Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2019 Weekly Checkins
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Week 10: 3/1 – 3/7
Nadine wrote: "Bree wrote: "... Nothing ruins my immersion in a book like seeing "illicit" in place of "elicit". ..."Gah! SAME!! Also: torturous instead of tortuous (is it REALLY that hard to keep them straigh..."
I've begged to differ. Winding paths can be quite painful
Nadine wrote: "Bree wrote: "... Nothing ruins my immersion in a book like seeing "illicit" in place of "elicit". ..."Gah! SAME!! Also: torturous instead of tortuous (is it REALLY that hard to keep them straigh..."
OMG yes. There was a bit in When Dimple Met Rishi which referred to a group of zombies as, not a horde, but "a hoard". I physically winced.
My reading pace has slowed significantly. I only finished two books last week: I read A Spark of Light to fulfill the unusual chapters prompt, and I read Caraval for the debut novel prompt. I enjoyed A Spark of Light immensely. Though others were bothered by the reverse time line, I thought it worked well for this particular novel. I did not care for Caraval. When I picked it, I had the impression that it was similar to The Night Circus (which I LOVED), but alas Caraval fell well short of my expectations. I'd say that maybe I've reached the age (mid-40ish) where I'm too old for YA, but I read and enjoyed The Sun Is Also a Star and The Hate U Give, so I don't know...I started Pride and Prejudice as a favorite re-read, and I'm using Salt to the Sea for the "salty, sweet, bitter or spicy" in the title prompt. (I'm ok with salt=salty.)
QOTW:
Most of my ratings fall in the 2-4 range. A five star rating is reserved for a book that really grabbed me, kept me so interested that I couldn't put down or couldn't wait to pick back up, is well written with interesting characters, and stayed with me long after I finished.
4 stars = a great book, but fell short of a 5 star some how
3 stars = good but not great
2 stars = it was ok enough that I finished it, but I wouldn't recommend it to a friend
1 star = I don't give many of these because if it's a one star, I probably wouldn't bother to finish it.
Mod
Hi allNot that great a week for me, as we had a death in the family on Monday. He’d been ill for the last while, but his passing still felt sudden. The funeral was yesterday, and though extremely sad, it was good to share memories and celebrate his life.
In terms of reading, I only finished 1 book this past week: The Golem and the Jinni, for the book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature prompt. I didn’t know much about it before reading it, but the title intrigued me and it seemed to have gotten good reviews. Luckily, it turned out quite enjoyable for me.
That puts me at 14/50 for PS so far.
I’m currently reading Fangirl, which I should finish soon.
QOTW:
Most times I’ll know what I want to rate a book, but there have been books that I’ve wavered about. And as some of you have already mentioned, I think a half star option would really help.
My rating is based on how much I enjoyed the book. I am a bit stingy with giving out 5 stars (amazing, loved it, stayed with me after, everyone should read this book now) - most of my books range between 3 star (enjoyed, but didn’t blow me away) and 4 star (really enjoyed it, will probably recommend). I don’t have a lot of 1 star (hated it, not for me) and 2 star (not that great but not quite hated) ratings either.
I very rarely DNF. Like Cendaquenta, it’s more of a DNF right now, but will maybe get back to it eventually sometime in the future…
Mod
SQUEEEEEEEE!!!! :-)
This week I completed a few books, some for Popsugar, some for ATY and some just because. I'll Be There for You: The One about Friends -a nostalgic walk down memory lane about the TV show Friends and its backstory. - I believe this was for an ATY prompt.
I Work at a Public Library: A Collection of Crazy Stories from the Stacks - I had secretly always wanted to be a librarian and I loved the humorous take on what you find in the stacks. Chapter 12 had me tearing up. Great read for library lovers. I used it for Popsugar's unusual chapters prompt. (Chapters are number after the Dewey decimal system.)
Matilda -had been on my TBR for a while and read it finally for a FB challenge I was participating in. I loved it! Great story of a smart and tough girl.
