Do you all want to hear something funny? (Must warn: I get rather sarcastic at points after the second comment.)
About a year ago, I read and blogged about Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling. I stated that I couldn’t empathize with or relate to any of the characters and that it reminded me of an episode of Jerry Springer.
I got a comment two months after I posted it from one Michael that read like this:
I have to disagree with you on your review. I read this book and was laughing so hard my stomach hurt. I think you misinterpreted a farce as a serious book about relationships.
Okay, cool. You disagree. I don’t like every book that other people do, and I like a lot of books that other people don’t. I’m okay with that. Just because I don’t like a book doesn’t mean that no one else is allowed to. I mean, look at Janet Evanovich’s books. Look at Lauren Willig’s books. I know a lot of people that LOVE them, but I don’t.
(Also? I never said that I took this book seriously. In fact, I rather believe I used the phrase “perversely entertaining” towards it.)
I didn’t really give much thought to the comment originally. Until today, when I got this comment from the same Michael:
Apparently the American Library Association disagreed with your review and selected it for both their 2009 Best Books for Young Adults and their 2009 Rainbow List.
Good for them! But I didn’t think that the ALA regularly consulted blogs to make sure their list reflected what bloggers thought of books… Am I mistaken?
But why does the fact that it has been selected for these lists mean that I too must like it? Does the fact that I do not share the opinion of the ALA mean that my sense of like and dislike have been horribly skewed somehow? And if I don’t like a book that they like, does that mean… Oh my goodness! Yes! I do not agree with the ALA, I must be shunned as a blogger!
Seriously?
I mean, take P&P, a book which is hugely well-known and well-loved. There ARE some people in the world who (gasp!) Do Not Like It. So, why can’t people dislike a book that (quite frankly) will probably never be considered as well-loved as this classic work of literature?
So I did some research. Used my Mad Interwebz Sleuthing Skillz. Checked out Marjetta Geerling’s website. And it turns out that this Michael happens to be Geerling’s husband. (And how do we know this? Check out her website. Read her bio, and take note of the website that his name links to. Then check out the website his name links to on the second comment he left. Wow! Same website – same person!) It sounds like he’s just a little grumpy that I didn’t like his wife’s book, eh?
All I can say is that this incident has made me want to avoid all books by Marjetta Geerling in the future… and a few of the people that I’ve spoken to about this have mentioned to me that because of the way her husband has commented here, they will not read Fancy White Trash either. Hum.
But, it’s given me a good chuckle today, because really… the way he’s acting is the kind of publicity you want to avoid getting online. A few situations like this could seriously damage a company or person’s brand… and that includes authors. He’s only going to be hurting himself (and potentially his wife) this way, and he has definitely NOT changed my mind about whether or not I liked the book.
Ashley April 23rd, 2009 at 6:27 pm
LOL! *facepalm* Michael = fail.
Lisa April 23rd, 2009 at 6:30 pm
…and that just made me not want to read it either.
Kailana April 24th, 2009 at 1:08 am
Yeah, I wouldn’t want to read it either if there is a response like this!
On a happy note, it Rachel to update her very quiet blog! haha
CJHill April 24th, 2009 at 2:20 am
Michael needs to understand that if everyone had to like the same sort of book, it might not be his wife’s book that we ‘had’ to like the next time.
Idiot.
Sorry if I’m being too harsh, since this is my first visit here, but this sort of thing taxes my patience to the very end.
And, thanks to his rudeness here, I also have no desire to pick the book up.
cjh
Chris@bookarama April 24th, 2009 at 6:02 am
How annoying! If I was her I’d say, “Stop helping, dear.” It’s also rather sneaky that he posed as just another reader and didn’t come out and say, “btw, I’m her husband.” Not cool.
Melissa @ Melissa's Bookshelf April 24th, 2009 at 6:22 am
Wow, it always amazes me when I read things like this because I guess I still think it’s not possible for people to do something that, well, dumb. Not likely that I’ll be picking that book up anytime soon… And given that today is actually the first time I’ve run across your blog, it makes me wonder how many OTHER people will not be reading this book because they’re your longtime readers OR they’ve just found you.
