Friday, May 25, 2012

BookTalk101: Stars For Books -- Yay or Nay?


Hi, everyone! :) Release the confetti; blow your horns; do your Lotto 649 dance... It's the weekend! And it's almost June too, which means that I have less than a month of school left before exams and summatives are due, and I couldn't be more nervous-slash-excited x)

But that's not what today's post is about! BookTalk101 is a new little feature I started for the first time two weeks ago, and I thought it was time for another Mimi-crazed, blogging-related discussion (if you don't mind!). Today's topic is:

Stars For Books Yay or Nay?

In other words: What do you think about rating books?

The 5-star rating system is this whole huge controversy right now because everyone rates their books differently (what some people consider a five may be a four for someone else, and etcetera), but I just have to say that I've never done anything but write my reviews with that system.

I read a variety of different reviews from bloggers who use different rating systems, but I've always found that ranking books from between one and five stars has always worked for me personally. It may be hard sometimes, but it's also easy sometimes too! :)

Here's how I rate my books:

Just like the way I write my reviews, the way I rate books has changed so much since I first started blogging! I feel like I give out 5 star ratings a less frequently now than I did before. Now I only save those for books that I REALLY recommend, and I'm a little more stern on what deserves what rating.

Like reviews themselves, rating systems really reflect on the blogger! Different bloggers use different rating systems and value their stars differently if they do use the same one, and that's A-OK. :) There's a short little note of how I rate books on my side bar, but here's a more detailed breakdown of what I think of books I rate with each star count:

5 STARS: If I was stranded on a desert island, I would take this book with me! Absolutely AMAZING and addictive and unputdownable! It's the kind of book you finish in a night and think about all day. 5-star ratings for me are usually saved for books I think are perfect and brilliant, but occasionally I'll give this rating to a book with a minor flaw that can be easily overlooked since I love everything else so much. :) Buy-worthy, for sure! 

4 STARS: This book is SO easy to enjoy! My 4-star ratings are most difficult to pin down because many 4-star books can be so much better than others. (I think that 4s and 3.5s are my most common rating on Goodreads.)  But overall, 4-star books may have one or two minor flaws but nothing that takes away from the story too much, and they have to be books that I can fly through really quickly too. I would definitely recommend these!

3 STARS: A 3-star book isn't perfect and will probably have a couple note-worthy flaws, but I never regret reading these novels. They're usually sweet, maybe a little predictable, but well worth the read. :)

2 STARS: My 2-star books are saved for ones that are either hard to get through (slow-paced, bad writing, awful MC, etc.) or have something about them that frustrates me enough that it drags my overall view of it down a lot!

1 STAR: I didn't like this book and I probably wouldn't recommend it. :(. I don't rate very many books with only 1-star because I'd usually stop reading before I'd have a chance to finish if I didn't like it this much LOL unless it's a review book, of course, because I have a vow to review every ARC I get. But I'm really careful to never request a book that I would probably hate, so it doesn't happen much! :)

DNF: Did not finish. If I listed all of my DNF books together, you wouldn't believe how many books would be on it! x) I used to never not finish books, but lately there are just too many that I want to/need to read that if I can't get past the first 100 pages of a (non-review) book, then I'll set it aside for later. (Maybe I'll pick it up again, but maybe I won't.) I never rate these books, but I might write mini-reviews if I feel they're necessary.

(I'm also really abusing half-star ratings in books now too LOL it's just so much easier than carrying bigger differences of awesome between fellow 4-star books and all that!)

And here's another thing...

You don't have to rate a book according to what everyone else thinks. When I first started blogging, I felt so weird writing negative reviews for books that all my other friends seemed to enjoy! I always wondered if posting my lukewarm reviews was wrong somehow. But now I've learned that I shouldn't feel obligated to like a book just because other people did.

