My Rating System

What good is a review web site without some kind of rating system? Taking a page (pun intended) from many of the book blogs out there, I'll be using the 5-star system. The beauty of this, however, is that I can use "half-stars!" Don't tell me that you've never gone to write a review wishing you could give a book (or movie, videogame or whatever) 4-1/2 stars instead of a perfect 5 or the 4 that just didn't quite do it justice. I'm a firm believer in half-stars. I suppose I could have made it a scale from 0 to 10, but where's the fun in that? I won't (well, I think I won't) go so far as to work with 1/4 and 3/4 stars, so indulge me with my half-stars on occasion. :-) So what does all this mean, exactly???

Here's my "key":

0 stars - In all likelihood, a book receiving this rating is poorly written, has a bad storyline, contains false information (in the case of nonfiction works) and just generally has no redeeming qualities. Admittedly, it's highly unlikely any books I read will receive this poor a rating. Likely those books will end up as DNF's.

Again, it's probably poorly written OR it could contain blatant falsehoods while still being able to capture interest.

The story's just not that great. It's decently written but not attention-grabbing. Or, conversely, the story is interesting but the writing brings it down.

This is a completely neutral rating. I could take or leave the book. It wasn't life-changing.

A great book, entertaining and easy to follow. Not perfect, likely has some noticeable flaws, but definitely enjoyable.

The closest thing to perfect (in my mind).

You can fit the half-stars in how you will, I didn't see any point in adding them to the key above. You get the general idea, I'm sure. :-)

Please keep in mind that these ratings and reviews will obviously be highly subjective. I do welcome any kind of comments or discussion on my reviews, whether or not you agree with me.