Kirsten Hacker

Kirsten Hacker asked:

Why are 50% of the reviews from the past couple of days less than three stars, yet this book has an overall rating of 4.31 stars? Is this book a magnet for paid-for reviews while those who spend their hard-earned money on it don't like it?

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4 years ago
55 answers

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Adrienne I hate this book because it presents the extremely harmful narrative that you can cure suicidal ideation by just "changing your outlook." Depression and mental illness absolutely do not work like that and it makes me sick to see so many people continue to embrace such a cutesy representation of the disease that cripples my life.

Sarah Young I wonder about this too. I read this book because it was voted the best fiction book of 2020 by Goodreads readers, and I enjoyed so many of the other books that got a lot of votes. I thought it was terrible! I borrowed it from the library, and I only finished it because it is relatively short. I’m glad that others enjoyed it, but it definitely wasn’t for me.

Alise I've seen this a lot with popular books, people like to overly criticize them once they take off. It's cool "not to like it". I'm in a bunch of book clubs, reading groups and follow lots of book focused accounts (I know none of them get paid for reviews) and I've never seen a bad review of the book in any of those spaces. Also with fiction that is any good, early reviews are often more kind. I think book lovers tend to read a little earlier and as more and more people pick it up, you'll get more people that are critical.

Wendelah1 I didn't pay for it--I borrowed it from the library. My negative opinion has nothing to do with money. If you're looking for something easy, conventional, and comforting to read in hard times, you might enjoy it. Obviously, many people did. If you like more challenging material, and prefer well-crafted prose, I'd advise you to look elsewhere.

Cris Randall Totally agree Kirsten! I wish I could choose a life were I decided not to read this book. Blah.

Catherine Beck I wasn’t paid for a review and I bought this book because it sounded interesting. I LOVED IT!

V Yep I agree with this, same thing the book "Silent Patient" I believe it was the 2019 winner.......it was so blah.

Jeanne I spent nothing on it, I took it out of the library. It was pleasant, but in my opinion, it was totally unworthy of the hype. It was enjoyable enough because it read quickly and didn't tax the reader. I prefer something a bit deeper, or something with more beautiful prose, or something a bit less predictable and preachy. But it was entertaining.

PsychDoctor Many of the bad reviews don't like the portrayal of depression or call the character "whiney." From what I have read, the author has battle with his own depression and what he writes probably rings true for him. But human experiences vary; some people understand depression depression the way he wrote it, some have had depression and did not feel this way at all, others cannot ever fathom anyone thinking this way at all. Whether or not you like the book may stem from your ability to empathize with the character.

Franco D It is possible. I was surprised by reviews of more than 3/5. The book is rather average. Another person here had answered it even more adequately. I repeat part of his answer and add my own: the book had been probably initially targeted (or sought after by) towards an audience that likes this kind of books. They rated 4, 5. But when it became popular it reached a larger audience who was disappointed even more and felt cheated because of all the initially high ratings. Because of that I rated it 2/5, and I would have rated maybe 3/5 if not for all the rants and raves by its baseline fans. I felt cheated and I wanted in my own way to reestablish justice. I believe this is what happens with most later readers. An advice: do not follow the overall ratings, but use the "comparison" functionality in Goodreads. It will help you see whether people who are similar to you, liked a certain book or not. Personally it it helps me skip silly and inadequate rants and raves from teenagers (or even avoid the trap of fake reviews if you believe such a thing exists)

Emily i think it has so many 5 stars because its so easy to digest. a beach read if you will. I did not like the second half or the ending. My friends didnt like it either....

Brok3n I think this is a book you are more likely to enjoy if you haven't read essentially the same book one hundred times before. Well, that's true of any book, of course. But what's the chance, when you read a new book, that you will recognize it as something old and hackneyed? That depends on two things: how original is it, and how many books (particularly speculative fiction) have you read? I'm guessing many of the folks who think the book is wonderful haven't seen how many times this has been done in the past, and so much better!

Anne Gnagi Timing is everything with this read. I can understand the diversity of the comments. But if the book hits you at the right stage of your life, the right age, the right social setting - it is golden. I was lucky - and being a retired librarian might have helped.

Kirsten Hacker If I compare the ratios of the upvotes on the top 10 posts for each star category to the ratios of the number of ratings in each star category, I find that there is an 80% discrepancy. This suggests that only one in five of the ratings comes from a real person. (Everybody knows there is a fake review problem around here, but not many people know how bad it is or how to quantitatively identify it.) https://kirstenhacker.wordpress.com/2...

Charles Bill McKenny Just guessing, but I think this is a book that a lot of people are going to love. Others will come to it with the attitude of "So, what's the big deal?" and they may be disappointed.

Cathleen Sarti For me, it was wrong advertising - it sounded and looked much more fantastical than it is, maybe even going in the direction of the invisible library (a fantasy series centred around an impossible library with fantastical worlds to explore). This book is not fantastical, it just has this one supernatural element of the midnight library.

