Blogging has definitely arrived. You just know it when the first “101″ and “become a ….. in 24 hours” style books start to pop up.
I just bought this pretty book from Margaret Mason, and read it in one sit – ok, one lay, I could not sleep and had to read something. I bought it just to see what marvelous ideas can be inside the book, but I have to say I was disappointed. The book is expensive if you look at the content, which is 100 blog posts at most. I know, I know, people have to pay the bills, but come on now.
First of all, the start of the book, the Dedication part put me in a rather sarcastic mood
For my husband, Bryan Mason, who is far superior to all other husbands, and indeed better than most people of all sorts.
Best husband I could ever hope for, ok. The best man in my life, ok. Far superior to all other husbands and better than most people of all sorts? Jeez, the holy family has arrived. Get real people. Tone it down a notch, love and adoration is one thing, placing someone on the pedestal and putting down everyone else as inferior is an other.
But ok, it is a book about blogging, she had to start with something that catches attention, and this certainly does. Now, the book must be good. Unfortunately, the style stays the same. Mighty Girl is a far superior blogger to everyone, and she tells you what to put on the web.
Ok, I am biased. After the Dedication part, her style gave me that impression. That’s why I included the above part in the review, so you can see the full context. Do a favour to yourself and skip the dedication page. Dive in straight away. Maybe I will read it later and will see her not as a condescending sage, but right now, I had that impression. Probably only the freshly gathered prejudice.
She does not care about what you had for lunch – except in idea 31, titled Dig in where she in interested in your dream lunch or any lunch you had and was memorable – but she cares about the content of your bag. And your love life. And your most embarrasing memories that make you curl up and cry. And your photos. Your whole life.
If I had to sum up her 100 ideas it would be something like this
Tell us everything about you, your friends, your family, with photos, videos, podcasts, scanned in letters and old emails. Hide nothing.
Someone on amazon.com gave a review that was quite to the point
It’s all about things she’d like to see in the blogs she reads and while I don’t spend hours each day reading blogs, I know I’d quickly get bored of a blog that had such ideas as posting your high school yearbook pics or the contents of your purse.
The book is great if you want to show the world all the things you usually keep to your friends or family or only for yourself. If you are not one who wants to give out every possible information about you – with photo of course, so your co-workers can recognize you and have a good time -, or who likes to be the subject of juicy gossips then unfortunately you just lost you money, this book won’t help you.
If you can get the table of contents of the book, then you have the whole book. Some of the ideas are good, but then, if you get to the point where you actually consider of buying a book like this, you probably don’t need it.
Save your $19.99 , or give it to a charity.