Book reviews sub forum??

turgon

I thought id post this here instead of new forum requests so all the literature folk might read it, move if mods think not

Basically I was thinking that a book reviews sub-forum would be a welcome addition here. Every book reviewed would have its own thread, for example "Lord of the Flies - William Golding", and any further reviews could be amended to that thread by just searching for it. Users interested in a particular book could search for the thread and see what others think.

In the reading logs I see a load of people writing reviews of the books they log. However its going to be a nightmare trying to uncover all these reviews amongst all the reading logs published. If they were all in one sub-forum it might be handy???

The main question would be if there was demand for this.



Ill start

"There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize."
So reads the start of one of the most moving passages in The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbecks classic tale of the fate of the thousands of Oklahoman farmers ("Okies") forced to move East in search of a new way of life.

Their farm destroyed by numerous droughts and their home taken from them by the "monstrous" banks, the Joad family are lured to California by a promise of new work amongst the sunny orchards of the East. Their journey, and what they find at its end, remains a compelling indictment of the evils of unfettered capitalism and an appeal for more humanity in the modern world.

Considered by many to by Steinbecks greatest novel, The Grapes of Wrath deals tremendously with its varying themes - the meaning of family, religion and worker rights, amongst others - through an effective literary framework that captures the plight of the "Okies" both at the personal level of the Joad's, and at the general level of the mass emigration East.

A "must read", if ever there was one. 5/5.

Dades

If reviews and opinions of books were removed to a sub-forum, I can't see much being left in the main forum, tbh.

LoLth

while its true that the sub-forum could be useful (look at the films forum and how thats set up) , I think too much sub division could be bad for the forum in general.

If you want to write a book review, one possible suggestion would be to start a reading log. once you finish whatever book you are reading, post up your opinion of it (with spoiler warnings of course!).

however, I'm not making any decision on this as yet. lets see what the rest of the reaction is first.

humbert

Sounds like a good idea to me. I think it might encourage people to say something about a book they have liked.

LoLth

wishing to show you that this is in fact a form of democracy there is now a sticky pole (ahem) at the top of the thread list for the masses to vote for their preference.

Whatever the outcome, the mods will enact. unless of course we dont like the outcome in which case the pole will be deleted and business will continue as usual (joking! honest).

turgon

Just to clear up: I envisage(d) this sub forum as a more formal type of affair. Whereas Dades rightly pointed out how this might soak up most of the main forum activity, I thought that the structure would be formal-ish. Just kind of a "blog" of sorts where people could offer their opinions and improve their English at the same time. Says the guy who just wrote "formal-ish"!

But maybe its beyond the scope of a message board? In that people will naturally add comments after the formal reviews, and/or will not be bothered to create a new thread just to discuss something said in another.

I just thought I would throw it out anyway for discussion. If it was made and did drag down the main forum, or did not have enough traffic of its own, then it obviously should be removed.

The Book Reviews Forum. Change You Can Believe In.

humbert

I don't think it will kill the main forum. A lot of the threads aren't book reviews. There are a lot of comments/requests about a particular author/genre/period and various other general topics that I think would keep the main forum going.

I don't think a sub forum would add such complexity that it would be off-putting to users and "This week, I are mostly reading..." thread is to big to trawl through for reviews.