The problem is that afterwards, I may find out that they are now out of print. However, maybe with addall.com and other services, that is no longer the handicap that it once was. I say, if you find something good, share it.

But then, I read William Stringfellow, who pretty much was out of print on everything before he died. That doesn’t make those books any less valuable.

P.S., I think I’d go for the coffee mug.

I think that you have a nice balance, especially since you make it clear whether the review is from a free book or one that you bought.

I don’t mind sidebars of ads, but when the whole blog is an advertisement, I don’t go there. Prime example, a Christian counselling site. They have some quizzes to take, but the tests are designed so that if you don’t get a perfect score, they recommend that you contact them for counselling.

But thanks for the self-disclosure all the same.

I was just reading an old column of mine last week. In it I complained that my publisher was trying to insert “stealth ads” in the articles. By “stealth ads” I mean we’d run an article — about a local vintner, fr’instance — and at the end of the article, which was meant to be a purely interesting feature, she’d insert sales information. “The Merlot is only $9 a bottle; the Pinot is $10, and the Shiraz is also $9. They take Visa and Mastercard at their website or over the phone. Tax not included.” You see the idea.

I objected and refused to include the insert. “If we did that, people would stop reading ’cause they wouldn’t trust the articles anymore,” I complained. “And I’d quit.”

But if the vintner wanted to run an ad, I’d have no problem with it. (At least until he started marketing to children, or something evil like that.)

Stealth ads aside, a case could be made for publications that are purely advertising. People read catalogs, of course. If you were up-front about it, there shouldn’t be a problem. Why not just put your for-hire book reviews on a separate book review site? Regardless of whether you got paid for them, I expect some people would visit it just to know your take on one book or another. (Just so long that it’s really your take, and not a paid endorsement.)

For me it goes to trust, integrity, honesty, need, aesthetics and how a blogger sees themselves, their readers and their on line presence.

Christians were nothing if not entrepreneurial.

The observation deeply impacted me, and I wrote into my site policy I’ll close down BDBO before I’ll ever accept advertising or pitches. I’ve certainly had approaches from publishers, I’ve turned them down. That was hard, I like books.

I personally cannot accept ads or goods, and I won’t.
For me it is a personal matter of conscience.
Peace of mind, undue influence, honesty, transparency and misplaced entitlement, arrogance also influence my decision.
A decision I’ve never regreted.
It’s not worth it on any personal level and I sincerely believe giving in would impact me spiritually.
Doesn’t make me better than bloggers that have made different choices.

I appreciate bloggers who are upfront about taking stuff – books, trip,cheque, goods, etc.
I question how many actually need to and how many just want to.

As a journalist accepting something free would have been cause for immediate firing, so it’s natural that caution has bled into my blogging.
A site I administer does not accept advertising, and I deeply respect the owners for making that decision independent of any input from me. I’ll go the second mile for them.

Costs are getting higher, blogging is a labour of love and I’m still able to make financial sacrifices as long as I can to kept BDBO going free of primary or secondary pressure from economic interests.

Blog on!