, 2011 in WLP Wants To Know
Yep, I’m ranting again. Would you people stop stirring up shit so I don’t have to do this so often? Ready for the latest installment of Pixie’s Shanking Corner? Here we go…
Bloggers & Authors gossip.<–not just bloggers, authors are guilty too people. We are all human. We ALL gossip. Don’t tell me you don’t do it, we ALL do it.
If a blogger gets into it with an author, most bloggers hear about it. If an author feels they’ve gotten a negative review, they gossip about it. Authors talk about authors, and bloggers gossip about bloggers. We are all guilty of doing it.
I witnessed a blogger make an innocent reply on Twitter & was appalled at the authors reaction. When the blogger explained it was meant in no offence, the author unfollowed. Can we grow up? Do we all agree, no. But be mature.
Another fine example, a blogger reviewed a book and wasn’t fond of it. What did the author do? Go to their group & rant about the negative review, but not only did they rant about the review my friends. They bashed the blogger & all bloggers. We are cliques apparently. Well I am, party of one and this author and crew are not welcome in my clique.
I’m sure there are a ton of authors and bloggers who dislike me, no skin off my back. Everyone is not meant to like each other, that’s why we are unique. Don’t like someone, don’t follow them anywhere. Don’t review their books, don’t ask them to review your books. But keep it to your damn self. Or find ONE person you can confide your drama too, where you know it will stay with that ONE person.
Reviews are subjective, books are subjective. If one person didn’t like it, another person will. It just wasn’t one persons cup of tea, hell half the time I don’t agree with my fellow bloggers on books. And that’s why we get along, they bring books to me in new lights and POV’s. I wouldn’t think to consider some of the things people have brought up in their reviews. Other reviews make ME a better reviewer.
Would everyone stop for a second…..
September 22, 2011 in WLP Wants To Know
I observe a lot, thanks to Twitter. Okay, fine. I’ll be honest. I’m nosy. In my nosy views, I have seen a ton of new bloggers pop up in the past few months & one of their new tactics is pissing me off. Now I am not saying all new bloggers are doing this, just some I have seen. Don’t get your panties all twisted.
Begging for books from authors on twitter. NOT COOL PEOPLE.
I’m by no means an expert blogger or an old timer, this blog is 3 years old (I think). At any rate, when I first started book blogging I was taught a few things by fellow bloggers:
See number four, that now applies to Twitter. If you do not have a personal connection to the person, don’t ambush them on Twitter. I can even speak for myself, I have never tweeted or messaged an author on asking for their book unless I’ve reviewed for them in the past, even then they usually email or direct message you. It’s common sense people! One person asks Jane Doe author for a book on Twitter, she agrees and BAM 300 other bloggers are begging.
It’s just not professional. They don’t know you subscriber numbers on Twitter, hell for the most part they don’t know YOU. So why the hell would they give you a book? Would you walk into a shoe store & ask to review shoes? No, you’d email a formal letter to the shoe store. RIGHT?
Most of us started out buying books and posting our reviews to Amazon, Chapters & Goodreads. Most of us didn’t email authors in our first year because we still were new. I didn’t email a publisher for a book request until late last year! If you build it, they will come. This isn’t something for freebies people, this is hard work for most of us. Kindly don’t brag that you have over 300 books on your TBR shelf, yet beg for books. REVIEW WHAT YOU HAVE.
I just had a comment left last week where a reader said they aren’t pleased with all the same reviews on every blog come release week, so read those TBR books! Get subscribers and for fuck sakes stop bitching because Penguin or Random House won’t take you because you don’t have the amount of followers they REQUIRE to start sending you review books.
/end rant
