Gendered Book Marketing - Is a Boycott Really Fair to the Author?

Recently, The Independent newspaper announced that they will no longer review gender-specific children's books, arguing that marketing books in this way gives  a child an impression of how their gender should be defined.

'Sugar and spice and all things nice, that’s what little girls are made of.' wrote Katy Guest, 'And boys? They’re made of trucks and trains and aeroplanes, building blocks, chemistry experiments, sword fights and guns [..] At least, that’s the impression that children are increasingly given by the very books that are supposed to broaden their horizons.'

Guest goes on to cite the Let Books Be Books campaign, which aims to discourage gender-specific book marketing in the children's book industry.

The Independent's decision has been met with a lot of response - both praise and skepticism has been thrown in its direction. When I first read of it, I was impressed and happy that a big voice in the media was targeting gendered books. I am fed up of gender specific book covers determining and restricting an author's work to a limited demographic. Equally, I began to wonder if The Independent's boycott was really fair to the authors of these texts.

Lilit Marcus has claimed that The Independent's straight refusal is 'counterproductive' - most author's do not get a say in how their creative work will be marketed and to whom it will be targeted. 

Marcus explains: 'Those decisions are made by highers-up at publishing companies, with the actual writer just hoping that their book will manage to somehow stand out from the pack of new releases. Choosing to boycott a book based on to whom it’s being marketed is kind of like boycotting a band based on who goes to their concerts – there is not much that the actual creator of the work can do'.

Of course, we must ask how we can judge a book (the actual texture of a piece of writing) as good if we do not even spare it a chance past its cover and poor choices made by a publishing company's publicity staff? By boycotting gendered children's books, The Independent is oversimplifying an industry-wide issue and ignoring (possibly forcefully shunning) the writer and their potential reputations.

New app will help you read a novel in under 90 minutes (a.k.a. the holy grail for English undergrads)

So, I think it's fair to say we can all admit to skimming through a book, racing through pages with only a glancing at words at the beginnings and ends of paragraphs (or chapters - I've tried this. Surprisingly not a great way to get to grips with Ulysses....). As an English undergraduate, with sometimes three or four books to read per week in preparation for lectures and seminars (I know, poor me), I am a bit guilty of speed reading (and then maybe looking up a book plot on the internet - shhhh don't tell!). Rest assured, I have definitely learnt some cruel lessons from reading fast and fleetingly - I have been that sole person in a seminar scratching my head when everyone else is discussing the BIGGEST plot twist that I, somehow, COMPLETELY missed.

Today, I have been reading about a new bit of technology that would help you read a novel in less than 90 minutes - perfect for the busy English or indeed any student! Spritz is a new app designed to help you read fast - because, let's face it, as much as I would love to spend hours reading for leisure, life gets really busy.

Developed through research into how we read and reading techniques, Spritzing means you will not have to move your eyes across a page, therefore seriously cutting down your reading time. It's been described as an 'extremely efficient, precise, convenient and comfortable' method.

Don't believe me? You can test Spritz on this website: http://www.spritzinc.com/the-science/

Although Spritz may not appeal to everyone (because what's better than taking your time with a really good book?) there's definitely a target audience out there for this app: the lazy, unorganised student with lots of reading but not enough time!