The Perfect Reviewer
Sut,—A part of my business involves me in the purchase of a con- siderable number of new books—mainly fiction it is true—during the course of a year. Decision to purchase is in most cases based on • consideration and comparison of the reviews in two or three periodicals of repute. I would like to ask, sir, if there is a scarcity of objective reviewers who are not also authors. . It seems to me that one of the ball-marks of a first-class reviewer should be that he is not also writing books himself. _ Current reviews—particularly of fiction—are in the main so nauseatingly suggestive of " I'll pat you on the back now, and then when yours comes out you do the same for me " that I can only think a dearth of " non-author " reviewers is the reason for this state of affairs being tolerated. I will say this. One seems to meet more objective and exclusively professional reviewers in the Spectator than in the columns of most other periodicals which review books to any The Pharmacy, Hen field, Sussex.
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