If you've ever been over to visit me on Goodreads, you might notice something curious. Most of my reads have either 4 or 5 stars. You'll see the same reaction if you find my Amazon reviews. And you might ask yourself - is she too easy? Is she just a fickle book whore, throwing her love to everyone she sees? Am she really not that discriminating?
I think the answer lies more in the fact that I don't finish books I don't enjoy*, and I don't add a book to Goodreads if I didn't finish it. It also lies in the fact that I was raised with the maxim: If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything.
Of course, that doesn't mean I only ever say nice things. More often than not, though, I just don't speak. =oX
And I am kind of easy to please. I admit it. If a book does what I expect it to - which is to say, entertain me - without any extraneous crap, I'm usually happy with the book. If I enjoy the book, but the author's philosophy creeps in (and it's a philosophy I don't agree with), they might lose a star - if the philosophy took away from my joy of reading, that is. But usually, I can get past the parts I don't love and back to the parts I do without too much of a problem. If it becomes a problem, I don't finish the book. Simple as that.
Maybe I am too easy that way. I mean, I see a lot of reviews where the reviewer is tearing at the writer, and ripping away stars right and left, over things that I really didn't notice. Sometimes a secondary character's hair color starts out brown, changes to blonde and I never notice. But other people do. (I've seen a couple reviews that point out things like that.)
Are they being too picky? Or am I not being picky enough? :shrug:
How about you? Are you a tough judge? Do you put down books unread if they're not your cup of java?
*btw, I finish most of the books I start.
I almost only post reviews (on the rare occasion I remember to do so) when I like the book. So most of mine show 4 or 5 stars, too. :-)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely abandon books if they are not 'floating my boat'! And if a book is great, I will tell everyone that they should read it.
ReplyDeleteI used to post very honest reviews for the books I read, some of which received only 1 star *gulp* But I don't really think bad reviews help anyone, because I've enjoyed many books that were ripped apart by other readers. So although I add every book I read to my Goodreads list, I only rate the ones that I want to give 4-5 stars :)
ReplyDeleteI'm the same way as you in that I don't finish books I don't enjoy. I am a lot pickier than you are, however, but I can still get past small mistakes--so long as they stay small lol. Things I can't get past are voice, pacing, or overall bad writing.
ReplyDeleteI have finished every book I have ever started. But if I don't like the story or writing, I will say so in my review on Goodreads (or just give one or two stars and say nothing). It's a rare day I give such low rankings, though. I won't buy a book (or pick up a free one) unless I love the author or have read the first couple of pages to see if it's something I would like.
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