Book Reviews in 2010: What are we leaving behind?

by David Varno | Jun-04-2009

More from “Book Reviews 2010: What Will They Look Like?” at the BEA (and make sure to check out yesterday’s report from NBCC board member Scott McLemee’s on academic presses from the floor at Inside Higher Ed).

Here’s John Reed asking who the experts will be in online book review dissemination, and Peter Krause’s answer along with Ben Greenman on “The Window” for advance reviews, which holds that “newness is everything,” but which isn’t necessarily true online.  Also, Otis Chandler goes out on a limb to suggest that people listen to their friends more than they listen to book reviewers:

Bethanne Patrick on her experience working for AOL on their book club message boards, then the next question: Is user-generated content evolving?

Still discussing user-generated content…Ben Greenman brings up the distinction between assigned and voluntary reviews; “people are drawn to the books that they’re drawn to.”  Then, in response to the last question, “Is there anything you’re looking forward to leaving behind,” Bethanne Patrick quipped that “last night at the Tweetup we were drinking “Michiko Kakutinis.”