Reviewing books

is a serious business.
I have a number of books which are "review copies". I also passed on a good many more review copies of knitting books to the "guild"  of which I am a member. 
I was reluctant to pass on many of those. Damn it all I had worked hard to get those books. I might not have liked everything about them but reviewing a book means work and it would have been nice to be rewarded. But, I passed them on because then everyone could benefit.
Reviewing books is an intensely personal thing but it also needs to be a public service. There is a need for honesty but there is also a need for courtesy.
I can remember one book of particularly avant-garde designs. I don't knit other people's patterns so I would not have made any of them anyway but I had to think, "Would people make these? Would people wear them?"
My honest answer had to be that very few people would make them and, if they did, they might not be worn often as they simply were not practical - nor would they wear well.  But the book was well designed. The photography was excellent. 
And I could say these things. The person who had written the book contacted me after reading my review and said, "You are right. It was self-indulgence that brought the book about. Thank you for the nice things you did say about it."
Would she have said that if I had simply said I "hated" the book? Of course not. 
And then there was the book that everyone - or so it seemed - was talking about. The lead up to publication was huge. Hundreds of people were following the author's occasional blog posts. There were more comments on Facebook and on Twitter. The publicity organised by the publishers was huge. For a debut book it was quite extraordinary.
I had been in contact with her long before the book was written - or rather, she had been in contact with me. There had been a knitting question she wanted answered and someone else had put her in touch. I answered it. We corresponded briefly and spasmodically on FB and Twitter. I supported her through the debut book nerves - as did many others.
And yes, the author of that book can write. She writes the most exquisite short pieces. They are sensitive and caring to an almost heart-wrenching degree.
When the book came out there were rave reviews and a great deal more publicity. It was a "best seller" - and yes, it did appear in the lists.
I read it. And, I didn't like it. I wanted to like it.  There were passages in it where I could see the blog posts and the short pieces that had gone before.
But, for me, the book needed editing. It needed to be a good deal shorter than it was. It felt self-indulgent. For me the message - an important one - was lost. People kept asking me what I thought. I was asked to review it.
I wrote one in which I tried to be honest but supportive. I didn't just slam the book as worthless or give it a one star rating.  When I had written the review I left it for a day. I went back and read it again the next morning and put it up with a three star rating.
The following day there were no Twitter messages from the author. I didn't think anything of it. But the silence continued. Puzzled I looked to see if something had happened...and discovered I had been "blocked".  I could no longer see her "tweets".  I wondered if she had accidentally blocked me so I made a positive and completely genuine comment on one of her new blog posts only to have it removed by her.
Obviously she didn't like my review.  I am sorry about that. It was a relief when the late Carole Blake left me a message, "Excellent review."
Other people have since told me they felt the same way about the book. They put up five star ratings on Goodreads because they felt that was expected of them. I couldn't do that. 
I have written this because another author of my acquaintance has just been given one star for a book someone hasn't yet read. That's not just ridiculous but dishonest and  hurtful. When the book becomes available I'll read it. I'll make up my own mind then. I won't say I "loved" it or "hated" it. I have liked her other books. I expect I'll like this one too but I'll  be honest.
Isn't that the purpose of reviews?