Discussion: How I Rate Books!
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
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In summary: I rate books highly if I enjoy them regardless of genre. WOOOO.
I never really thought about how I rate my books. I suppose you are right that I compare according to genre but I would also go as far to say that I also compare it against the author if that author had other books.
For example Trudi Canavan had a great series called the Black Magician's Trilogy. I would rate that series a 4 1/2 or five then she had a prequel Trilogy and I would rate that series at 3 1/2 or 4. She recently wrote another book from that same world and based on her previous writing and my experience with her as an Author I think this latest book can only be rated as a 2 (not very good).
That's great! I was forever confused with raitings. How could this simple and clear and brilliant idea never come to me!
plz make more videos, i luv them, i watch them when ever you make new ones. plz make more hauls, reviews, wrap- ups, hauls and all that stuff, you are really inspiring, and i read like all the books you review. i luv ur videos. :)
I am on the same page about rating within genres - I do the same. What the book and author is trying to achieve is key. Great points!
:D
PeruseProject I totally agree! I even end up rating inside the series as well in a way. Does anyone else do that?
can you make a video about your lipstick collection? looking good, girl
I'll probably do this video at some point, but a big part of my rating would be how the process of reading went in addition to expectations and intragenre comparisons. I can recognize a book is amazingly written but if I have a hard time slugging through all the descriptions, I generally lower the rating a little. the Wheel of Time series would be an example.
Your point about expectations reminded me just want a disservice over-hyping can be to a book. When your expectations have been built up so high by everyone, it's really hard to read (and rate) a book without those expectations in mind. Over-hyping often leads to even books which I probably would have judged above-average without the hype to seem dull and disappointing if they don't live up to the "mind blowing" "life changing" reviews I've read. I try not to let those expectations impact my reading too much, but like I said it's hard.
Also, this pretty unrelated, but I was wondering what lipstick are you wearing in this video? It looks fantastic and seems perfect for the holiday season.
Cool video! It's nice to hear your thoughts :) happy holidays!
I totally agree about comparing within genre and keeping in mind what the book is trying to do. If it's a great book among its peers, it'll probably get five stars from me. I wouldn't say I take my expectations into account, though. I try not to go into any book thinking "I'm going to love this" because in that case there's a greater chance I'll be disappointed.
I just love your books
Good points. Comparing books of different genres and styles is like comparing apples to oranges. I kind of take a similar approach when I'm evaluating a book I've just read. For me, Harry Potter is the golden standard when it comes to middle-grade / young adult fantasy; A Song of Ice and Fire for adult fantasy; pretty much any of John Green's books for YA contemporary; Stephen King for adult contemporary; and I'm not sure about sci fi and dystopians since I've yet to read a book from one of those genres that I absolutely love. But even within these categories, each book is going to be unique in its own way, so I still feel like I have to read every story just for what it is, at least to some degree, and not judge it based on whether or not it made me feel exactly the same way I felt after reading some other book.... Hopefully this made sense.
Your rating system definitely makes sense! For myself, I usually end up rating books 3 or 4 stars on average. I tend to reserve 5 for books that influence me outside of the reading experience, and 2 for books that were for the most part boring. I rarely ever give a book 1 star because I usually pick books that I have an inkling I will like. XD
For me 5 stars applies to book that was not only enjoyable but it also made me think. I do not have to agree or disagree with the author but if their book challenged me and my thoughts, than it's usually on that track to a 5 and that's regardless of genres. But for the most part, like you =) I take into consideration of what the book was actually trying to achieve, its peers in the same genre for some comparison, and how much I enjoyed the reading process. My ratings usually fall within 3-5, and I try to do research on books that I'm interested in reading just to see if it'll be worth reading. That's usually why I don't have a lot of poorly rated books on my list b/c I try to do research and get a feel of whether a book is going to interests me nor not. And even with all that done, and it still falls short, than yeah its on the path of a poor rating. Great video! X) Love hearing how fellow BookTubers go about reviewing and rating books!
I agree! I usually have higher ratings because I only pick up books I think I am going to enjoy!
