Friday, August 7, 2020

Book Reading and Reviews

I have three different groups of followers.

1.  Fans of vintage series books
2.  Fans of the vintage teen books of the 1980s and 1990s
3.  People who like my posts about eBay and other online selling sites


The three distinct groups overlap to varying degrees.  Some people are interested in all three topics, but others might only be interested in reading about vintage series books and eBay.

I'm pretty sure that the largest group is the series book fans, and many of those people are completely uninterested in my reviews of teen books.  In fact, a recent comment indicated exactly that and requested that I resume my reviews of the series books.  Readers can make all the requests they want, but the motivation has to come from within me.  It's just not there at this time.

It's too bad that nobody else publishes reviews of vintage series books on a regular basis.  I cannot be expected to carry the torch forever.  I don't know if it will be a continuing thing, but there currently is someone posting Nancy Drew reviews in a blog.  Check it out.

I stated multiple times in the last couple of years that I saw my reviews of vintage series books coming to an end before much longer.  I seem to have arrived at that point.

It's apparent from my recent failure to reread Rick Brant, Beverly Gray, and the books of Mildred Wirt that I have no current interest in reading vintage series books unless I happen to acquire a book that I have never read that actually appeals to me.

I may review one vintage series-like book in the near future, if what I purchased turns out to be what I expected.  Other than that possibility, I will not have any vintage series reviews in the next several months and possibly longer.  I will have some posts of interest about collecting topics, but I won't have reviews.

Any reviews will be of vintage teen books, because that is what I want to read currently.  However, I won't be reviewing Sweet Dreams, because I have about decided that the vast majority of those books are not of the type I like.  I have enjoyed only around one of every ten books that I read.  That makes it a bit hard to continue with the set.

Even for the teen books that I am reading, I am only somewhat motivated to write reviews.  It just seems like too much effort for too little of a return.  Some of the posts that I work the hardest on (usually on series books) get very little feedback, sometimes none at all.  There was a certain recent one, which I will not name, where I was surprised when it received no reaction.  Since I get very little feedback, I have to do this just for myself.  When my own motivation fails, then I have no reason to write reviews.

I am now reading the Wishing Star books, and I will probably get through the set and have reviews of the books.  I plan to read Windswept next, if all goes well.

At this point, I guarantee nothing.  This new school year could prove to be so disruptive that I might quit reading altogether.  Who knows?

6 comments:

amanda arkebauer said...

I have stopped reading and reviewing.the Nancy Drew Hardy Boys super mysteries. Mainly because The Sleuth magazine has stopped regular production. It was always “work” to read and come up with reviews because I really did not enjoy reading the books! So I understand. As far as getting feedback. I would never get feedback. And then rarely when I would see people in person at Sleuth conventions folks might comment that they read my reviews or liked or did not like a review. I have posted these reviews on my own blog since the Sleuth magazine was a more limited audience and again little to no feedback. Just my experience with my limited readership :-)

Unknown said...

Jennifer, I LOVE your reviews of vintage teen books! I have been collecting them for over 30 years. Now that I am retired, I am sorting them all out and wondered how to find what I was missing in the series that I have. I certainly appreciate all of you diligent and comprehensive work! Many thanks for for endearing website.

TheBargainSleuth said...

Thanks for the shout out. I recently started blogging again and decided to blog about books. I post a Nancy Drew review every Friday, while the rest of the week is mostly adult titles. Once I'm done with Nancy, I intend to do the Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, and Bobbsey Twins. That should keep me busy for a while! I have a Facebook group and page that you can follow for the latest info.

Melody said...

"It's too bad that nobody else publishes reviews of vintage series books on a regular basis"
Oof, that was a little rough to read since I've been reviewing series books every week for almost a year on my blog lol
But honestly, if you never posted another review you would have already contributed an insane amount to the world of series books. Reading and reviewing are meant to be enjoyable, glad you're not letting others pressure you into it.

Jennifer White said...

Oof, as well. I am quite out of touch, since I didn’t know or had forgotten about your reviews. Yikes. I need to get around a bit more. It sounds like a blog post about other people’s blogs is overdue. If you know of anyone else, let me know.

Lauren said...

Your website is a wealth of information and a great resource for my exploration of vintage girls series books. If it wasn't for you, I may have stopped by reading/collecting at Nancy Drew. I am not on Facebook or other social media anymore so I truly appreciate your blog as an opportunity to feel a connection with the collecting community since it feels like most of the conversation is taking place on Facebook these days. (The availability of a lot of the oldest series on Project Gutenberg has also been a godsend for me during times when I have less time or money to spend on collecting series.)

I am happy to hear that you have discovered a series that you are enthusiastic about in the Wishing Star series. I have been reading the Marjorie Dean series the past few weeks and in many ways, it reminds me of the teen books that came later. Unlike many other popular series books, the Marjorie Dean books do not contain a mystery story line. Instead they focus on the trials and tribulations of girlhood and growing up. A major difference between the Marjorie Dean books and many of the 1980s teen series is that there is less of a focus on romance (which I am also okay with!). In college I wrote my senior thesis on contemporary teen chick lit and whether it was beneficial or harmful for teens and pre-teens to read based on many passages that contained drug and/or alcohol use. At the time (2007) series such as Gossip Girl were very in vogue.

There are only so many quality series books out there to read. You have been documenting these books on your website and your blog for a long time. After a while it's less exciting to revisit books you have already covered and there are less and less hidden gems out there. I will continue to visit your blog no matter what you post because I appreciate the work you have done and I am always discovering new things.