I will be the first to express the importance of reviewing a book after reading it, whether you like it or not. Sharing your opinion is not only cathartic but helpful in more ways than you can think of. First, it tells readers that you’re well, reading, what you think of it and if you would recommend it. It helps the author know, well, that you’re reading it or have read it and gives insight on what they are doing well or could improve upon.
And then there are moments when you put together just the right order of words in a sentence that it is shared, printed and included in the book itself. That’s what happened with Black Water Rising, sort of. You see, I meet a lot of authors on my journey and meeting Robert Rayner was a memorable one, for both of us. When he was getting ready to publish this book he reached out to ask if I would be so kind as to write a blurb about what I thought. The kindness was his as I was absolutely smitten he would trust me to do such a thing. Published with Nimbus, the stars aligned and the sentences got in the right order and my name was included as an early reader of this novel. That was almost ten years ago…
Fast forward to this month…
As a book reviewer, I often receive delightful book mail surprises and a request to honestly review them for The Miramichi Reader or other publications. One such book was Melanie Mosher’s Bertie Stewart Is Perfectly Imperfect. After perfectly enjoying this book I wrote a review and continued onto my next book. That was a few weeks ago and then I was surprised to see someone tag me in a post about the book. Looking at it I was dumbfounded. A bit of my review was included in the first page as praise for this wonderful story! This was a complete surprise and delight!
So yes, book reviews are vital for the reader, the writer, the publisher and all those looking for the story they can connect with. Special moments are everywhere, if you just embrace them.
Thanks for reading, and reviewing,
Sarah Butland