I'm the same way! I have many highly rated books simply bc I don't read books I don't think I'll enjoy. I also do extensive research about a book to make sure.
i really rate based off of my emotional experience with the book. If it made me feel all the feels and such it usually gets a higher rating. I don't really like to compare books even to similar books in the same category because I really just want to rate the book itself outside of everything except my reading of it. :) just how I think about it!
Wow, I feel like you read my mind. This is the same way I rate books. One format I struggle with rating are manga/graphic novels. When I give one 5 stars, it's completely different than something like say Harry Potter. It's obviously not going to be as fleshed out or have all the intricacies because the story is told in few words. So I rate them compared to only other graphic novels and how did I like this installment vs the ones that came before? I enjoyed hearing your thoughts on this topic!
I normally rate books off how much enjoyment I got out of them. I guess the book's genre does then come into play because when I picked up the novel in the first place I knew what type of book I was expecting. For me 5 star books are the ones that get me theorising and obsessing over the book even when I am not reading it. Most books I read get 4; I enjoyed it or 4.5 stars; I really enjoyed it and couldn't put the book down but I wasn't thinking about it afterwards.
I usually rate between 3 and 5 stars as well. 2 star books are rare for me, I think because most of the time I can tell before I read a book if I'm going to like it. Also if I'm not enjoying a book or can't get into it, I have no problem giving up on it. If I did end up finishing those books, some of them might be two stars.
The difference between a 4 star book and a 5 star book for me, is usually the characters or the "love" factor. If the characters are super well portrayed, I find myself thinking about them far after reading the book, because they felt so real to me. Also if I find myself saying that I "loved a book", it's a given that it should be 5 stars. If I really enjoyed the book a lot, didn't have any (or any big) problems with it, but just didn't seem to LOVE it, then it usually gets the 4 stars.
Very interesting. I was just asked this by an older family member the other day. I usually rate on a basis if I enjoyed it or not. That is the biggest attribute for me because I read for pleasure. Then I use different sub categories where they apply usually writing style, characters, and plot. And even though it may appear that our styles are very different we, essentially do different versions of the same thing (how we review you not that we review). Your expectation piece incorporated your experience and enjoyment in reading the book. Then in the case of a book's purpose is connected to how well it executes the categories I listed above. Summary: reviewing books is cool and we all see them differently which is cool too :)
My rating philosophy:
do I love this book? does it have a special place in my heart? did it make me excited and want to read it again? am I obsessed with it, or deeply moved or hugely impressed?
*****
five stars
was it a great book but had some minor annoyances? was it strong and recommendable but not a favorite? was it interesting and unique but not necessarily my thing?
****
four stars
this one is trickier. was it pretty good but had some major issues that kept me from really enjoying the story? did it have an interesting concept but poor writing? great writing but a poor concept? was it solid but a bit boring? was it mediocre but not terrible? this is where I rate books I find neither good nor bad, but something in between.
***
three stars
was this book terribly boring? was the writing sloppy, the concept terrible or the characters unbearably annoying? did I have a tough time finishing the book? did I want to throw it across the room? would I recommend no one read it?
**
two stars
and the final rating is for books I cannot bring myself to finish, or that I find so incredibly terrible I actually wish I'd never heard of it...
*
one star (very few books get this rating)
This is almost exactly how I look at it. A five star read should always be a book I would want to read again and again. Though for me well written but just not for me books get a three star rating.
Completely agree. I remember reading really poor reviews on goodreads for Diary of a Wimpy Kid and they were all saying that it didn't teach kids any life lessons etc. etc. and I was dumbfounded. IT'S DIARY OF A WIMPY KID. IT'S NOT TRYING TO TEACH LIFE LESSONS. IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE FUN.
Exactly! Love your reply.
I generally rate books based on how much I enjoyed it and whether or not I would read it again, since I don't reread books that often. If I really enjoyed it and would consider rereading it again, I'd give it 5 stars. If I really enjoyed but probably wont reread it, 4 stars. If I just liked it, 3. I rarely give 1 or 2 stars. I'd probably only give 1 star if I didn't like it at all and it was offensive in some way.
I rate books by how much enjoyment I got out of reading it. If by any chance the book had something profound to say or was particularly philosophical, I will include that in a review but generally, if I enjoyed the book, it gets a high rating. Also, I generally don't take reviews and star ratings in to consideration all that much because I won't know if I like a book if I don't pick it up. The book could have all bad reviews but if the synopsis intrigues me, I'm going to read it.