Anyway, keep up the good reviews, I’ve enjoyed browsing them!
Court April 24th, 2009 at 6:41 am
Ash – LOL. Michael TOTALLY equals fail!
Lisa – I know, eh? I wouldn’t want to read it if I hadn’t already now either.
Kelly – Yes! It made Rachel update her blog! Some good has come of it! :)
CJHill – Thanks for stopping by. :) I don’t think you’re being too harsh… As for Michael needing to understand that, I think a lot of people just don’t really think things through completely before doing/saying something. (And I know I’m one of those people too.)
Chris – No, not cool. I’m starting to feel badly about the fact that this WILL have an effect on Geerling’s booksales because of something her husband did, not something she did… I hope she does talk to her husband about it.
Melissa – thanks for stopping by and commenting. :) It really IS amazing when people do something like this that will totally damage themselves. I just… don’t understand. lol.
strongly disagree April 24th, 2009 at 8:56 am
First, the comment didn’t deny your right to an opinion, just the petty view that someone “better” disagreed with you.
Second, you rant against the idea you aren’t entitled to your opinion because you aren’t the ALA, while at the same time saying his opinions are unforgivable because he’s the author’s husband.
Worse, you are now attack the author and saying she deserves damage for comments she didn’t make and may not know about let alone endorse. Damage for a one sentence remark on a blog by someone else.
Court April 24th, 2009 at 10:24 am
Wow. You’ve made comments here, where this is crossposted to my LJ, to the original blog post, on Rachel’s blog… I have to say I’m impressed; that’s dedication. I would’ve just ignored the whole thing instead of taking the time to post in all those places. :)
I’m not saying the author’s husband’s opinions are unforgivable, I’m saying the way he phrased those opinions are just not cool.
As for attacking the author, in no way did I mean to imply that she deserves damage. Michael has, in all honesty, shot himself in the foot in this instance. If he’s going to give me attitude, I AM going to bring it to the attention of others so they can avoid it if they would so desire. Yes, he can have an opinion, but to imply that my opinion is wrong because I don’t agree with some organization about a book? That’s just silly and petty. And WILL have an impact on his wife’s reputation whether he wants it to or not. I mean, how often do people choose to no longer shop in a store due to one sales representative’s attitude? They are not the embodiment of that store, but they are associated with that store. This is, in my opinion, not that different a situation.
rachel April 24th, 2009 at 11:54 am
“Worse, you are now attack the author”
this commenter is so livid, she forgot basic grammar. I like that kind of passion!
strongly disagree April 24th, 2009 at 11:58 am
“in no way did I mean to imply that she deserves damage”
You wrote an entire paragraph about how this comment – which she didn’t write – has made you want to avoid her books as well as people *you* told about it. You write: “A few situations like this could seriously damage a company or person’s brand…” which is like Fox News saying, “this quote we’ve chosen to hype could do damage if someone made a big deal about it.”
“how often to people choose to no longer shop in a store” Her husband is not her employee nor does he speak for her, unless you have an weird and somewhat reactionary concept of marriage. An author is not a store – readers evaluate them with their own words.
In the end you are still attacking a person for things she didn’t do and endorse the idea of not reading her book based on this.
“I would’ve just ignored the whole thing instead of taking the time to post in all those places.” Well, y’all felt strongly enough to spend time and many words decrying a one sentence comment. With equally snarky comments.
There are double standards all over this. I don’t like bullies. Rachel gleefully calling for a boycott of an author for something she didn’t do and isn’t boycott worthy anyway is “silly and petty” as you put it, plus vindictive.
If we must use that bookstore analogy, it’s like someone organizing a campaign to get a bookseller fired because they didn’t like what her boyfriend said.
Lisa April 24th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
I can only post for myself: For me, it doesn’t even matter if it was her husband who wrote that.
People are turned off by obsessive fans. Is it the author’s fault? No. But will it stop me wanting to read or review the author’s book? Yes. I don’t want to have to deal with obsessive fans, relatives, etc. And yes I realize it’s not fair. But I don’t want to have to deal with that crap and I wouldn’t want my friends to have to either.