The Au Pair - I was so excited about this book. It started out great and continued to be interesting, with a bit more family dynamic stuff, than suspense. However, the ending left me wanting more.
The Rosie Project - I don't know why I waited so long to read this book. Listened to it on audio and the narrator did an excellent job. It was so funny and heartwarming. I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series.
Currently reading: Daisy Jones & The Six -my most anticipated book of 2019 and so far it is everything I want and more. I can't wait to finish it and I don't want it to end.
After You -working through the series (slowly.)
The Lying Game -my audio book for commuting/working out.
QOTW:
5 stars if I want to tell everyone about the book, if I can't stop thinking about it and if it gave me all the feels.
4 stars if it is a great book, but I don't necessarily want everyone to read it.
3 stars if it has some issues to work though but is not completely terrible.
2 stars if I have to slog through it or it has a lot of grammatical errors or the story doesn't flow.
1 star if it was so bad I couldn't finish it... I have DNFd books but I don't think I have ever given a one star review.
Mod
Well you should! For me 2 stars is "okay" and 1 star ranges from dislike to hate. The nuance shows up in the actual review I wrote. So if anyone is actually swayed by my ratings, they can also read my review to see the details.
I don't worry about it too much because I never choose books based on the number of stars, I always read reviews, and of course everyone in the world is exactly like me ;-)
poshpenny wrote: "Carmen wrote: "Milena wrote: "Carmen, I just added like 3 books to my TBR based on your update!."The Binding'd better be one of them haha! I should get paid for all the people I got to add it hah..."
I had never seen that copy, that's so beautiful! To be fair, I still think the published one is gorgeous as well, but I can see why it's a definite downer on your excitement!
Mod
Not that great a week for me, as we had a death in the family on Monday. He’d been ill for the last while, but his passing still felt sudden. The funeral was yesterday, and though extremely..."
My condolences. We are never "ready" even when we know it's coming.
Re: ratings - I 100% agree with above on average rating being affected by knowing your tastes (and using that knowledge) Mine is WAAAY higher than my husband though we rate in common books similarly, because I choose things that sound in my tastes, often that friends with similar taste rates highly, from authors I may already know I enjoy or in series I enjoyed so far. My husband continues reading comic arcs he’s already given 1s and 2s to earlier books, to not miss anything and because it’s what there is for characters he likes. If it was me, I’d ignore those in favor of something new I’m more likely to enjoy.
Cendaquenta wrote: "Goodness, this has seemed like a really long week somehow. I had to make sure I hadn't missed a check-in thread.Surprisingly eventful week too, now that I think back on it. Went to a book signing,..."
I got a copy of Chocolat a while back because it was on the discount shelves, so I figured I'd survive the Dutch translation. I haven't read it yet, but hope to soon. I met Harris, though, and we fangirled over Loki. She's absolutely lovely!
As for ratings, each genre/intended age group is rated on its own. It's like giving a comedy movie an 8/10. It's nowhere near the same quality of a good 'serious' movie, but for a comedy it's great, hence the good rating. It's the same with books, imo.
Cendaquenta wrote: "Nadine wrote: "Bree wrote: "... Nothing ruins my immersion in a book like seeing "illicit" in place of "elicit". ..."Gah! SAME!! Also: torturous instead of tortuous (is it REALLY that hard to ke..."
I can't stand stuff like that, I'm like, why did the editor not notice?? Which goes for many more things of course. I adore the Binding, but instead of 'around' 'round' was used, every. single. time.
Nadine wrote: "@Julie - there was some discussion a few weeks ago saying that people who loved Night Circus did not like Caraval and vice versa! I hated Night Circus so I've got Caraval on my TBR :-)"I'm currently listening to The Night Circus, and having some trouble with it. Thinking of switching to my physical (though Dutch) library copy to see if that helps. I was meh about Caraval, but loved Legendary, so I think it was more Scarlett that was my problem haha!
