crimes against humanity

[deborah]

Personally, I've always felt that Kirkus Reviews' reputation for being mean is undeserved. On the other hand, I have to say that I absolutely adore our willingness to tell it like it is. Although in this case, no reviewer commentary was necessary, clearly.

Comments

[kumquatmay]

my favorite kirkus quote is still the one for The Adventures of Hotsy Totsy (I should also note, it's the favorite of everyone in my department as well):
"A publishing event that demands an apology to the industry, all children and the trees that gave their lives. "

Though this recent one is pretty good (for A Girl, A Ghost, and the Hollywood Hills):
"That novel, however, saddled with the author's determination to shoehorn in thinly drawn stand-ins for Polonius, Ophelia and Laertes, as well as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and an iMovie version of the Claudius-poisons-King-Hamlet play (starring rowdy Australians), is a hot mess."

[deborah]

Wow. Every time I think I'm a good Kirkus reviewer, I come back to the fact that I can never let my artistry stay with me in a moment of perfect, wonderful, biting cruelty like that.