Kirsten Hacker People keep writing that they borrowed the book from the library, yet the libraries in most places have been closed for months due to the pandemic.

Ravenclaw Prefect I wasn't paid or anything, I picked this book up on seeing the rating of being best in fiction, and I must say, it's damn interesting (if only slightly depressing). I couldn't keep it down once I started. Also, this review has nothing to do with money as i downloaded the pdf for free from the local library's website

Peter Ro The book is simply reaching people that aren't its target audience by virtue of its soaring popularity. If we think of this book as any other product, we can understand the dip in popularity as just a natural trend as the book hits the edge of its target audience. The word-of-mouth marketing it's receiving is putting it into the attention space of those not necessarily its target audience. Those people recognize its execution, but don't resonate with the product well enough to give it a "four." I think it's also a bit of counterculture backlash hipsters like myself do that sort of downplay overhyped media. Never talk up a comedian; never talk up a book that is neither a masterpiece nor has a mass appeal.

Emilie Wilkinson I wasn't paid...I expected it to be more than what it was. Worth reading but I stand by my rating.

Italiangirl Get it from the library via an ebook if you have a Kindle. Yes some libraries are still closed. I'm reading it now and got a Kindle version from my library. It's worth reading but you don't need to buy it.

Julie Ladell I really did enjoy this book but because of the whole idea that having regrets is a waste of time because something worse could have happened. I gave it four stars for the though provoking idea not so much the read

Aurora Shele I borrowed it and enjoyed it so much to give it 5 stars. Whether or not I like a book doesn't depend on the money I spend on it.

Katie I thoroughly loved this book and suggested it for my next book club book. I assure you I am not paid to write reviews. That sure would be a nice gig.

Maïssoun I hate this book. I thought it was going to be an original novel with a bit of fantasy material. Instead I found myself with a bad self-help book in disguise full of stereotypes. I truly wish I could have my money back.

Em When I first started reading this book, my reaction was "Oh.. it's like "The Bell Jar" but a little less problematic. Then, a few chapters later, Nora started quoting Plath's fig tree quotation (Which I assume is the concept that inspired the novel). My guess for the mixed reviews would be a mixed audience. It's not a bad book per se, it's just incredibly simple. I've read two of Haig's books thus far and he seems like the type of author who frames his books around a core theme & then proceeds to spend the novel beating you over the head with it. But I also recognize the reason I feel this way is because during my BA I spent many pain-staking nights trying to derive meaning from several hundred-year-old texts. Not to sound like a huge snob or anything, it's just a big change when you go from having to do so much leg work to understand what you're reading to then reading a contemporary novel

Ron Tippin I find this book’s naysayers exceedingly comical. On what planet do you live where you’d not find this book a delightfully profound read? I’d hate to see what these people regard as “good” reading!

Bill This was a thought provoking, emotional, spiritually uplifting tale with a lot of talented writing. I recommend for teens & adults that see more than one dimension to this gift we call "life"

Caroline Love It’s a pleasant, uplifting book, but the ending just felt more like a self-help book to me than a real plot. I don’t regret reading it, and read it in 1 day, but wouldn’t say more than 3 stars for that reason. Plus a whole bunch of teen girls seem to give 5 star ratings to books they are just excited to read, way before they are even finished being written.

Meghan Good point- I bet it is because it's so short and easy to read.

Astute observation, Kirsten!

Susan As with most things in life, some people will love it while others think it is a waste of time. Sometimes people are disappointed because they think it will be a different type of book than it is.
Given the name, people could have thought it was about books, and quotes of books, and authors, and literary things. That is not what this book is about.
Some people could have heard all sorts of "hype" about the book since it was on best sellers lists, and goodreads lists, etc. but that doesn't mean it will be liked by all.
Others who are questioning their place in the universe, especially during a pandemic, may feel that this book hits home. Others who might not like the predictable feel good ending might be disappointed.

Cora That's an interesting observation. When I look at the reviews, they seem to be mixed to me without any specific time frame standing out but I did notice on another book a while back clumps of bad or good reviews (I can't remember which it was) that were all on the same day with no review, just a star rating and I think I even looked at a few of the people who rated it but they seemed to have other reviews, too, so I figured it was just coincidence. I also borrowed this book from the library but I loved it and gave it 5 stars because it's just my kind of story.

Dan It is one of the worst books I have ever read

Nancy Miller I consider myself a well-educated, discerning reader who rarely awards five stars. This was definitely a five-star book. It was entertaining, thought-provoking, and had lessons for me. Not every work of fiction needs to be impenetrable. Hemingway is revered for his short, direct sentences, as I recall. While this book is not Hemingway, it has considerable merit and I am baffled by those who make disparaging remarks. Perhaps it is "not your cup of tea," but for many of us it was a delicious cup of tea.