Nadine wrote: "Carmen wrote: "My problem with the GR rating system is that you go from “okay” to “hating it”. There is no simply disliking it. And let’s face it, if you see someone giving a book two stars you’re ..."Oh I would definitely read the actual review! I just wouldn't be expecting a not-negative one haha!
Raye wrote: "Hi allNot that great a week for me, as we had a death in the family on Monday. He’d been ill for the last while, but his passing still felt sudden. The funeral was yesterday, and though extremely..."
My condolences, Raye. Sending you lots of strength.
poshpenny wrote: "Carmen wrote: "Milena wrote: "Carmen, I just added like 3 books to my TBR based on your update!."The Binding'd better be one of them haha! I should get paid for all the people I got to add it hah..."
The hardcover on Amazon looks like the proof. I take it back. I looked at it more closely and its not. Bummer.
I am at 30/50.This week I finished:
Sweet Addiction – a book with a wedding
Where'd You Go, Bernadette – a book with a question in the title
The Safest Lies – an author with the same first and last initial
Currently reading:
The Lying Game – I was really excited to find this one in the library, until I started reading it. I’m going to power through and hope it gets better.
The President Is Missing – I have had a deep love of MOST things James Patterson since I was 14. I’m really enjoying this one so far.
Observations so far:
I have now won 8 books on Goodreads and have yet to read any of them because I am so committed to finishing the challenge first, but I feel guilty about it.
Question of the week:
Do people agonize over what star rating to give a book (or is that just me) and how do you decide?
Sometimes I do. I feel bad ever giving a bad rating, because writing is so much work, but at the same time, I occasionally come across a book so incredible that it makes me want to hold on to five star ratings for books that really knock my socks off.
-Do you have any guidelines for how you rate books?
No. I just go by what I feel.
-Are you stingy with your stars? If so, why?
I am getting more stingy with my stars, because if I enjoy it, I immediately want to give it 5 stars, but I don’t think that’s far to the select few truly AMAZING books that I have come across.
-Do you rate books you don’t finish?
I have only ever rated a book I didn’t finish one time, and that was simply to warn other amazon users that the book was so poorly edited that it was painful to read and a waste of their money.
Ketukar wrote: "Recipes for Love and MurderThis one wasn't a disappointment. :-) The only problem with this book is that I get hungry! :-D"
I read this last month and agree completely about it making you hungry. Have you tried any of the recipes at the back of the book yet?
Carmen wrote: "I was meh about Caraval, but loved Legendary, so I think it was more Scarlett that was my problem haha!"I feel like I've heard a lot of people say this? I'm the opposite. I loved Caraval and Scarlett, but Legendary was just okay. My problem was definitely Tella. I kept hoping someone would slap her for me haha!
Lynn wrote: "Oooohhhh...I'm anxious to read The Girl in the Tower and then finish the trilogy!"I thought The Bear and the Nightingale was stunning. It was a 5-star instant favorite so my expectations were really high. I know some people were let down by The Girl in the Tower, but I was not at all. I read more of The Winter of the Witch last night. Ugh, my heart. I'm a mess after the end of Part One. I wanted to call off work to keep reading. (I did not, but the temptation was real!)
Serendipity wrote: "Forgot to add that the first time an author actually liked one of my reviews and ratings sort of freaked me out ..."Yeah, that really freaks me out. Renee Ahdieh liked my review of The Wrath and the Dawn, and my first reaction was panic followed by this deep, deep guilt because I'd said something negative in the review. It was a 5-star review, but I'd said something "mean" in it, and I just couldn't deal with that very well.
I've had an author like my status when I added one of his books to my TBR on Goodreads. He said something pretty standard like, "Thanks for your interest. I hope you enjoy the book." Nice, right? Well ... I still haven't read that book. What if I don't like it? What if I have to rate it low? What if he sees that too?
I acknowledge that I am a complete mess.
Heather wrote: "Lynn wrote: "Oooohhhh...I'm anxious to read The Girl in the Tower and then finish the trilogy!"I thought The Bear and the Nightingale was stunning. It was a 5-star instant favorite so my expectat..."