I luuurve your lipstick!!! What shade is it? It looks beautiful on you!!
I mainly judge books on how they make me feel because to me, it takes the writing, plot, characters etc all into consideration.
E.g, does the writing make me feel a certain way? Does it grip me? Does it feel plain and not make me feel anything? Does this character make me feel anger? Empathetic? Or do I feel nothing for them? Does the plot keep me on the edge of my seat? Does it go by slowly but beautifully? Or does nothing happen at all?
I just realised that there are a lot of questions in this comment :)
You are so funny, but I totally get what you are saying. I really try not to compare books across genres, which I think is a great tip.
Great video! I think your philosophy to rating books is pretty exact to my own. Yeah, it's totally unfair to compare books who are in different genres. Like you said, for every genre I have a mental list of categories or thoughts and when I read a book in that genre I'm going through my checklist and seeing what's being hit and what's not.
I rate books on my overall enjoyment. I try to go into a book with no expectations, especially when I am reading a sequel. the book can be either better or worse than the first book. I am the the type of reader that liked everything. I give 5 stars all the time
When I rate books I do it by whether I enjoyed the book, the mood the book you put me in, whether there were any parts I found boring/repetitive and the writing of the novel. For example, I gave A Walk Among The Tombstones 3 out of 5 stars because some parts about AA meetings was very repetitive so I started skipping those parts, which made the book a bit boring for me and made me not enjoy it as much as I though I would.
I love your lipstick!
I think I rate things similarly to you. And, as far as how that translates to stars, I pretty much use Goodreads' star labels to guide me (1=*I* didn't like it, 2=OK, 3=liked, 4=*really* liked, 5=amazing). But I sometimes get a bit confused when some booktubers in particular talk about 3 star reviews as if they're quite bad/negative (which...I guess it would seem like if the majority of ratings falls between 3 and 5 which I think it does for most people). To me, though, that's not bad so much as just not outstanding (but still liked!). And I know some people say their ratings don't matter and they assign them arbitrarily, but I think - like reviews - it does actually help other people to determine if they'd want to read a book so it's helpful to know how they're actually rating them.
I usually give a 3+ rating. It's very rare I'll give a 2 or below!
I completely agree! I definitely compare the books I read, but only within the same genre, and then if someone wants a recommendation from a particular genre, I have ideas about what to say. I think comparing books of the same genres allows me to rate more accurately and really think in more depth about what rating I should give.
And yes, different authors have different intentions, so as readers we should appreciate that and rate accordingly. I've seen reviewers who love classics, which is fine (I love them too!) but then they expect other books, e.g. YA, to have the same literary merit and same kind of writing style. It can work vice versa as well. But that's not a fair expectation because the writers are different - not only are they writing at a completely different time in different centuries, but also for different audiences and for different purposes. So we should consider that when rating :)
Is that your natural coloring? It's gorgeous and very natural looking!
I agree with your sistem. I start from a mark of ten and take points for things that did not please me that much. The story was great but predictable, that'd be from one to two stars (from the ten I use). Poor writing, another star.
But I really liked your point about comparing to similar. I did that and I had not thought much of it.
Very interesting video. ;D
What's your lipstick and nailpolish? I love both of them!! ❤️😍
I don't really have a system for rating books, although I wish I did. I just go based off feelings. If a book feels like a five star book to me, then I'll give it a five star rating. This works but it's kind of hard because it's not really exact.
I too compare books in the same genre but to me the most important part is enjoyment. I don't care if it is the most amazing thought provoking literature ever, if I don't enjoy it I won't give it a high rating.
Hype is a game changer definitely! :D
I rate on how a book makes me feel when it i am done reading it. I do not care what kind a book it is but when you are done reading you should feel at peace with ending it (a serie is different of course except the last book).
Love Actually
Hype definitely effects my rating!! I totally agree that if you expect it to be super amazing and it's not, you'll give it a low rating - I usually just rate my books based on "did i like it?" 3 stars "did I really like it?" 4 stars "did I love it? 5 stars!
