From: Tricia Gardella <trigar>
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 15:43:31 -0700

I'm brand new here, so hope it's all right to dive right in as picture books are so near and dear to my heart. The picture book writer in me hears what Deborah is saying -- "I especially like reviews that deal with literary elements in a critical fashion, and are not simply plot summaries"
-- but the reviewer in me wonders if audience isn't the determining factor to how a review is written. Scholarly reviews wouldn't catch much interest from the average parent or grandparent, and that's who I'm trying to catch with my weekly column. For this reason I review only "good" books, maybe not always books I would spend my $15 on, but a book I feel worth $15 to someone. And it pleased me to discover that my reviews hold pretty well to Karen's wish list. Except, maybe, her second point -- "I want the review to inform me of the placement and relationship of the words and pictures. I need to know if this is a good read-aloud, lap-sit, older readers, etc."
-- though I do indicate age level, especially when it falls above or below the norm. I'd never thought about discussing placement. Maybe the reason I've never worried about it is that my reviews are always accompanied by one or more illustrations from the book. Even in black and white it's easy to see what the art is like.



Tricia Gardella
"Write 'em Cowgirl" Jamestown, CA trigar at mlode.com
Received on Wed 02 Sep 1998 05:43:31 PM CDT