As a long time online friend of Courtney’s, I can say that we don’t always agree about books and there is nothing wrong with that. All “Michael” needed to do was post that he disagreed with her and it would’ve been the end of the story.
Lisa April 24th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Last sentence should’ve read:
All “Michael” needed to do was post once that he disagreed with her and it would’ve been the end of the story. Or even repling to Courtney’s first follow-up comment. To me the second comment is more of a spam comment than a REAL comment.
Ashley April 24th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
“Worse, you are now attack the author” LOL GRAMMAR FAIL
Melissa (Book Nut) April 24th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
I’m sure everyone, as a book bloggers anyway, gets those. The “my book was loved here and by these people” comments. Or, conversely, the rabid fans who rail on you for disliking their favorite book EVER. (I still get them four years after I trashed Eragon…) At least you are treating it with a sense of humor.
Kailana April 24th, 2009 at 6:03 pm
Man, I still have people complaining about a review that someone did on Twisted Kingdom over a year ago. I have even wrote in the comments that it is not an active blog and if it was, she doesn’t even blog anymore, but people still keep commenting!
Shanra April 25th, 2009 at 11:45 am
Uff. For myself I wouldn’t have had a problem with the first comment either. The second, though? I can see why it’s not doing his wife any favours. As Lisa said, these things aren’t the author’s fault. (Well, not always anyway.) But they don’t do them any favours either. Sad, but it’s the way the world works.
It’s actually one of the things that has always left me so wary of saying anything of my own opinion. (I’m slowly getting better.) I’m lucky that the only time I’ve really had a comment that comes close, I could engage in a small discussion on why I felt one way and the commentor another. *knocks on wood* It didn’t change my opinion, but it did teach me a lot. ^-^ May the people who disagree with you in future be more like that commentor!
Wendy April 25th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
Very interesting post…and as a blogger who reviews honestly (not meanly, not snarky, not nasty…just honestly), I felt I should leave a comment with regard to “Strongly disagree” who is taking you to task for boycotting an author’s work because of a rabid “fan” leaving a comment.
Here’s the deal “Strongly Disagree”: most lit-bloggers review everything they read on their blogs. If they are going to have to deal with someone’s husband or fan or whatever, leaving these kinds of comments, how could you possibly blame them for not wanting to read or review another book by that author? My advice to said author’s significant other (or fan, however you want to phrase it) is to just stop arguing with bloggers who don’t like this author’s book. In the long run it doesn’t help the author and only makes you look bitter.
Finally: Not every reviewer will like every book. Even great books get bad reviews. It is part of being a writer. Accept it. Move on. And arguing with a reviewer will most likely not change their opinion of the book, so why bother?
strongly disagree April 28th, 2009 at 10:11 pm
“Not every reviewer will like every book. Even great books get bad reviews. It is part of being a writer. Accept it. Move on. And arguing with a reviewer will most likely not change their opinion of the book, so why bother?”
That applies to reviewers as well. Not every person will like your review. Even reviews many people agree with will get negative responses. It’s part of putting ideas on a blog on the world wide web. It’s a two way street and everyone gets to walk on it. Accept it, move on and one can always delete comments.
One can write a post rant demonizing a one line negative comment, but trying to justify a self-righteousness tone with double standards doesn’t work. A snide sentence does not become a dramatic violation because someone is connected to the author.
“Here’s the deal “Strongly Disagree”: most lit-bloggers review everything they read on their blogs. If they are going to have to deal with someone’s husband or fan or whatever…”
Here’s the deal “Wendy”: Keeping a blog on the world wide web is a choice. If negative responses enrage one, turn off or screen or respond to the comment. If an author doesn’t make the comment, holding them or their work responsible for what independent people do is attacking the wrong target and dramatic and silly.
rachel April 29th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
okay. can we talk about fun stuff now. Strongly Disagree: have you read “Jolted” —let’s talk about “Jolted.”