Bloggers are very familiar with hype. We use it to determine what we read, we create it ourselves when we post our reviews and talk up books. But does it effect our enjoyment of a book?
I know when I see a book with lots of hype one of two things happens. Either it makes me desperate to read the book or the massive amount of hype makes me want to stay far, far away from it. Usually that’s the biggest problem with over hyping a book, you run the risk of putting people off.
Some hype isn’t a bad thing. Hype can actually make or break a book. As bloggers we’re a big cog in the hype machine, and that’s why publishers reach out to us. I can think of a ton of books that I never would have read if I hadn’t heard people talking about them all the time. And yet too much of a good thing can be bad.
When a book is over hyped I think people don’t believe the book can be as good as everyone says. I think we don’t want to be disappointed and so we avoid them. People can get tired of hearing about a book all day every day, no matter how many people love it. Sometimes when I see a book like that I just want it to go away. I don’t want to feel like I have to love a book just because everyone else does. Overhyped books can really make you feel that pressure.
I like books with a good balance, books with both some hype and some criticism. No book can be perfect, especially not for every person. I’ll let myself enjoy the books I want to and not let hype decide what I can and can’t like.
How do you feel about book hype? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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I like reading books with hype. But books definitely can be OVER hyped. And that can colour my reading of it. I like to read the hyped up books, but it does suck extra if they aren't as good as you hoped. And some books that are super hyped start get on my nerves. It's not that I don't want to read it and get disappointed. It just that I can get sick of hearing about it! And that can make me not want to read it
Yeah, me and hype have some issues. On the one hand I do pretty much always have that fear that the book EVERYONE loves will be a huge disappointment to me. On the other hand, some hype does push me to make a reading decision where I might otherwise be waffling.
This second one is a good thing, in my opinion. Sometimes the hype will persuade me to read something I didn't think I'd want to read and it turns out that I love it. Other times, the hype can actually convince me that a book I did want to read is not going to suit me at all.
I think you have some great points. I like how you talk about over-hyping a book. I know if I see twenty blog feeds on one book, I am more likely to move on to something less prominent. Is that the rebel in me, I don't know. I personally like to find those rare gems that seemed to get overlooked by most.