The Bear and the Nightingale was another letdown for me, like Caraval, but thinking back on it I think I'd like it better now, so I'm thinking of listening to the audio version, as a reread, before continuing on.
Heather wrote: "Carmen wrote: "I was meh about Caraval, but loved Legendary, so I think it was more Scarlett that was my problem haha!"
I feel like I've heard a lot of people say this? I'm the opposite. I loved C..."
I love how so many people can have so many different views of one book/series!
Hi all-So I had a productive week this week. I am 30 books into the Popsugar challenge. This week I completed:
Becoming- I listened to this one and enjoyed it very much.
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions Finally finished this one for the prompt "title with a question" and the March Challenge. Love that someone took the time to seriously answer the kind of absurd questions I enjoy researching.
Love, Lies, and Hocus Pocus: Betrayal Read this one just because it came out. These are cute, simple reads. Probably the "cozy mystery" version of a witch/wizard tale.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. This was a very enjoyable/quick read. Read for the prompt of an "own voices" book.
The Hunger Games For the prompt of a book with over 1,000,000 goodreads ratings. I don't know why I sometimes avoid a popular book but I have had several people tell me for years I would enjoy this book and I refused to read it. They were correct- I thoroughly enjoyed this book!
Snake Skin Read for an ATY prompt. I may also use it for the prompt of a book with a zodiac sign (using the Chinese zodiac). This was a good but not great book. However, it is the first in a series and definitely has growth potential. I will read further when I can- I could see it growing into a series I love.
I'm currently reading:
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II for an ATY prompt. and
Night and Silence- which I will probably finish today. I am reading this just because, but it also fits the 2018 prompt of "book published in 2018" so I may use it for that. (I am picking a prompt from each prior year for prompt 40).
Question of the week:
Do people agonize over what star rating to give a book (or is that just me) and how do you decide? I don't agonize- I go with it from my gut feeling
-Do you have any guidelines for how you rate books? Books I enjoy but probably wouldn't read again get a 3, books I really enjoyed and would recommend to others get a 4, books I was blown away by get a 5. The only books I've rated a 2 to this point are ones I have to finish for some reason that I really don't enjoy for some reason- either story incongruity, grammar, readability etc. I try not to rate a 2 just because it has a writing style I don't like.
-Are you stingy with your stars? If so, why? I don't think so but others might disagree
-Do you rate books you don’t finish? I haven't to this point. I could see rating something I didn't finish a 1 only if I didn't finish it because it was unreadable for some reason. The grammar was so poor or something. I have given up on some books for that reason but not since I've joined GoodReads.
Julie wrote: "Caraval fell well short of my expectations. I'd say that maybe I've reached the age (mid-40ish) where I'm too old for YA, but I read and enjoyed The Sun Is Also a Star and The Hate U Give, so I don't know..."I love many YA books, but (in my opinion) Caraval was just bad.
(view spoiler)
I haven't read The Night Circus though, so I can't compare.
Hello All! Here is my current count:
10/40- Regular challenge
1/10- Advanced Challenge
2- Non Challenge
This week I finished Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire. This was a Non Challenge read for me, I’m just working my way through the series again and I’m loving it!
I plan on starting The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams tonight. I think this is going to be a fairly quick read, and then it’s on to Harry Potter and the Order Of the Phoenix.
QOTW:
I really just go with my gut when I’m rating books. I’m don’t have an English or a literature degree so the books I love might not be of the best ‘quality’ in that respect. But I love a book that takes me on an adventure, a book that makes me escape every day life. I give stars based upon how I feel when I’ve finished a book, not how literarily perfect it is.
Drakeryn wrote: "Julie wrote: "Caraval fell well short of my expectations. I'd say that maybe I've reached the age (mid-40ish) where I'm too old for YA, but I read and enjoyed The Sun Is Also a Star and The Hate U ..."THANK YOU. Those are exactly my issues with the book, especially #1. My problem truly is Scarlett. I much preferred Legendary. But yeah, (view spoiler).
