I really have no problem with Amazon. I do work at an independent bookstore and our sales may have fallen since the advent of online shopping. But I used to live in an area with no bookstore. When I was in college in Saratoga Springs, NY, the only bookstore in town closed my freshman year. The Saratoga Mall had a Waldenbooks, but come on, they suck. We used to go down to Albany and visit the Borders on Wolf Road. That was our salvation. Anyway, once Amazon opened, I used to use them all the time. Plus their search engine is fabulous. So I was amused to read this article that both Cup of Chica and Bookslut mention detailing how a glitch allowed the anonymous reviewers at Amazon to be revealed. Apparently, some others gave themselves 5 star reviews, which is not surprising really. But what I do find funny is the amount of high school shenanigans that exist in the book world.

One well-known writer admitted privately — and gleefully — to anonymously criticizing a more prominent novelist who he felt had unfairly reaped critical praise for years. She regularly posts responses, or at least he thinks it is her, but the elegant rebuttals of his reviews are also written from behind a pseudonym.

There are several other items like that in the article, with warring authors. Even Amazon’s Number 1 reviewer accuses the Number 2 reviewer of spreading rumors about her. Sigh. It seems that no one can behave like grownups anymore.