If you don't like a book, I would LOVE to hear why! In the end, I always end up reading a gazillion reviews on Goodreads before I make the decision to buy a book anyways, and I never just look at the positive reviews most of the ones I read are actually more on the negative side so I can get a feel on whether or not the negative aspects mentioned would bug me or not. :)

I'd probably want to read a book more if it was given 4-stars and an honest, critical review than if a book was given 5-stars and a simple "It's awesome, go read it!" It's the same thing with trusting reviewers who have a variety of ratings more than someone with a plethora of 5-stars! ;)

Do you use the 5-star system when reviewing your books or something else? Do you like reading reviews without ratings or with them? What's your overall take on book ratings? 

(And do you ever get frustrated with rating a book because you have no idea how to label it like I do sometimes? LOL)

I hope you guys have an amazing weekend! :)

-Mimi

43 comments:

  1. I use the 5-star rating and my stars pretty much mean the same as yours (:

    I get what the issue is though. Sometimes I'm looking at the 'read' list on someone's GoodReads account and I will notice that the majority of the books on their list are rated 5 stars. I don't like when ratings are used this way as it sort of defeats the purpose. Why would you rate a book you found 'enjoyable with flaws' the same as a book you absolutely loved and read in one sitting? I don't get it and I really wish people would stop doing that.

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    1. Oh something I also want to add is my trouble with 3 star ratings! To some people it looks like a low rating, but it really isn't. When I give this rating it's a good rating. I enjoyed the book and would consider it worth the read. I'm not going to hold out on giving 3 stars just because some people take it as a low rating, but I'm always tempted to give it a higher rating because of this. I don't want to put people off a book that I enjoyed because I haven't rated it high enough in their eyes.

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  2. Wow! Great post Mimi!
    I can't belive i though DNF means did not follow (like did not understand why anyone should waste their time reading a certain book) Did not finish makes so much more sence.

    I also do a 5-star rating, i like all your rating decision guidlines.
    I save a 3.5 rating for a book that i thought was normal and not a book i will re-read but caught my interest and I am sure others will love.

    My five stars are reserved for the books i think about when i'm not reading it. And is unique and i wish i could re-read that very second. and the books i constantly find passages to read aloud to whoever i'm with.

    I always like looking at ratings first so i can have a scene on what the review's direction will be.

    Have a wonderful weekend! Good luck on finals! <3 Rachel

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  3. You have such a great and prescriptive review system. I'm more fluid as you can tell. I usually give books a rating out of 5 (it used to be 10) based mostly on how it made me feel more than anything else. Not very empirical but as you said, every reviewer has their own system. I'm pretty critical of the books I read so I tend to be very light on my 5/5 reviews unless it's a book that I couldn't stop thinking about weeks later. Sometimes, I can still have a list of criticisms for my 4/5 star reviews.

    I tend to see the stars as more of a quick glance review system. It's the comments which really seal the deal for me.

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  4. Another great topic for this new feature of yours Mimi! I also use the 5 star rating system too, your detailed explanation pretty much sums up my rating system too. When I first started reviewing I noticed that my rating average on Goodreads was quite high, now I've noticed that it's come down quite a lot. I also think that as long as you give you're honest opinion on a book you shouldn't be put off by rating a book quite low, because that's what you're reviews are there for right to help others decide if they want to pick up the book! I've also noticed that I tend to give a lot of half stars too, I wish Goodreads would put the half star in! Hope you have a fabulous weekend too! :)

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  5. I use the star system. It's essentially a 5-star system, but I reserve 6 stars out of five sparingly, for the very very few books that are perfect and have left their mark on me ... I have a brief explanation in my sidebar too, but just the other day started working on a more detailed explanation of each star rating. I haven't, as yet, thought to use half stars.

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  6. Mimi, everything you write is amazing, whether it's a review or a discussion like this! I use the 5-star rating system too (I'm getting a new design soon so they won't actually be stars anymore! *squeals with excitement*) and I find it's easier that way to sum up all my thoughts. I agree that everyone's system differs slightly and I think my one is a little different from yours. I'm beginning to realise that I'm far too lenient with ratings so I've decided to be stricter when I return from my blogging break! I also like reading reviews with ratings because it gives me a better idea of how much the blogger enjoyed the book.

    I'm trying to review Bunheads by Sophie Flack and I have no idea what to rate it! It deserves 5 stars because I absolutely loved it but there are a few flaws here and there so yes, sometimes a rating system can be frustrating too!

