3/28/2023 0 Comments I never read my reviews![]() ![]() Was it busy? Was it quiet? How can readers judge whether their experience will be similar? More helpful reviews provide more information, so that readers know what they might experience-and can judge for themselves.Ī review that simply says ‘great’, ‘no problems’ or ‘avoid’ is not helpful, because it does not give any context. Describe the experienceĭon’t be tempted to just say ‘This was fine’. There is more about this in our page on Know Your Audience. In writing a review, you should therefore consider what information people need to make that decision. It follows that a good review is one that other people find helpful in making their decision, or that helps the business to improve. It can also be used by businesses to see how they can improve. The purpose of a review is to advise others whether to visit/buy/watch/read/otherwise engage with the subject of your review. There is more about that in our page Researching and Writing a Literature Review. This is a scan through the existing literature on a topic, to identify the current state of knowledge, and find a gap to research. The denouément of “Embassy Wife” involves bush camping, rhinos and one-upmanship, among many other things, serving to explain not just what the characters have been up to but what happens when a country turns a blind eye to its people.The term ‘review’ is also used in writing for a literature review. Not only does Crouch pull off this subtle concoction of sugar and medicine, she deftly blends them by involving Mark in a gemstone racket that reeks of exploitative colonialism, ancient and modern. A frothy embassy tale just won’t cut it anymore, but if you don’t give readers something they’ll want to pick up, they may ignore everything else too. One thinks it important, here, to note that Crouch - regardless of her time in Namibia, as the wife of a writer on a Fulbright - is a white woman writing about Africa in an #OwnVoices era. ![]() ![]() And so when Esther aims higher, she becomes ensnared in the corruption that rules Namibia up to its highest levels. The only thing worse, for Esther and Amber, than being forced to work jobs that pay far too little is losing those jobs and having nothing at all. But rather than write a story of pure suffering, she has taken the opportunity to contrast the country’s problems with the so-called struggles of its more pampered residents, government officials and diplomats. Crouch has lived in Namibia and clearly seen how its citizens really live. “ Embassy Wife,” the new novel from Katie Crouch, is described by the trade magazines as “a romp” and “a blast” one wonders, did those reviewers read the same book?Īlthough Crouch’s novel is, yes, a sharp-eyed comic treatment of what the government refers to as “trailing spouses” - those who follow ambassadors to their sinecures - it’s also a sad-eyed testament to corruption and misogyny. But sometimes one is just plain confused. Or does one? As long as one has read the book and has a firm sense of one’s own thoughts, advance reviews can stiffen the spine. One doesn’t want to taint one’s purity of vision. If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from, whose fees support independent bookstores.Ī shibboleth of book criticism: Never read the advance reviews of a book you’ve been assigned to write about. ![]()
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