Finally someone who rates like me! I've never rated lower than 3 stars and usually those 3 star books are books I had to read for school. I actually don't completely understand how some can rate a book 1 or 2 stars. For example, 2 stars is like 40%! Also, I think the books I read tend to get high ratings because I'm a mood reader and only read books I think are interesting and not because they are popular or new. If I'm in the mood for a happy/cheesy contemporary and I read an action packed fantasy it's going to get a bad rating because it wasn't what I wanted at that time. I don't know if that made any sense but...oh well! I really enjoyed this video. :)
I love those types of video! Always really interesting to watch :)
Personally, on goodreads I follow their recommendation which is 1star: disliked and 5 stars = loved so my rating on there entirely depends my feelings towards the book. Therefore, even if I'm aware that a book is absolutely not original or not particularly outstanding in any way, if I couldn't put it down and loved it: it will get a 5 star rating. But then, in my review, I will usually be more critique and "rational" and give another rating based on criterias that vary depending on the book's genre. For example, if it's an adult fantasy book: how was the worldbuilding? The Magic system? The characters? The plot? The writing? For a crime-mystery book, maybe it will be: did I figure it out too easily? Was it credible? Was it interesting? Was it original? How were the characters? Etc.
So yeah, tl;dr: I give a star rating based on feelings towards the book and then a number rating in my review based on "rational" criterias. This way, I feel people can get a good idea of the book and whether or not it would appeal to them.
I find it very hard to rate books because I'm torn between rating them objectively and rating them based on my reading experience. For example, I tend to give classics a lower rating, purely because my reading experience isn't as good as with comtemporary books (I'm generalizing here) because I find them difficult (sometimes tedious) to read and hard to connect to. That doesn't mean that they aren't great books or that they didn't make me think. The other way around, some of my favorite books (that I rated 5 stars), aren't very good objectively (writing style, plot holes, etc). Obviously I tend to rate books based on my reading experience and not on objectivity. Sometimes I think, maybe I should, though.
Great video! And, btw, your hair, make up, and nails are on point! :)
I must recognise that, when rating a book, I'm really gentle. When a book has not convinced me at all but has made me feel happiness, sadness, and, above all, empathy for the characters, I end up giving it not less than four stars. It could be said that I'm not always completely critical when rating a book. Because of this, a considerable amount of books on my shelfs have been given more than 4.5 stars, and I don't think this is bad, because, at the end, what matters is enjoying what you read, and it it wasn't for the writing style, the character development or the complexity of the descriptions, it wouldn't be possible to enjoy a book, would it?
I love it :)
My rating also tends to have two parts. I ask myself the question, "how did this make me feel," and then, "how well did this book use words," essentially. (So plot, characters, language, etc). My range of ratings tends to be more 2-4 stars, with 1 and 5 naturally being the more rare ones.
I think it's important to compare apples to apples, though that can also be a slippery thought process. Sure, YA and literary fiction have different intents (in some cases. YA is such a broad label...), but I just don't feel like anything should get a pass because it is a certain genre. Not that that was what you were implying, but just where my head went when thinking about this for myself. :)
Very cool to hear about your thought process and will definitely help when seeing your reviews in the future. - M
I actually rate the exact same way! And as an example, I unfortunately couldn't give Throne of Glass a high rating since was pretty let down bc of all the hype. And I will rate something like Grapes of Wrath 5 stars but also something like Just One Day by Gayle Forman 5 stars. They are nothing alike and obviously one has more merit than the other, but based on how they both stand in their specific genres I rated them highly.
I rate highly on what kind of reactions the book has on me. Basically if it made me angry, sad, happy, nostalgic...I'll give a good rating to a book that provokes me in some way unless that provoking is me actually hating the book. Characters are a big thing for me. I HAVE to connect to the characters, I have to root for them even if they're not the most likable otherwise I don't connect with the book at all. Very interesting discussion, though.
I agree. I also will rate books more highly if they provoke strong emotions in me or if I find the characters particularly relatable. Great characters can really save a book. I found Frog Music was particularly disappointing to me, in a large part because I just couldn't connect with the characters. Whereas in The Bees, I deeply connected with Flora and found myself turning each page eager to find out what happens to her, even though she wasn't even human.
