Crowd sourced review site: GoodReads
Review: Slam by Nick Hornby
GoodReads provides an extensive array of reviews and curated lists for a wide variety of books. With this comes advantages and disadvantages in reviewing and selecting resources. To experience a comprehensive view of the resource, GoodReads should be used in conjunction with other selection aids. An advantage of starting the search process with GoodReads is that it includes popular reads and reviews from readers themselves. The book Slam by Nick Hornby has received 20,873 ratings and 2,049 reviews on the site, with an average rating of 3.26 out of 5 stars. The large volume of ratings and reviews is promising as it can provide a range of perspectives. One review in particular, written by GoodReads Librarian Bonnie Lumley, clearly outlines her dislike of the book, provides clear reasons why and evidence of her correspondence with the author; therefore, her methods of evaluation are clear and appear justified (2009). Lumley is a GoodReads Librarian, as she has contributed extensively to the GoodReads community; therefore, it may be seen that she is an avid reader and is knowledgeable in the area of YA fiction, which adds to the credibility and authority of her review. Having said this, it is difficult to determine the reviewer’s true authority and experience in selecting and assessing texts, so caution should be taken when considering the value of the review overall. Although information about the text can be found throughout many reviews, some reviews lack the depth to really gauge the value of the text. Additionally, GoodReads does not often provide information about a recommended reading age or the themes presented in the text. While recommended reading ages are contentious among some authors and Teacher Librarians, they are useful in the process of recommending texts to students and avoiding recommendations that are not appropriate for younger readers (Riordan, 2009). For example, Slam includes sexual references and scenes, so would not be a recommended book for the junior years. Furthermore, a selection aid that includes information on reading level is helpful in choosing valuable and appropriate texts, which GoodReads does not include. Within GoodReads, the genres are listed by user suggestion but are often not specific enough to assist in the selection of particular texts for particular purposes. To supplement the information provided through GoodReads, it is advantageous to seek out other selection aids such Common Sense Media, which provide more detailed reviews including; themes/parent guide, age recommendation, ratings and reviews from parents and children, and discussion starters.
References:
Common Sense Media. (n.d.). Slam. Retrieved from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/slam
Riordan, R. (2009). Does Age Appropriateness Still Have Meaning? Retrieved from http://rickriordan.com/2009/06/does-age-appropriateness-still-have-meaning/
Lumley, B. (2009, September 9). [Review of the book Slam, by N. Hornby]. Retrieved from https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/411527.Slam
[Forum Reflection: Module 2.6]