What does “really liked” mean?

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What does “really liked” mean?

As a reader, I love Goodreads. I especially love seeing the reviews by my friends because that often means I discover books I wouldn’t have read otherwise.

But I am also an author, and I have struggled with putting ratings on books. So for a long time, I only rated my 5 star reads. All other books, many of which I loved, got a review but no rating. The problem with that is, I don’t get an accurate picture of the books I’m reading. I love Goodreads’ “year in review” reports, and putting ratings on only my 5 star reads gives me an average rating for my reading year of … 5 stars. That’s not an honest picture. For instance, my average rating for 2022 so far is actually 4.4 stars, not 5.0 stars.

Recently, I read a blog post about how to write interesting reviews. I don’t know if I will ever take the time to craft longer, more detailed reviews than the ones I currently write, but the post did suggest using one’s own rating system.

Goodreads equates 1 star with “I didn’t like it,” 2 stars with “It was ok,” 3 stars with “I liked it,” 4 stars with “I really liked it,” and 5 stars with “It was amazing.” I understand what the “amazing” one means, but what does “I really liked it” mean? It just isn’t descriptive enough. You might mean something quite different when you say you “really liked” something than what I mean when I say it.

I can’t change what Goodreads means, but I can explain better what I mean. Enter “Robin’s Ratings.” From now on, here’s what those stars mean to me:

Robin’s Ratings

5 = Out of this world. Amazing. Unforgettable. A personal favorite.
4 = Excellent read. Couldn’t put it down. Will recommend to others.
3 = Glad I read it. Engaging/entertaining.
2 = The book was fine but not a favorite. Perhaps a matter of personal taste.
1 = For whatever reason, I didn’t enjoy it and can’t recommend.