    Thanks for this post, Mimi! Can't wait for the next one <3

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  7. Another wonderful idea, Mimi! I've thought about this a lot, actually. I'm like you, I abuse those half-stars ratings as much as I can because I really do feel that it makes things clearer. I am extremely difficult with my five star ratings, for example, even though it's my favorite genre, I almost never give five stars to urban fantasy (except on the rarest of occasions). I'm saving my five stars for books that really get to me emotionally, or those that are beautifully written (like Stiefvater's or Yovanoff's), or both. Preferably both. 4.5 stars is the highest rating I give for entertainment value alone.

    OMG, I just wrote like a hundred things and I don't even know if they make sense. Hah, I hope so.
    I do love this feature and good luck with your exams! I'm sure you'll do great.

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  8. I do use the 5-star system and I think they have pretty much the same meaning as you but lately I've been thinking that I would like to refine it somewhat just to be clearer. The thing that is hard for me is that sometimes I'll go back and look at old reviews and think: "why did I rate that book like that? It should be lower or higher" so my star ratings are usually gut reactions right after finishing the book instead of marinating in it.

    I have definitely struggled with rating a book especially when I can appreciate the writing and I see that so many other people loved it but I personally didn't love it. Usually it will get a 3.5 or 4.

    Great discussion post-I will need to check back later to see what else people have to say as the comments so far have been very interesting.

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  9. Great Discussion post Mimi!
    I like all different kinds of ratings. I use a "word" rating system. I started off with using stars but for some reason it was just too difficult. I noticed that when I finished a book, I didn't automatically think "Oh, that's gonna be 4 stars!" I would think "that book was AWESOME" or "meh..." or something like that so I decided to rate my books on how I felt. I probably need to get an actual word rating system down. Right now it's kind of all over the place, but I hope people still get it. I think I'll do a poll on my blog to see what people like better :P

    For some reason stars were just so hard! Even though thats how I rate it on GR, I just can't quite put my feelings into stars. Especially since almost everything would be a half star. Then I have to decided if I should rate it 5 stars on GR but put 4.5 in the review or if I should put it as a 4 star but put 4.5 in the review. Ugh...so hard. :P Sometimes something that bugged me in one book was alright because everything else overshadowed it. Sometimes it annoys the crap out of me. That's why it's so hard and I decided to just write whichever words I feel describes the book best :)

    However, I like some sort of rating system. I have a hard time with people who don't use one (even though I still follow their blogs). Sometimes, especially if I don't have time I liked to just take a quick look at the rating to see if they even liked the book.

    Look at me just blabbing :P haha great discussion!!!

    All the best ♥
    Mackenzie @ Oh, For the Love of Books!

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  10. I get you on 5 star ratings! I feel the same way about 4 star book so that's when I implement the 3.5. Sometimes I go back and think I rated a book TOO highly though once I get over the initially rush of reading it. 5 stars are really hard for me to give, haha. I'm actually surprised at your DNF! I rarely used to have that but I think I'm putting down books more and more. It was really interesting to read your thought process on ratings! Hope you have a lovely weekend, Mimi x

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  11. I only recently started using the rating system. I tend to have a difficult time rating books, its so subjective that stars really don't help convey my feelings. Like, some people think a 3 star book is bad, but in reality it doesn't have to be. I tend to just use the stars now as a quick rating system for those who like to skim my reviews. I obviously delve into more detail with my actual review where I can explain my thoughts and feelings =)

    Kristan @ Lost Amongst the Shelves

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  12. I've always used the star rating system as well. For me, it's not so much about the rating itself, but rather leaving readers with a final, concrete reaction to the book so they know how my feelings finally panned out after my rambling review. It's a way to help keep me focused when I'm writing a review - if I've given something a 3 rating I know I need to be more specific about what didn't work for me to warrant that number, and if I give it higher I'm free to gush a little bit more.

    Hope you have a wonderful weekend Mimi!

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    1. I agree with Jenny here. I like to have a general idea of their thoughts in whole are. They may point out some negative stuff but the rating clarifies how much that negative stuff impacted the overall feel of the book .

