Book Blogger Hop No. 61: Book Recommendations With Reviews

Welcome to the Book Blogger Hop,

hosted by Billy @

Ramblings of a Coffee-Addicted Writer!

For more information, and 

to find out the topic of next week's question, click HERE.

What to Do

1.) Post on your blog answering this week's

question:

If you recommend a book to

someone, do you also

send that person your review?

(submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews)

2.)  Enter the link to your post in the

Linky list on Billy's blog.

3.)  Visit other blogs on the list and

comment on their posts. 

4.)  Be sure to find out next week's

question when you visit

Ramblings of a Coffee-Addicted Writer!

My Answer

When I recommend a book to someone, it's usually on Goodreads. That site provides a widget that scrolls through your entire list of friends, so that, with just one click on a button underneath a friend's name, you can recommend a book. Next to each person's avatar and name, the widget also lists one of their preferred reading genres, so, if you just finished reading a science fiction novel, for example, the widget will list all the friends on your list who like that genre. The same goes for any other genre. This avoids the problem of recommending a book to someone that they won't like reading. It's not an entirely foolproof system, but it does come pretty close.

This widget automatically appears every time a Goodreads member gives a book a rating of four or five stars. It's not necessary for someone to actually review a book for the widget to appear. Of course, there are times when I will only rate a book, and not necessarily post a review of it at the time I'm rating it. 

This widget makes it very easy, fast, and convenient to recommend books to people. Once you've clicked on all the applicable names on the first page, the next one comes up right away. Therefore, members can make over a hundred recommendations or more at one time, with no hassles.

Obviously, even if I wanted to, I would never have the time to send the link to my review to all the people I've recommended a book to. I would have to email each and every one of them. So I just never do that. If I've only rated a book, then obviously I won't have a review, so there will be no need to send anyone a link, anyway.

My closest friends will always notice my reviews immediately, as reviews always come up on Goodreads profile status updates as soon as they're posted.  

I have never sent anyone, not even my closest buddies on Goodreads, links to my reviews. I haven't done this with blogger friends who may or may not be my friends on Goodreads, either. I don't know....I think it's a little like bragging, or attempting to push my writing on people or something. I really don't feel comfortable doing it.   I just don't like to make people feel obligated to read my reviews. I think  just my recommendation should be enough.

I'd like to clarify something here. The statements above express how I personally feel about this issue. They do not in any way imply a judgment against anyone who feels comfortable sending their review links along with book recommendations. For me, though, it just doesn't feel right, somehow.

Blogger friends are already aware of my posts, usually through following my blog via GFC, Bloglovin', and/or Linky Followers. So of course they're free and welcome to comment on any reviews I post, whether on this blog, or my second blog, MindSpirit Book Journeys. This reflects my view that a book review posted on a blog is an implicit recommendation of the book, if it's a positive review. If it's a negative review, then it's an implicit "anti-recommendation" for it! Lol.

If anyone ever actually asks me to send them a link to my review in the future (perhaps they've missed a blog post, or the review escaped their notice on Goodreads), then that's another matter entirely. I will then be only too happy to oblige!   

What are your thoughts on

the opinions I've expressed here?

Please leave a comment,

and I'll go check out your post!