Spoilers? Love 'em or hate 'em?

I've already blogged about reviewers who take cheap shots at some of the books they review, simply because the book doesn't meet their expectations, but one thing I forgot to address is those who give away the entire ending of a book and think it's okay to do that as long as they put ***spoiler*** in the title or body of their review.

Honestly?  I would never reveal the ending of a book regardless of how I felt about the content.  If I'm disappointed, I generally look for the positives in the book to comment about, and I might even stress that the book wasn't my cup of tea, but I certainly wouldn't divulge the entire plot and lessen the chance that someone else might be tempted to purchase the book and form their own opinion.  I find I rarely agree with those who leave their "snarky" comments and show little or no regard for the hard work I know each author pours into a book.  Certainly, I never read a book with expectations that the author is going to write a story that fits into the neat little box I've created in my mind.  AND...The old saying, "why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free," doesn't only apply to sex!

I read a joke yesterday that really applies to these severe critics.  Even though I've heard different versions, I laughed at the punchline because I could imagine saying this to someone who has never written a book, doesn't know the first thing about writing one, and doesn't take into consideration the time, effort, caring, and hard work that goes into pouring your heart into page after page. I've read lots of books I didn't especially enjoy, but their was a value to each and no reward to me for publicly berating the author.

A woman was seated next to a young girl on an airplane and she turned to her. "Do you want  to talk? Flights go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your  fellow passenger."
 
 The girl, who had just started to read her book, replied to the  total stranger, "What would you want to talk  about?"
 
 "Oh, I don't know," said the woman, her gaze resting on the novel. "How about why some authors think they can write and clearly can't, how they come up with their stupid plots and endings, or why some of the worst I've ever read make the best selling list?" She smiled smugly.
 
 "OK," the young girl said. "Those could be interesting topics but let me ask you a question first. A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff - grass. Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, but a horse produces clumps. Why do you suppose that is?"
 
 The woman, visibly confused by the girl's question, thinks about it and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea."
 
 The girl raises her brow and says,  "Do you really feel qualified to discuss authors and their work when you don't  know shit?"

And then she went back to reading her book.

I can't think of a better place to end.  *smile*