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  13. Mimi, I find star ratings useful because you can get a quick overall picture of how the person felt about the book. They are subjective though which is why I have a brief explanation in my sidebar about what my different number of hearts mean.

    It's not a big deal if a person doesn't use a ratings scale as long as their review is honest and sounds logical. Oh, and have correct spelling and grammar! I hate seeing reviews that are full of spelling mistakes. I always type mine out on a Word document first so any spelling mistakes can be caught and then re-read it to make sure there really are no typos.

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  14. We have a similar system and I think rating books is good, though taste ma vary you still get the overall feel of the story from people who follow the same genre. My DNF is one long list too.


    Talk Supe

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  15. I didn't know there was controversy surrounding rating systems at the moment (where have I been?!) but to answer the question I say YAY! I have always used star rating systems and I like when I see them on other blogs too. Sometimes I won't have time to read all the reviews on all the blogs, so I like a quick fix rating system sometimes. :)

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  16. I, personally, don't use a rating system because when I did I found that people would judge my opinions of the book purely on my star rating and wouldn't read my actual review. So if I gave a book 3 stars, people would comment with, "Oh sorry you didn't enjoy this one!" when I clearly stated that I DID enjoy it. I've also found it easier to write critical reviews without having to confine myself to a single rating. I do appreciate when people have star ratings, especially if I'm trying to read a bunch of reviews in a day, but otherwise I don't think they're necessary.

    I definitely agree that I like to see when bloggers have a mix of reviews, both negative and positive, because I feel like it makes them more trustworthy when they don't just love everything. Great post, I think a lot of people struggle with whether or not they should have a rating system, or if they should write negative reviews (WHICH THEY TOTES SHOULD!!!) :D

    Anna @ Literary Exploration

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  17. I adore YOU and YOUR AMAZING POST, Mimi! <3 This new feature is definitely something I'm going to look forward, especially since so far, you have tackled amazing topics! :)

    I used to ponder again and again that maybe I've given some books too many shining stars (or cups, as I use it on my blog LOL! xD) after I've stopped feeling the rush after-reading. I love some of my 4 stars books than others, and it really bugs me! Can I give these book like, 4.2 stars? But I think it would be very confusing for my lovely readers hehe! x)

    I personally never give a book 1 star. I know how hard the road to publication must be! If the book really offends me, I refuse to rate it on Goodreads. I don't think that I must put books that I hate in my bookshelf LOL! x)

    Sorry for the super long comment! Can't stop myself! xD

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  18. Great post and very interesting discussion, Mimi! :D

    I use the star-rating system because I can't imagine NOT using it. I've been on Goodreads since 2009 so it was what I used long before I even started reviewing books, and was just rating them. I could never get rid of my star rating because sometimes it says more about how I feel about the book than my review does. For example, I may mention lots of negative points in a review because that's what stood out in my mind while writing the review, but I may have actually really enjoyed the book which my star rating would show.

    I must admit it bugs me a tiny bit when I see a review without a star rating. That is absolutely their right and everyone should do what they feel comfortable with, but often times I just skim reviews to get an idea and therefore I look at the 1) Genre, 2) Star rating and 3) Sentences in the review that stand out to me. I feel like it all ties in together that way.

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  19. Yeah, sometimes, it's hard to rate. For me, especially review books. You know, when you think honestly of the book, but you think also, about not to offend the author? Good God, I didn't know it was that hard! But, I made myself a promise to be honest. On my blog I write also about psychology and my personal life, which is sometimes very personal - so if I can be honest about myself with the world, then I can be honest about my reviews too. And I am happy about it.

    Great post Mimi!! :) :)

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  20. It's so true that people have different ideas as to what a 5-star book may be and what's not. Ratings are very subjective and I don't rely on them too much, but I do find it helpful sometimes (maybe more for myself than anyone else) to include a number to offer SOME overall indication of my feelings towards the book. This is why I recently moved my ratings to feature at the end of my reviews - I wouldn't want anyone to dismiss a 3 star book as something I didn't enjoy. Even 2 star books for me have some good qualities. You don't really get that through by just stating the number..