I rate based on the kind of feelings that book gives me, independent of the genre.
My rubric is as basic as they come: I never give one stars because that's just unfair. Two stars= I didn't like it. Three stars= It was enjoyable but not enjoyable enough to keep me wanting to read. Four stars= similar to three stars, but it also had some aspect that really blew me away (writing style, characters, plot twist, whatever). And five stars is all of that plus it made me keep thinking about it long after I finished the book.
I agree with you. I also rate books by comparing them to the other books the author has written. It is actually the most important part of my rating. For example, I have very high expectations when it comes to Haruki Murakami's work because the first book I've read (Kafka on the Shore) was so good I still haven't found anything like it in the rest of his work, so he is both one of my favorite authors and a constant disappointment.
Well, i have a little problem with rating books, 'cause I can't rate book badly. I mean, I love every book in a different way, and I just can't give it less than 5 stars. I can't help it, I love each book the same , or similar.
Great video! I actually agree with your rating system. I don't thing it is fair to compare books if they are nog in the same genre. It doesn't make any sense and you won't be enjoying reading those books.
Am I the only one who gets annoyed by the fact that Goodreads chooses your "favourites shelf" for you, based seemingly entirely on ratings? High rating ≠ favourite book, necessarily.
You can create a favorite shelf and put all of your favorites in it and set that as the shelf that is displayed on your page
I do the same thing, rating it kind of within genre & thinking of what the author was trying to achieve by writing it. If it's meant to be fun & fluffy & it's really good at that, it should get a higher rating. But 5 stars are really rare for me. I only give that rating when I read a book & it absolutely floors me. Like books I want to read again & again & recommend to everyone I know. Most books that I think are really great, but don't have that special thing get fours. A lot of my ratings are fours because I normally think they're very good, but I personally didn't feel wowed. Threes are for books I liked, but won't read again. Twos are for books that pretty much sucked, but maybe had some redeeming aspect like a great side character or something. Ones are for books that I would never recommend because they are just awful.
I really want to see critical comparison of Love Actually and A Beautiful Mind. That could be epic. A no holds barred showdown. Liam Neeson vs Russel Crowe...who is the better romantic?
Th
I usually rate books based on how much I enjoyed it or the impact it had on me. I don't care wheather it is a literary masterpiece or not haha
I don't compare books either, I don't think that's fair ever
Hi, I know this is the stupidest thing to ask you under this video, but I love your lipstick, what's the brand of it? :D :D
And yeah, I love rating in genres, too. I mean, I rated "Anna and the french kiss" 5 stars and same is for Albert Camus "The Fall". Of course they are different and their goals are different, but each one accomplishes it. And also, if I feel that the book is good, I mean it's well written, the story line is interesting, there's a good character development, but if it doesn't change me somehow, if I don't feel myself different after reading it, it's gonna get a 4.
Completely agree with your rating system :) A curious question, do you rate a book right after you finished it or wait a day or two to settle your mind?
Agree with your first point! But I also rate it on how much I enjoyed it..ususally I measure it in how badly I want to read it/ how long it takes me to finish it...might be a bit unfair depending on the genre but oh well =)
what lipstick do you use?
Trueth
Yeah, i rate books inside the genre and age ( middle, young, adult ). Its unfair compare two diferent genres
When it comes to series, i compare in the series. Same for same author diferent book, if it is the same genre.
And for me a favorite read dont mean it will be a 5 star book. Or a 5 star book wont be a favorite.
I hope that made sense haha
So how do you decide if a book gets 3 stars, 4 stars, or 5 stars?
I give it a 5 if it was really great and then it goes down from there!
Completely agree on everything you said. Thanks for recommended the seven realms series. I'm on book 2 😄
Don't you just hate it when people over think books! there are some reviewers who rate books like they're studying the universe and the planet's life is their responsibility, those reviewers always give 2 star rating, just enjoy the book!
and don't get me wrong there are books who deserve a 2 stars or a 1 star rating.
Hype doesn't affect me
I rate my books entirely on how well it's written. Everything including writing, characters, enjoyability, pacing, etc. goes into how I rate it.
Gosh, im early!
Jaja sorry Videos!