By Sarah Statz Cords
There’s always a constant low hum of controversy surrounding blogs: Do they signal the end of civilization as we know it? (For this argument, please see Andrew Keen’s The Cult of the Amateur.) Are they a new dawn for journalism, the poster children for a new information environment where everything is miscellaneous but at least freely available? (If this theory appeals to you, check out David Weinberger’s Everything is Miscellaneous.)
It seems silly to say this as I am currently writing on a blog, but I try to stay pretty neutral on the whole situation. If forced to pick a side, though, I’d probably land somewhere pro-blog (or, more specifically, pro-LitBlog). I feel this way for many reasons; I think blogs bring a lot of non-mainstream titles to readers’ attentions. I also think blogs offer more personal and interesting perspectives on books. Whether a blogger loves or hates a book, I’d always rather pick up a book that someone, anyone, felt passionate about, for whatever reason.
So there’s any number or reasons I read Litblogs. Most of them you’ve heard before. But one of the nicest things about Litblogs isn’t often discussed: how some of them bring a refreshing air of regional pride to the business. Take a blog like BookNinja, for instance: Anything I want to know about the state of Canadian publishing, which is emphatically not a hot topic here in the States, I can pick up at BookNinja. For a reader with an allegiance to Carol Shields, Margaret Atwood, or Jane Urquhart (guilty here, on all counts), BookNinja’s a valuable resource for new titles and authors.
The Bookslut blog gives off a whiff of Chicago; the Elegant Variation is absolutely steeped in Los Angeles. MaggieReads gives me a feeling for the South; Maud Newton, of course, makes me feel like I could step outside of my door directly onto the sidewalks of New York City. And that’s without even considering the more obviously rooted in place blogs, such as the Ann Arbor District Library blog, touting Michigan library programs and news.
So what’s your region? And your region’s litblog?