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  21. Interesting discussion. I review books for Romantic Times magazine and I have to give them stars...it's hard sometimes, but I don't usually mind it. For my blog, though, I almost always leave out the stars. It's just a preference thing. I like reviews that other bloggers do with ratings and I like the ones without. It's hard to tell what someone thought of a book based on a star sometimes, especially if it's a three, so it's always a good idea to read the whole review anyway. Sometimes I add a star to my blog reviews if I think it would help people understand my review a bit better, but it's rare.

    -Lauren

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  22. I think you said it well Mimi! I basically feel the same way. And I agree that sometimes its hard to give a so-so review for something that others LOVED. And I also look at more reviews on goodreads to get an idea if there are flaws that would personally bother me.

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  23. Mimi, I love this detailed explanation of your rating system!! Personally I have to say I LOVE it when reviewers include star ratings. It sets pace for the review, what to expect, etc. I didn't include 1-5 star ratings in my reviews for a loooong time...but I felt like they were missing something. I'm glad I added them in!

    Thanks for this awesome post, Mimi! I love these Book Talk 101 posts - they make me think! ;) <3

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  24. When I first started blogging I used a rating system, then I stopped, then I brought it back because a few of my blog readers asked me to. Either way, I've always gone with a 5 point scale, and it works for me. I use similar guidelines as you and really have to LOVE a book to give it a 5 star. I don't give them out as much any more. Most of my reads fall between a 3 or 4.

    In my reviews, I also noticed I was spending a lot of time summarizing, and I've now tried to eliminate that because that's what a synopsis is for. I've noticed quite a few other reviewers that do it too, summarizing for several paragraphs and then putting a one line reaction at then end.

    That's doesn't really help me decide if a book is right for me, so I've tried changing things up so I can include more of what I thought. When I read reviews, that's what's I'm looking for in any case, not necessary what the star rating is.

    Great discussion.

    Happy Weekend, Mimi

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  25. I SO know what you mean by getting frustrated with deciding what rating to give a book! Sometimes I wish I still did half stars...though in the long run, I'm glad I don't because that makes things even more complicated. I think the best thing to do with rating systems is what you did here: explain it! You're right...every blog has a slightly different system, and it's important to know what a rating means when you're reading the review!

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  26. Aaaaaaah, you made another of those wonderfully wonderful booktalks! *kisses screen* And this one is about book ratings! Interesting, indeed... I always rate my books, and I've always done it. I was surprised recently when I saw that some bloggers didn't. I really like ratings, because with just one glance you can see whether the reader liked the book or not.

    Oh, but that doesn't mean I like rating the books I read like that. Because then comes that typical discussion of "this one is 4 stars, but that one was 4 stars and it was WAY better and blah blah blah"... When I rate books, what my rating means is more less the same as you. 5 star books are books that I greatly enjoyed, and then there are the 5 stars and favorite LOL And yup! Most of my ratings are around 4, too.

    I've noticed you recently using the .5 rating! Although I don't think I'll be using it (for me it'll be like more headaches. I stress myself out too much). LOOOOOOVED this post, too, Mimi!♥ And YAY IT'S FRIDAY :D And it's a 3-day weekend, too!

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  27. I agree Mimi, it is hard sometimes to rate books. Most of my ratings fall in the 3, 3.5 to 4 range. I rarely do five stars, Inreserve them for the wow books. I feel,that too many reviewers give out the 5 stars to easily. In fact I don't trust reviewers who give a lot of five strars vs. the 3 stars. I have more confidence in people who give three stars because let's face it there a lot of good books out there but not all of them will be your absolute favorites. Only the books that are your favs should get the top rating. Have a great weekend!

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  28. Mimi, what a wonderful post! I love this breakdown of your rating system. I have to say I was the same as you when I first joined GR I gave my five stars very easily. I'm starting to hold back a little more and give it out only to books I absolutely love. I had a problem of worrying that I was being mean so I'd rarely go below a 3 star rating before. 3 star felt very low for me but it does actually mean that you "liked" the book, so now I don't feel so bad.

