Since I’ve now decided to do this book blog I realized I may need some sort of rating system in order to help not only myself but others understand how I rate the books I read. I find that sometimes I may like the plot of the book but the author didn’t do a good job executing or the writing was bad but the idea was good. Then again sometimes you just like a book so much it ends up getting all the stars and vice versa. As I figure my way through doing this blog I hope to do a good job explaining why I gave a book a certain rating. I hope we’re able to have a discussion to see whether you agree or disagree.
As a reader of this blog, do not allow my review or the comments of a few to unduly influence your decision on a book. If a book looks interesting to you, give it a chance.
5 Stars
To get the full 5 stars, it has to be a spectacular book. One that stayed with me for days, if not weeks. One that I want for my permanent library and that I will read and re-read.
4 Stars
Great book. Really, really liked it. May have a few minor flaws, but was very much worth the time and effort to read it. Recommended.
3 Stars
A 3-star designation from me is still a good thing. It’s an okay book. I liked it. It met many of my expectations but it just didn’t quite get me as giddy as I’d hoped. 3 stars usually include a limited recommendation to a particular target audience or circumstance. For example:
- it’s a debut book with potential and I want to encourage an author to continue
- there are themes or topics that I think are important enough it makes up for other weaknesses
- the book was well-written but had themes or messages I’m really uncomfortable with
- it has a really clever concept or a fascinating main character, but the writing was weak or it was edited poorly
- the book was okay, but I recommend checking it out from the library before buying it
Below 3 Stars
These are books that I finished but had some issues that were big enough that I can’t really recommend them. I generally won’t bother reviewing these books, but sometimes there are exceptions, and I will discuss those in the review itself.
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