Thicker skins

Some people in the world today need to toughen up. I came across an email yesterday that was insulting, poorly writtten in terms of grammar and punctuation, and contained enough bad language that it made the author of said email look childish.

Those who know Jen and I know that we founded Roundtable Reviews on the premise that we would not rate books...we would tell readers what we thought about a book. The question on our mind while reading a book is "Would we be willing to spend the money needed to buy this book?" That is what we ask of our reviewers and ourselves.

Last week, I reviewed a non-fiction title that was okay, but the principle behind the book bothered me. I'm part Irish and am not about to hold my tongue--never have, never will. My review stated that the book was well-written, but the fact that the author (a former police officer sworn to uphold the law) states clearly that he broke many laws he is sworn to uphold bothered me. He waited until the statute of limitations ran out, released this book, and is now profiting. That does bother me regardless of his reasoning for breaking the laws. Sorry, but as a mom, I find anything glorifying breaking laws and stating "To beat a criminal, you must becomea criminal" is not something for which I would be willing to pay money. Hence the answer to my question - "would I be willing to buy this book if I were in a bookstore today?" That is what I based my review on. http://www.roundtablereviews.com/cearobert80106.htm

The author states he is disgusted by my "Dan Rather Gorilla Type" journalism tactics and that I make money by twisting the truth. My response to this - book reviewers are not paid despite what you proclaim. Online review sites do it for the love of books, not for money. I've never profited off my reviews - in fact, I wind up shelling out personal money to cover things like shipping, website fees, etc. So in no way am I biased by money. Secondly, one thing all authors need to realize, and most do, is that reviews are OPINION. This review is MY OPINION of your book. If you don't agree, so be it. That's your right.

I, however, still stick by my first opinion. People got hurt. Laws were broken. And now a profit is being made. I do believe that the author himself stated that his years as an officer provided him with the resources to "pad his pockets". Sure, the author knows what he did was wrong and has turned his life around. I do not debate that. However, if you look at the definition of "padding pockets"...


pad 1 (pd)
n.
1. A thin, cushionlike mass of soft material used to fill, to give shape, or to protect against jarring, scraping, or other injury.
2. A flexible saddle without a frame.
3. An ink-soaked cushion used to ink a rubber stamp.
4. A number of sheets of paper of the same size stacked one on top of the other and glued together at one end; a tablet.
5.
a. The broad floating leaf of an aquatic plant such as the water lily.
b. The flattened fleshy stem of a cactus such as certain varieties of prickly pear. Also called paddle1.
6.
a. The cushionlike flesh on the underpart of the toes and feet of many animals.
b. The foot of such an animal.
7. The fleshy underside of the end of a finger or toe.
8.
a. A launch pad.
b. A helipad.
9. A keypad.
10. Slang One's apartment or room.
tr.v. pad·ded, pad·ding, pads
1. To line or stuff with soft material.
2. To lengthen or increase, especially with extraneous or false information: pad a lecture with jokes; pad an expense account.Idiom:
on the pad Slang
Taking bribes.

This suggests that the author realizes he is now profiting from his past by a. Providing false information or b. taking bribes. Either way, I still find it wrong.