I hate it when I don't manage to check in right away and then feel like I have to read the whole thread before I can post... Sorry everyone, I did a LOT of skimming of the thread this week. :-)I thought I was just going to work on my 1000 page book this week and not have many finished, but the ATY readathon happened, and so I paid more attention to getting audio books in that I would have otherwise.
Finished Reading:
The Holy War Finally finished this book I was working through on Sunday afternoons! I gave it 3 1/2 stars, rounded up to 4, because some parts were beautiful and amazing, but overall it was difficult to read.
All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Watching Star Trek Audio, abridged. Fun for a Trekkie (which I am), but would have been more fun if he didn't make all the lessons sound like 90s motivational phrases. I used this for book with no chapters (didn't think it had chapters from listening, and confirmed using the Amazon 'look inside' feature).
The Invention of Hugo Cabret I may have made a mistake by listening to this instead of reading it, but I don't feel like I would have loved the story anyway. Used this for based on a true story (since it seems to follow the major events in the life of George Melies reasonably accurately).
Currently Reading:
Tomorrow Will Be Better: A True Story of Love and One Family's Triumph over the Horrors of World War II Started to try to push through this one faster for the ATY readathon, but fizzled again. It's interesting, just not the kind of book I can race through.
Reamde Less than 100 pages left, but haven't had a nice chunk of reading time in a couple days. Not great writing, but a LOT of fun.
A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World My Sunday afternoon book.
It's Not Fair: Learning to Love the Life You Didn't Choose My current audio book. Not sure what I think of the book overall, but I suspect I'd enjoy hanging out with the author.
Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer Technically still on my currently reading list, but I think I'm just going to skim it rather than reading it carefully enough to feel like I can count it on my 'read this year' list. I do enjoy reading cookbooks sometimes, but right now is not one of those times.
QOTW:
I always feel like I should be more stingy with 5 star ratings, especially when I see people comment about saving them for their absolute favorite books, but my average rating tends to be just over 4 stars. That may be partly because I DNF books I'm not enjoying very freely.
I rarely rate books I've DNF'd, especially if it was one that just didn't grab me enough to bother finishing it, because as others have said, who knows if I would have liked the rest of it better? I WILL rate DNFs though, if something happens in the early part that I have strong reaction to. Like, if I stop because the writing/editing is really terrible, that's not likely to improve later.
I adjusted my rating scale last year, because after reading 100 books or so, I starting getting pickier about what counted as really good. I thought if I felt like DNFing a three star book, I should probably only be giving it two stars (mentally, even if I DNF and don't finish it) instead of three.
Also, I decided I need a policy on half-stars, and so I always round up. I figure it's most fair to the author that way, and I read quite a few unknown, self published authors that could use a little boost.
1 star--terrible, has egregious factual errors or no apparent editing, or has content I can't stomach at all. DNF these.
2 stars--Meh. Has redeeming qualities, but is dull, or has no worthwhile information. Usually DNF these.
3 stars--It's fine, but nothing special. Probably enjoyed it, but either not a lot, or it also had something I found distasteful. Has accurate information but wasn't especially helpful.
4 stars--Enjoyed this, don't regret reading it, would recommend it to others, but not everyone indiscriminately. Or, loved it, but with some exception/issue on part of it. Had helpful information but wasn't life changing, or had very important information but I had reservations on content or writing quality.
5 stars--Really liked it AND loved a theme or issue it brought up, or just loved the story regardless of themes. Thought the information was important enough that everyone should read it, and the writing was at least decent.
Oh, and I do always review my DNFs even if I don't rate them. I think someone earlier said something to the effect of 'you can't have an opinion if you didn't finish' but I completely disagree. The reasons I didn't finish could still be helpful to someone else deciding whether to read or not. I almost always look for just negative reviews when deciding whether to read a book because they tell me so much more about the book than "this was amazing!1!" does.