Autumn Hersey I listened to it on Audiobook. I didn't think the writing was anything special, but I truly enjoyed it! It was narrated by Carey Mulligan, so I'm not sure if it was her performance that I loved so much or if it was just a nice easy break from my normal heavier reads. (I do have a tendency to rate pretty high on here, but this is one that I would re-listen to again).

Suzan The book started with a really unique and interesting premise and then turned into something predictable. It was disappointing, that's why I gave it two stars.

Poppy This book is genuinely pretty bad. Characters with no real depth who make astronomically stupid mistakes that are just hugely unrealistic, a predictable plot and as a person who has once suffered from both depression and anxiety, insulting.
Who knew that those 8 years of my life could be avoided by being more grateful?!

glass.curtain It totally makes sense. Before it hit the recommended summer reading-list, this was a book that people went looking for. Now it was presented on a plate for anyone who didn't know what to read next. Maybe it simply wasn't a perfect match.

Natalia I am almost done with reading this book and it is one of my favourites now! I haven't rated it yet because i haven't finished but so for i would give it 5 stars. And just in case i would like to mention i am also not paid for that. I am not sure why so many people hate it but everyone has their own taste in books i guess.

Seawitch I was very surprised by the reviews but some of the 4 and 5 stars are friends of mine so I know they really liked it. I was very disappointed.

Nicholas I've come to the point that when a book is on a must read list that Amazon is bandying about I do a lot of research before I buy. Of course, I purchased this before I came to that realization. It's not a bad book. I just don't see how this can be a must read. And I don't see how this can garner more than 3 stars.

Jeremy Hartman I loved this book! I was engaged the whole time and couldn't put it down. Not sure why so many people are hating on it...

J I bought it for CAN$20 at Chapters and loved it. I was not paid to say this. Just a 22-year-old who loved the book. I think that's just the reality when a good book is read by a larger audience.... the niche target audience buys it, recommends it to their friends who may not be the target audience, they may not like it (because they aren't the audience, feel pressured to read because of their friend), tell their friends to try it and over time.. It's a large hodgepodge of the target audience and others who probably would not have liked it in the first place. Just my two cents

Alexandrea Savini Maybe bc it's been really big on booktok lately so it's getting more recent reviews. I saw it on booktok, read it, and did not enjoy it.

James B Simple, I think books like this will always split opinion. You might see it as a parable, an original outlook that flirts with a difficult subject. You might not. I accept its not for everyone and certainly shouldn’t be seen as some universal guide to life; it’s a novel after all. It provokes a reaction, that seems clear. There are thoughtful themes woven through the book which in my humble opinion provide some clues about coping with everyday life and are worth thinking about. However, all said and done it’s a story about a character dealing with her issues, which wont cover everyone’s experience with mental health and I don’t think that is the authors intention. Enjoy it, don’t enjoy it, you choose, and that’s the beauty of life.

Danielle I just received this book as a "gift" from someone at Amazon.com. Turns out it is a scam called "dusting" where a 3rd party will ship out a product and then review the product themselves to boost the ratings. Haven't read it yet, but hey free book.

Danielle I just received this book as a "gift" from someone at Amazon.com. Turns out it is a scam called "dusting" where a 3rd party will ship out a product and then review the product themselves to boost the ratings. Haven't read it yet, but hey free book.

Kathleen D The reason I liked this book is more about the subject matter and viewpoint rather than the way it is written. I have regrets and spend time with "What if" thinking. Reading the book gave me a new way of thinking about my life, so I am very glad to have read it.

hacksdancin Appeals to a wide audience, maybe? Not to sound snooty, but the writing is juvenile. 🧐 I can understand how the overall story is touching, so that may be why it's so popular.

Also, it seems people don't know what a 'paid-for review' is... you weren't paid to read the book, you were paid to like the book.

Kaz I borrowed this book from the library. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it for a person working on depression. This is how with my own lifetime of PTSD and depression I have managed to restart my life several times and not feel a failure. Well written and insightful. I would read other books by Haig!!

Authorjen I took this book out of the library and I LOVED it! It was lovely and inspiring, IMO. Four stars.

John I think some people don't understand or are not tolerant of the premise that makes this book work as a novel.

It has a simple message that's said simply and some readers find this too "simple". It's not a murder-mystery, gushy romance or an amazing adventure novel.

I really don't understand those 'readers' that liked it because it was short and simple to read. :-o

glittering reader dont have to like it just cos others do i found it a strange book but at least I will finish it to see how it goes. But i gave it two as that is all it warrants and would not do for us all to like the same things would be bloody boring.

Linda DID YOU READ THE ENDING? It was so powerful. I certainly wasn’t paid to read it. I loved it and the message it conveyed.

Cynthia Arrieu-King I think it's a book you have to go in without knowing much about it, including the hype. Also, sometimes I see absurdly low reviews, gluts of them, on Netflix, and I always wonder if it's bots or something.

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The Midnight Library

by Matt Haig (Goodreads Author)

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