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It would be interesting to see if this offer was made again, down the line, if your review was less than complimentary.

I'm sure it's a standard way to get the word out. Just look at how many threads we've had here regarding our love/obsession with cookbooks. Who reads cooking blogs? Mostly people who have a passion for cooking or food. A foodie who doesn't cook (FCC comes to mind) might buy it as a gift, if well received and reviewed. Where do you think the contest cookbooks are coming from right here on SE? I'd be shocked if they're actually purchasing them.

You just need to examine your conscience, and see if freebies would taint your honest opinion. It's work, too! You're not necessarily reading for pleasure, and I'd hope you'd try some of the recipes to make sure they work - that they've been tested and not merely "written".

I don't think the restaurant review is a fair comparison. If the reviewer is recognized, perhaps the food would be less typical - more special. Once received, they can't improve your cookbook.

Keep up updated?

I wouldn't presume to know the ethics of the practice, but there's clearly a distinction between an advance copy of a book and advance notice of a critic's visit to a restaurant: the book won't try harder to please you because it knows you are reviewing it.

And I imagine--again I dont know--that it's beyond common practice. I doubt that movie critics pay admission price to view new films. And I'm pretty sure that the advance episodes of tv shows that critics watch don't contain commercials.

@foodvox - If you are confident of your ability to remain neutral to the fact the cookbooks were "free", you should reviews the cookbooks. Do you know why you were selected to review the cookbooks?

I suspect a sales come-on. It's a bit late to review a book after it's printed?

I've done some review and recipe testing, but it was always while the book was still in draft form. This way outside comments and suggestions could be considered for incorporation by the author/publisher.

In this regard, negative comments are more appreciated than positive ones. For instance, if a recipe doesn't work for the reviewers, some modifications can be made before the book goes out for sale and disappoints buyers.

It's sort of customary for unpaid reviewers to recieve a copy of the published work, usually with a nice personal inscription by the author.

@SB.......After all the edits, once a book (any book) is published, it's then time to market and market hard and smart, right out of the gate. A cookbook has many components that come into play, and who better to promote it, if it is truly good in all those aspects, than someone who cooks and writes about the experience and the recipes?

If I were marketing a cookbook, I'd find blogs of people whom I respect, who have a wide readership, who might specialize in that cuisine and throw books at them.

@Perky - Right on!

I didn't read all but 2 comments and have to say that you should go for it. I'm a Chef and a paid food writer. I was just sent a new book to review (publisher did not know I was a Chef nor that I have a food blog) via my editor for the mag I write for. As a responsible journalist, I will do my job and impart fair and honest opinions. I've skimmed the book, just today ironically, and already found typos. I've not tried any of the recipes or analyzed them in detail. Ultimately, I will be honest, without being crass or rude... not to get future freebies, but as a way to help them know how real people will feel about the book; it can only help future publications, right?

Perkymac: that's exactly what publishers do: throw books at bloggers withe high viewership. It makes sense. And any food-blogger wouldn't mind getting a freebie every now and then. :)

You're right, Jerzee. You and chiff should start a blog. It would be really fun to do and really fun to read, I bet. :)

It seems that in general this thing is not seen as crossing any lines - or so it appears so far from the opinions of those who have commented.

I'm ambivalent about it. I can see how it could be shaped so as to be wrong or to look wrong - either one. And the rare times that I do feel inclined to do book reviews it's more from inspiration than from "just having something there" that could be reviewed (if you know what I mean).

But then again books are rather wonderful things and each one deserves a chance to be talked about, to take their turn in the limelight, don't they.

I'll have to think about it some more, I guess.

Thanks for the encouragement to write a blog. All I have right now is a myspace page and it's tough to navigate the blog entries if they are not very recent.

chiff, blogger is so easy to use it's almost ridiculous. And from what I hear it is more pleasant to use than MySpace in ways. You should just get on it and play around a bit. You can keep the access set to "private" if you're not ready to have anyone look at it, until the time comes when you are.

I haven't agreed to accept any books at all yet, blankplate. :)

The scene as it's played out so far is that a publisher contacted me through my blog saying they would like to send me newly released cookbooks to review.

It startled me a bit in the first place just that it happened at all, for my blog is not written in a conventional food-bloggish sort of way. Actually it is not a food blog at all but a blog on the culture that surrounds food and foodies and the essays are often written with true facts or information wrapped up in ways that include fictional characters relaying the information.

Why do I do this? I guess I'm bored with the usual conventional thing. What can I say. It amuses me and keeps me out of the shopping malls.

Actually I thought it might be a troll making the post when I first saw the message.

But I called the company and it was not a troll, it was real. The publishing house has summer interns in charge of this sort of thing, and one chose me to contact. So either they are willing to accept an unconventional take on a cookbook review (having read foodvox) or they are just blindly tagging foodbloggers for this program.

I once knew a very successful man who was then-chairman of one of the largest, most profitable investment banks in the world. His number one rule for behavior in business? Don't ever risk your reputation. You can re-gain almost any other thing you lose but once lost your reputation will be the most difficult to re-gain. It is the most precious commodity in your business.

I don't look at my blog as a business in any way at all at the moment but some day may choose to do so. Therefore my caution. :)

I do this regularly, and with both good and bad reviews, never felt unbiased myself! It would be dishonest to lie, IMHO.

I say why not let them send you a cookbook. If you feel it sucks, just don't write about it!

Hillary
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