Hello, I'm now at 19/50 for the challenge.This week I read:
Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo - LOVE!! SO MUCH LOVE!! Best book of my week. I used this for the book about someone with a superpower
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - I've been wanting to [finally] read this ever since seeing the recent movie remake. It is great in a different way than the movie is; the book takes longer to pull you in, but the questions posed by this alternate future is a bit more terrifying in print.
The Happy Hollisters and the Mystery of the Midnight Trolls by Jerry West - read for a book that makes you nostalgic, this was the first Happy Hollisters mystery I ever read when I was a kid
The Cold Pools by Chris Ward - used as my cli-fi book; it's super short so I may replace it with another later in the year, but it was good.
The Ghost of Coralville, Iowa: Just what is she doing in Coralville? by Patricia Noonan - used as my ghost story; it is not good.
QOTW: I don't really agonize over it, but I do sometimes feel guilty after giving a bad rating (not because I didn't hate the book, I just feel bad about hating the book). I don't think I'm stingy with stars - I have lots of 4 and 5 star ratings.
Basically to give 5 stars means I put that book down with a torrent of emotions flowing through me. 4 stars means it was great, but may not have affected me emotionally, or was just short of a WOW! to me. 3 stars means I liked it just fine but there were elements that pulled me out of the story or bored me. 2 stars means I hated it and 1 star means reading the book was like walking on hot coals. I try to always finish, but I rate regardless. If a book was so terrible that I couldn't finish, then it needs to be rated accordingly.
Heather wrote: "Carmen wrote: "I was meh about Caraval, but loved Legendary, so I think it was more Scarlett that was my problem haha!"I feel like I've heard a lot of people say this? I'm the opposite. I loved C..."
Tella definitely needed a slap (ha!), but that was weirdly why I preferred her. Scarlett was sort of bland, Tella has personality.
TGIF! And the sun is shining here in Northeast Ohio :)Not a strong reading week. Husband is out of town for almost a month for a short-term contract opportunity, so I'm holding down the fort. My dog is really needy it turns out!
Technically I'm still 'ahead' when it comes to being on track. So that's a good thing at least.
12/50
Finished:
Crash & Burn by Lisa Gardner
Currently Reading:
The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo
QOTW:
I can be pretty opinionated, yet still understand others have their own viewpoint. So I rarely have to think very long about how I'd rate a book.
Five stars: LOVED IT. Would even re-read it.
Four stars: Darned good book that I'd recommend to most people.
Three stars: Meh. Just average. With some redeeming qualities.
Two stars: Really didn't like. Still probably managed to finish.
One star: HATED IT. Most likely did not finish.
I'm stingy with five star ratings. It also takes a lot for me to give something one star. And I do think I normally rate DNFs - usually one star - so others can learn from my mistake (lol).
Finished:A Kiss Before Dying: A good book, but some what dated with 50's ideas
Currently reading:
Stardust
Beautiful Exiles
QOTW:
I do struggle sometimes. Usually in the 2-3 range. Sometimes I will like a book, but there is just something that bothers me about something in the book. I then I am usually debating on whether it
bothered me enough to drop the book down.
Sarah wrote: "Heather wrote: "Carmen wrote: "I was meh about Caraval, but loved Legendary, so I think it was more Scarlett that was my problem haha!"I feel like I've heard a lot of people say this? I'm the opp..."
THIS. Tella seemed real, passionate, though naive at times. Scarlett was just annoying (to me).
Raquel wrote: "Oh, and I do always review my DNFs even if I don't rate them. I think someone earlier said something to the effect of 'you can't have an opinion if you didn't finish' but I completely disagree. The..."Thank you! As someone who looks at reviews to decide whether to keep going in hopes in gets better, those reviews save me. I read a series with stellar reviews and it was terribly written and cringey but from the reviews I just kept expecting it to get to the good part? and pretty soon I'd convinced myself I was in so far I had to know the end
The end was terrible, if you couldn't guess. I gave the series 1 star and then was grumpy wondering where any other bad reviews are amid the 5 stars.
