Thus Spoke the Reader

It is not possible to read in this age without asking fundamental questions which are in need of urgent answers: Is reading really an activity practiced in isolation? Or is the reader constantly in a state of waiting for the critics, on the one hand, to reveal to him/her the jewels and secrets of books, and on the other hand, for the publisher to provide him with the finest literature of the world? Moreover, the role of social media platforms cannot be overlooked since their effect on the reading world is quite potent. The role interferes in book title selections to creating a whole picture of the books as a common product for the interested audience, outside the firm parameters of academia and journalism. This image is created in isolation from the actual reading community, which in turn became a strong muscle forming opinions that raise the status of a book or completely undermine it. The author creates the term "virtual criticism" in the book and presents it for public discussion among the interested audience. He not only uses day to day evidence and logical examples, but also searches through Arabic literary heritage to prove that a root of his theory exists in what he paraphrases: “Kanafani’s resort to hiding behind the mask of ‘Fares Fares’ was due to the freedom that the mask grants him; the freedom to write in the language he chooses and the style that suits him, without being subjected to any ‘filter’ or questioning and this in turn qualifies him to becoming the greatest critic.”