. >> host: and pamela paul is an author as well as the editor of the new york times review. she's written books, "the starter marriage," parenting inc.." pamela paul, what does the new york times book review mean to an author? >> guest: oh, it's huge. [laughter] and i think, you know, it's for better or for worse it's become more important because we are last freestanding newspaper/book review out there. so it's, i think, it's different from the daily review in the times where we have three established critics. book review is a place where sometimes reviewers will take a step back, look at context, look at especially with nonfiction the area that the author is writing about, and it's a hugely important review for authors. i know both the joy of getting a positive review in the times and of getting a very negative review. so i take it really seriously. i know what it's like on the other end. >> host: and does it affect book sales? >> guest: you know, i think that if everyone -- if people out there knew what really affected book sales, there would be -- [laughter] i don't know, everyone would be a best selling author. it's hard to kno