 |
| 5 Stars |
How do you feel about writing book reviews and rating the books? I have a hard time with them. I'd like to give 5 stars, but if I give them to every book I like, my reviews won't mean anything.
Goodreads' rating descriptions appeal to me, but honestly, most books come under 3 or 4 stars that way.
1 - didn't like
2 - it was okay
3 - liked it
4 - really liked it
5 - it was amazing
Another problem is that I have a lot of friends who are writers, and for the most part, I love what they write. But that 5-star rating? I don't know. Should that be reserved for books such as The Kite Runner, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Secret Life of Bees, and Beach Music? Those books were very special in my view. Or does it just mean books I loved?
 |
| 5 Stars |
Will my friends be hurt if I don't give them 5 stars? I certainly don't mean it to be taking anything from their books. I'm still thinking about this. Maybe I should publish my own rating system on Goodreads and use 5 stars for books I love and often read several times.
Of course, if I really dislike a book, I wouldn't review it and probably didn't finish it anyway. I used to feel compelled to finish what I started, but life's too short. I don't have enough time to read what I'd like, and I don't plan to waste it on one I don't like.
Those stars include my own. I think Haunting Refrain and The Peeper are good, but I can't honestly put them in that stellar group with To Kill a Mockingbird or Gone with the Wind.
My other pet peeve is reviews that give a synopsis of the book. I skip those and absolutely won't write them. When I've accidentally read one, I feel I don't need to read the book, that I already know what happens. And spoilers drive me nuts. Why do people feel the need to publish the key to the story and take away all the suspense? At least it should be clearly marked that it contains spoilers.
Mostly I try to leave off the rating and just say how I felt about it. I'd like to know how you feel about it and what you do.