    Good luck on all your exams and yay! the summer is almost here! Hopefully you'll be able to do loads of reading! :)

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  29. Great question hun! :)

    I actually prefer reviews with ratings. Even if all our ratings differ, it still gives you an idea about despite everything else, how much the blogger liked or did not like the book.

    AND YES!!! :D I do get frustrated!! Sometimes I'm torn between 2 stars because.. the thing is, I usually try to compare each book to another one of the same genre. So sometimes I get a bit stuck and don't know whether I should give it 5 stars or not? "It was good, but then again, it wasn't as good as xy and I gave that one 5 stars.." LOL.

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  30. I use the five star rating just because that is how I have to rate my books on goodreads and Amazon. I don't feel it works that great for me. I'm thinking about changing it maybe someday. For me if a book is a 1 or 2 stars I don't even finish it. I'm not afraid to write negative reviews but it's just with soooo many books in my pile if I'm not feeling something once I read 10% of it, I don't keep reading it. I don't feel right reviewing a book I only read 10% of so I don't. A lot of times it's just my personal tastes and I don't like the characters. I think I have one two star review on my blog and it took me a month to get through the book. I don't feel like books really ever deserve one star unless they are horribly horribly written. I feel like they are not a bad book just a bad match for me. Basically I rate my books 3 stars for something okay, 4 stars to anything I enjoy, and 5 stars to something amazing that I think about long after I'm done reading it. I'm really good at picking out things I'll enjoy so most books do get 4 stars from me. But nothing is perfect so I do try to always include things I like and didn't like.

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  31. I'm loving Book Talk 101 with Mimi :) My ratings have changed over time as well! I've become much, much stricter with my ratings. I reserve 5 stars for EXTREMELY awesome, heartbreaking/smile inducing books that will stay with me forever. Even if it has flaws, it should stick with me forever and make an impact on whoever reads it. That's what gets 5 stars for me these days. Other good books that may/may not stick with me forever but are well written, fun and explore awesome themes or have amazingly fun/interesting main characters get 4 stars.

    3 stars are for books that I liked, probably were easy to read but had flaws that I couldn't ignore and kept me from totally 100% loving the book. 2 stars is for books that I struggled to finish/just not something I'd recommend. I'm yet to give a book 1 star... it would probably be for books I almost didn't finish or couldn't finish. I totally abuse half star ratings as well! I wish Goodreads would let us add that half star!

    I like ratings! It helps me judge my overall experience reading the book and I find it useful while reviewing and reading reviews! Fabulous post, Mimi. Looking forward to more of these :D

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  32. it's true it's sometimes very difficult to rate a book, mainly when at first you have an idea in mind and it changes a few days later. But I think it's easier to have a rate like that to really know how the persons enjoyed the book. it's always difficult for me when there are none to really know.

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  33. June's such a good month for me. I finish exams right on June 1st so yippee! Good luck <3

    I definitely like using rating systems. Even though they may differ from person to person (Goodreads rating is SO not like mine…..) I think it gives a good indication of what you thought of a book overall. Sometimes a review is very positive, even though the book's only a 4. Sometimes you can't express the love properly so you can't convey the 5 star rating you're giving! I feel a little lost when I read reviews without ratings. Sometimes I just think "Sooo….what did you give it?!"

    My rating system's pretty much the same for yours, except for 4 stars. I think of 4 stars as "good" - not brilliant and OMG like 5 stars but definitely better than the "average" 3.

    I think when I first started blogging and I didn't love a book like everyone else did, I was reluctant to put a low rating. "I'm totally the odd one out and missing something!!" But after a short while I said what I wanted and that was that ;) Like you, I read more negative reviews on books I'm unsure of. If it's a good book, I don't need to know why. If it's bad, then I definitely need to know so I can prepare myself and see what I think as I read it myself!

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  34. I use the 5-star rating system with half-star options and I've always liked having it as an option, since it gives a nice overview of what someone thought! I love having both when reading a review, personally, since I think they reflect each other well, but sometimes they're even needed... I've come across reviews I just can't tell if it was more on the positive or meh/negative, but just general talk. If it makes sense! Even though rating systems can differ from person to person and probably between genres, I think it still offers a nice overview that everyone can get!

