Vanity metrics and other stuff

To paraphrase a famous wordsmith, it's been the best of times, it's been the worst of times.
Actually it hasn't been that bad.
My memoir cracked the top 50 in its Kindle category, reaching #30 last Wednesday. That's the lowest it's been since I finally bit the bullet and had an e-book published in 2014, so that was pretty cool.
Within the last week or so, I've also gotten my first one and two-star reviews here on goodreads, but believe it or not, that's pretty cool, too. As I've always said, it's important to accept praise with humility and criticism with grace. I appreciate everyone's interest in my work and respect their right to express their opinion.
After all, I'm not just an author. I am a reader, too. And as a reader I'm certainly not shy about sharing my own opinion. I mean, The Goldfinch won a Pulitzer and I HATED that book -- with a passion. Honestly, I'm not that crazy about Hilary Mantel's work, either.
But the one thing I always try to do, especially when I'm reading non-fiction or memoir: I always try to keep an open mind. It's not easy, but I try not to let my life experience influence my feelings about the book. If something really bugs me, I try to pinpoint exactly what it is. Is it the writing? Is it the story? Is it the way the author has chosen to tell his or her story? Am I judging the author or the author's life? Did I let any preconceptions influence my opinion or cloud my judgment?
For me, the answers vary.
What about you? Do you judge some genres more harshly than others? Do you pick up a book with an open mind or great expectations? Do you let your own life experience influence your feelings about the books you read? Do you judge the author or the book, or both?
Let me know.
Until next time, "That's life..."