Over-Hyped Books

The over-hyped book. We have three different categories to define the over-hyped book. Category one: The best selling author who has just announced that there will be another book being released, regardless if this is a stand along novel, the beginning of a new series or trilogy, or a addition to a favorite series, there is instant buzz and excitement created by this news. Category two:  The over-hyped released book. Category three: The over-hyped pre-released book.

The first category doesn't bother me as much as the other two. I am just as likely to become as giggly and as gushy as the other crazy fans out there when I hear that a new book is being released by a certain author, immediately putting it onto my to be read list. I have been disappointed in a author before, so I always have that moment of leeriness and hesitation, but most of my favorite authors rarely disappoint. One over-hyped book by a beloved author this year is "Go Set a Watchman" by Harper Lee ... I loved her book "To Kill a Mockingbird", so this sequel is really making me nervous. If it fails me, it will be dead to me, if it does not disappoint then it will be a lovely addition to my shelves.

The second category ... when I hear a lot of people discussing and raving about a certain book it does pique my interest and induces me to read it, if it of course sounds like a book that I may enjoy reading. However, because of all of the hype surrounding it I may have either one or two different reactions to it. I may hesitate to read it because I don't always trust what other people deem as gush worthy books. I have been a little disgusted, to say the least, on some of the attention that some unworthy books have received. You never know before reading, if this is one of those books or not. Or I may go into it already biased and judgmental because of all of the attention that it has received ... picking it apart and trying to understand what exactly makes this book so great ... which is not fair. I try to go into a book with a open mind, and portray it with my honest thoughts and opinions. Thankfully I do not have a issue with not finishing a book, so there is no harm in starting a book that I may not enjoy.

The third category is the one that bothers me the most. The pre-released book hype. I am referring to the over-hype of a pre-released new author. I understand that publishers help generate this hype previous to the book being published, but the buzz about a book that no one has yet to read ... by a author that no one has ever read ... I will freely admit that I have many books on my to be read list of books that are not yet released, and yes, I heard about those books through the hype centering around them, but these are the books that will probably disappoint readers the most. The ones that have been overly hyped up before even being released are the ones that typically let a reader down the most severely. Not always, but quite frequently that is the case.

So what is it about a over-hyped book? Why are some books pushed at their audiences more forcefully then others?

I have read many books that don't receive the kind of hype that they deserve, and I have read many books that receive the kind of hype that they do not deserve.