    I do admit that I easily get favorites though and have a lot of the stuck-on-an-island ones, since I barely finish books that are below a 3 star, but I also have a 5 plus rating for the rare stars out there that tops any lists that's really hard to earn! I did feel bad about my positive ones at first though, wondering what was okay, but I can't help that I just cannot finish a book that doesn't hold my attention either... I think I'm getting harder to impress in general though lately, but to me it always comes back to being honest anyway!

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  35. I'm so with you on the do not finish books. I don't like to count, because there's a lot haha. Like you, any book that I specifically request to review, I'll read regardless of whether I'm liking or not. But if it's a review copy sent that I never asked for and I'm having to FORCE myself to keep reading.... well, I stop. I read to ENJOY and I hate when it feels like a chore. I never rate DNF book either.

    It's also probably the reason why I rarely ever post a review that's under 3 stars, because I never finish the books that aren't holding my attention. And I've noticed I have a short attention span LOL.

    I really need to sort out a DEFINITE explanation for each star, like you have so expertly demonstrated above!! I usually follow the goodreads "amazing/really liked/okay' system because it's easy and requires no work from me haha.

    But definitely, I think I prefer ratings. It helps me to rate a book before I review so I have a clearer idea of how to write it, though it probably makes more sense to rate AFTER review. ANYWAY! This is a fantastic post :D

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  36. I'm with Brodie: I don't feel obligated to review books that I haven't requested, and I don't review books that I couldn't finished. That said I'm fairly lucky in that most of what I receive is pretty good--I've only had one or two shockers.

    I am very sparing in giving out five star reviews, though: I always feel that if every book is worthy of five stars, well, then what's the point of a five star review? I have a lengthy post on this over here, if you're interested: http://www.readinasinglesitting.com/2012/01/31/reading-your-stars-starred-book-reviews-in-review/

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  37. I actually don't use rating on my website. I started off using them and then decided that I'd rather let my review speak for itself. I do however go ahead and add the rating when I'm posting to Goodreads because that seems to be whats expected.

    I think whatever works for the blogger is whats best for them and their site. I can appreciate reviews that use rating and those that don't.

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  38. "I feel like I give out 5 star ratings a less frequently now than I did before. Now I only save those for books that I REALLY recommend, and I'm a little more stern on what deserves what rating."

    YES! This! I suppose I *READ* a lot more, now, so I don't pick my books so discriminatingly, but for me to give a book 5 stars, it has to be AMAZING. Like, blows me away and leaves me FLOORED.

    I still feel AWFUL giving a book 2 stars, or--even worse--1... which I do VERY rarely. For a book to be one star is pretty extreme. Much like a 5 star, it has to be EXTREME--COMPLETELY without merit.

    "(And do you ever get frustrated with rating a book because you have no idea how to label it like I do sometimes? LOL)"

    YESSSSS!

    ReplyDelete
  39. I have a five star rating and I even use the .5 ratings. In my sidebar I've explained how my rating works. Sometimes it's really hard to decide where I should put a book, but overal, I like to have some sort of standard. People can see how you feel about a book so easily when you put a rating to it :) And I love how everybody rates differently! (and some people have their own theme, like the sea and they are giving for example 1 fish to a book they hate. I love that creativity!)

    And I have the same: when I was younger, I would read a book until the hate, even if I hated it. Now I'm so much easier. There are so many great books out there, waiting for me. Why should I bother myself with reading a book I don't like? Only if I have to review it, but even that's hard for me :p

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  40. I review up to 5 stars but also use .5 and even .3, .2 etc!! I hardly ever rate 5 stars. I feel a bit awkward doing a bad review for a book everyone else loves, or even for a book in a series that I loved but I thought then went downhill. I don't often review books in a series I have known and loved for a long time or by an author whose books I have read and enjoyed lots by, as I feel like I would be slightly biased! I tend to review books which I have never really heard of, apart from some reviews.

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