Sunday, August 14, 2005

People That Give Themselves Credit for Stolen Book Reviews

Okay, check this out. Today I went on the BN.com website to read reviews of The Interruption of Everything. And I started reading the below review and it sounded strangely familiar.


Judith Kaiser, booklover from Santa Barbara, CA, August 12, 2005,
Quick, Fun Read! - Recommended B&N.com Pick!
A steamroller of a novel, The Interruption of Everything builds slowly but picks up the action and unveils an intensifying plot chapter after chapter. The action is so subtle, it's scary, so surprising yet relatable, as it touches on women's issues, family, and friendships. And there are so many characters that do things you've done, that say what you think, and feel the way you feel. What's amazing about this book is how understated it appears -- the calm within the chaos -- that you'll eagerly watch how Marilyn handles the pressures of a life that is spinning out of control. A quick, enjoyable read!
Also recommended: The Losers Club: Complete Restored Edition by Richard Perez, A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby


Lo and behold I realized, hey, this is the review I wrote of the Interruption of Everything back in mid-April. It was and still is posted on the BN.com website.


Cydney Rax (rmn1994@excite.com), author/reviewer, April 20, 2005,
Loved it!
The highly anticipated Interruption of Everything is everything you hope the novel would be and more. We're invited to look inside the busy world of Marilyn Grimes, a middle-aged woman who lives with her husband Leon in Oakland Hills, California. She tries to be patient with her nosey mother-in-law Arthurine, someone who also lives in their home along with her dog Snuffy, an animal that Marilyn doesn't particularly like. Her marriage isn't exactly what it used to be and it isn't hard to entertain second thoughts about whether the relationship is worth the effort. In addition to working part-time in a crafts store, Marilyn is involved in the lives of her family, a mother who's acting a bit bizarre and is experiencing the issues that go along with aging and health. Marilyn's three kids are in college and are making important decisions for themselves. And her mother Lovey, adopted sister Joy plus her two kids, are other family members with pressing matters that require attention. And Marilyn can't help herself - she is too concerned about them to not be bothered, but is it okay to pull yourself away from everyone else's worries and start thinking about what you want to do with your own bored and lonely existence? A steamroller of a novel, The Interruption of Everything builds slowly but picks up the action and unveils an intensifying plot chapter after chapter. The action is so subtle, it's scary, so surprising yet relatable, as it touches on women, family, and friendship. And there are so many characters that do things you've done, that say what you think, and feel the way you feel. What's amazing about this book is how understated it appears -- the calm within the chaos -- that you'll eagerly watch how Marilyn handles the pressures of a life that is spinning out of control. A richly drawn story filled with thought-provoking scenes, the character Marilyn makes you laugh at things you know you shouldn't laugh at, but what the heck, it's funny, and it's real, and it's true. So go ahead and laugh. Embrace the warmth and sensitivity of the Interruption of Everything, a treasure of a novel that is highly recommended.

I just don't understand this. Did Judith feel EXACTLY like I did about the book? LOL. Is she lazy? :) And see, this has happened to me before. Years ago I posted a review of Milk In My Coffee by Eric Dickey on Amazon.com. Well, I visited another website and lo and behold, some chick changed a few words around of my review, posted it on that site, and gave herself credit. I wrote the guy that manages the site and he killed her review career quick, fast, and in a hurry. LOL. I just wonder why people cannot write their own genuine thoughts about a book they've read as opposed to taking someone else's words.

Now mind you there are definitely way more important things going on in the world than this, but still -- my Sunday was kinda quiet and boring 'til I came across Judith's review.

P.S. BN.com has received a nice little notice from me about the matter. We shall see what happens next.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hilarious! I think you should find a Santa Barbara phone book, call this broad up, and give her a piece of your mind!

CydneyR said...

LOL,

Ladylee. I want to sit her down, ask her a few questions, hear what she has to say. :)

LadyLee said...

No, but that's just wrong! That's not being lazy, that's just being straight trifling. And you know why she did it? I bet she didn't even read the book. I know we all read other reviews, but come on, give me a break. Yesterday morning, I sat down and wrote three book reviews on Amazon.com. Granted they're not as eloquent and well composed as most, but they are original. They are my true thoughts and feelings. And you can best believe that this is not the first time she's done it. That woman probably has been doing this for other books, too. Others have probably done it, too. You just happen to catch it. I bet those who do such things are thinking, what's the chance of someone noticing??

CydneyR said...

Ladylee,

I've been cracking up all afternoon at this. But it does give you a weird feeling at first. You feel like you're in the Twilight Zone for book reviewers. Like deja vu is happening. So do you think she works for Barnes and Noble? That's what I'm trying to figure out.

LadyLee said...

I think she works somewhere like that and is hard pressed to impress her friends and coworkers. She's probably like "Oh yeah, I've read this book" and "oh I've read that book! Didn't you see my review??". And no one's probably noticing that she is averaging a book a day! (LOL!!!)Oh but get this, what's really funny to me is that she copied only a section of your review. She's not only trifling, but sneaky! Heck, she'll never copy from my ebonically-inclined reviews. (She probably can't put a sentence together to save her life!) On that note, maybe you should just take it as a compliment. (HA!) Maybe she does work at BN and has to meet a quota or something. If you sent a message to BN.com, she's sho nuff gonna be in a lot of trouble! Cydney, are you gonna be responsible for someone losing their job? This has the makings of a New York Times-like scandal!!Aww, the horror!!

Frederick Smith said...

This is so funny... but I never imagined anyone would steal a review to post as their own. Crazy. But it's great you found her out and put her on blast, lol.

Oh well... goes in the file under "nothing surprises me anymore."
fs

CydneyR said...

Okay, absolutely nothing has happened to that bogus review even though I've contacted Barnes and Noble a couple of times. Sheesh! What will it take to get BN's attention?