How I do Book Reviews
My system for reviewing books is, for the time being, as follows:
Part One:
★ A little bloggy chit chat, updates, etc.
★ Quick Review: a chart based on expectations before I read the book, and my opinions after having read the book. I’ll include my ranking by a 5 star system in this chart.
Part Two:
★ Point-by-point discussion of what I read
★ Things I didn’t like
★ Conclusion
As I said before, this is a work in progress. But I want to make a system that is standardized so I can review books fairly and hold them up to a certain level of quality. Of course, writing – like all art – can be a little subjective. Books have various purposes, too. A peer-reviewed scholarly article, a history book for mass consumption, a compendium of comparative maps, and a restaurant guide, shouldn’t be held to the same standards. All is not equal. Therefore, I tried to make the most objective Quick Review I could.
I envision the Quick Review having the most value and Part Two being extra for anyone who wants to hang around and keep reading.
Also, I don’t believe any book or work of art is perfect. There’s always room for criticism, so I don’t plan on giving any books five stars. That’s just my philosophy, so understand that four stars means a book is pretty damn awesome.
To Authors and Publishers,
If you’re an author or a publisher and would like to submit a review copy, feel free to contact me.
Please remember, I only do book reviews for books I’m actually interested in reading, so I don’t accept all requests for review. Books must be about Japan, especially Edo-Tōkyō. Sorry, I’m not interested in reading fiction as it’s beyond the scope of JapanThis.com. Thank you for your understanding.
Hello! Have you reviewed any books yet? I have quite an unusual tale and I’m in the process of looking for a couple of reviews from true Japanophiles. Bonsai