May 13, 2015

Let's Discuss: The Goodreads Rating Scale-- Love it or Hate it?


The look on Neil Patrick Harris' face and the disappointing sigh at the end perfectly describes how I feel about the Goodreads rating scale.


If you follow the reviews on my blog, you know that I rate books on a scale of 1-5 stars (or asterisks). My rating scale is as follows:

5 stars: All-time favorite! Truly exceptional!
4 stars: I really, really enjoyed it!
3 stars: I liked it!
2 stars: Meh.
1 star: Disaster.

This is the same scale I use on Goodreads. The difference is, on my blog, I can allot a 1/2 star here or there when I feel the book warrants it. I can't do that on Goodreads!

The problem is, I've read a few books recently that I felt deserved that extra half star! For example, Undertow by Michael Buckley-- I more than "really, really enjoyed it" but it definitely didn't make my "all-time favorite" list.

On my blog, I gave Undertow a 4.5 stars, on Goodreads I gave it 5. Why, though? It's not exceptional. It's not on my all-time favorite list. I gave it 5 stars because it deserves more than 4 and I've always rated up on Goodreads. Now, I'm not so sure. I certainly don't want to mislead anyone!


Any advice for me?
How do you rate books on Goodreads?

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