Bookplanet: Great advice to book reviewers

'When called on to write a book review on a subject you know little about, the key is pretending to know more than the author. Potter recommends comments like, "I am surprised that Mr. Sprott does not give more credit, in the main body of his text, to that impeccable scholar Dr. Kalamesa of Joinstown." This is "considered quite fair," Potter says, "even if you have never seen the name of Kalamesa before, which of course you never will have, except in some footnote or appendix to Sprott's book."' Nice article on Stephen Potter, the inventor of one-upmanship. Here's his shrewd advice to the would-be wine connoisseur: "A good general rule is to state that the bouquet is better than the taste, and vice versa."