Books bloggers are harming literature, warns Booker prize head judge
“Peter Stothard, chair of this year’s Booker prize judges, says the mass of online opinion about books could kill off literary criticism.”
My first reaction was - no. Not so much. But I was interested by this:
“Referring to last year’s Man Booker chair Stella Rimington’s much-criticised focus on finding “readable” books for the prize’s shortlist, Stothard said that while “readability can be a very interesting thing, great art for the most part resists it to a degree”.
“If we make the main criteria good page-turning stories – if we prioritise unargued opinion over criticism – then I think literature will be harmed,” Stothard told the Independent. “Someone has to stand up for the role and the art of the critic, otherwise it will just be drowned – overwhelmed. And literature will be worse off.”
Do too many book bloggers state they like or dislike a book purely based on how difficult it was to get through the book?
Or have you got some good independent book blog recommendations that steer away from that and try to think critically about the book they’re reviewing?
I’d recommend John Self’s blog for starters.
What do you think, Wonkistan?
Ed.: Thanks for the submission, Ardie!
Notes
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dsylexia likes this
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catherineaddington reblogged this from wonkistan and added:
First, here’s the obligatory unnecessary notgdcareads mention. Moving on, Stothard reeks of elitism. “The masses just...
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ardiecollins submitted this to wonkistan
