| A Writer Protests
TO:
Amazon.com
02/19/04
15:29:06
NAME: John Rechy
COMMENTS: This is in response to your
e-mail of Feb. 18 responding to mine to you of Feb. 17
concerning a review by me of my novel "The Life and
Adventures of Lyle Clemens" and concerning your subsequent
reaction involving a "so-called glitch" in Canada.
Since, in your reply, no direct link was provided to respond
in this important matter, I am again using your form,
as follows:
According to
your own guidelines, you reject personal assaults from
"reviewers" in your "customer review"
book section. You have, however, allowed a wave of nastiness
to assault my novel "The Life and Adventures of Lyle
Clemens." Your guidelines clearly state that a "reviewer"
should address the content of a novel; none of those does.
Your guidelines claim that you will remove unsuitable
reviews, and those are clearly libelous, probably written
by the same person.
You removed the now-notorious review that I wrote in answer
to the vitriol that you allow in that notorious section.
You also removed all other favorable reviews that had
already appeared and not by me. You clearly suggest that
the authors of those reviews asked for their removal,
and that, of course, is nonsense, since some of their
authors have contacted me to express outrage about such
a maneuver and will be writing you in protest.
As a result of your so-called glitch: and the publicity
derived, I am being contacted by several media outlets
about the matter, allowing full discussion about your
implicit permission to interfere with a writers' work.
I am, also, writing articles myself about the matter,
including my correspondence with you several years ago
about your use of a monstrous review of my novel "The
Coming of the Night," a review that popped in immediately
after the title of the novel had come up. You did remove
the offensive review.
Pending further exploration of the damage involved in
this matter, to me and to other writers, I suggest that
malicious reviews being allowed to impede respect for
my novel , and sales, be removed immediately and praising
reviews that clearly adhere to your so- called guidelines
be restored.
John Rechy
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