Spent yesterday at the hospital again having tests, so a late checkin. Health problems are such a bore. I feel for all those in this group that fight the constant battle to live a life of meaning while dealing with pain and illness and misery. Keep on fighting the good fight!I finished four books this week, which is a big week for me.
The Hound of Death by Agatha Christie
This is a book of short stories, all with a supernatural bent. Not the typical Agatha Christie for sure, but it was entertaining. I read it for the Agatha Christie Lovers group monthly read. Not for the challenge.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
I've been listening to the series on audiobook in my car since September, and I miss them already now that I'm done. Other than Jim Dale's whiny Hermione voice (especially when she was chastising poor "Haaarrrrryyyy"), I really loved hearing these amazing stories. This is my for the favorite re-read prompt.
P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han
I liked To All the Boys I've Loved Before, the first book in the series, even though teenage romance novels aren't typically my thing. But this one bored me for the most part, and I'm not going to read the last one. There were a few charming moments but (view spoiler). Not for the challenge.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
I loved this book! Everything about it. It just made me happy, even when it made me sad. Other than my Harry Potter books, this is my only 5 star read this year. For the clothing on the cover prompt, probably. I hadn't planned to use a cover that had a person in the clothing, but the dress is a feature of the book (as well as the cleavage) and although you can tell a person is wearing it, you cannot see the face, arms or legs, so good enough for me.
GoodReads: 16/90
PopSugar: 12/50
QOTW:
I have an easy time rating books that I consider 4 and 5 star reads (the majority of what I read since GoodReads is so helpful in my picking books). I'm not usually a critical reader. If I enjoy it, I enjoy it, regardless of the quality of the writing. But I really struggle to give a book a bad rating, as if I'll hurt its feelings (or the author's). I don't often finish a book that I dislike that much, except in the case of something like The Catcher in the Rye that I make myself finish and will denigrate the rest of my life.
I quite like Sara's list of ratings from the first comment and feel the same way about rating books.
I do not rate books that I did not finish. I feel it is a bit unfair as I'm only judging a part of it, even if I can tell it isn't for me. If I actually wrote real book reviews, I might rate them and explain why for other readers. But since I don't, I don't.
I do change ratings sometimes if a book sticks with me more than expected. I'm in a quandary right now about whether to re-rate religious books that I loved at the time, but now that I'm basically an atheist would have a completely different reaction (although I will never re-read them to find out). So far I've left the ratings alone.
I'm a little late getting here cuz teacher life, but I'm ready to run down my week in reading!This week I finished one book, which was not for the challenge.
Last month my book club read Beartown, which I loved. One of my 2019 reading intentions was to not start as many series without finishing them, so I immediately went and got the sequel.
Us Against You was my one finished book of the week, and I loved it but not as much as Beartown. These would both be good picks for the "A book set in Scandinavia" prompt.
I also started Where'd You Go, Bernadette for this month's group discussion. I am liking it but not loving it so far. The weird narration style is not working for me as a cohesive story telling tool.
QOTW
- Do people agonize over what star rating to give a book (or is that just me) and how do you decide?
I really don't. Honestly, unless a book takes me completely by surprise, I can usually tell in the first 50 pages what rating I am going to give it just by the tone.
- Do you have any guidelines for how you rate books?
I go with how it sits with me when I close the book. It depends on genre.
- Are you stingy with your stars? If so, why?
I'm stingy with my fifth star, just because a Five Star read really needs to feel unique to get my love. But I give out 3.5 star ratings left and right.
- Do you rate books you don’t finish?
One of my big reading flaws is that I don't DNF books. The one book I did not finish last year I didn't rate.
I finished 5 books this week ( Thank You ATY read-a-thon!!)The Day the World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland- I enjoyed this. It was a REALLY nice contrast to the tragedy that was Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital, which I read last year. Two different catastrophes and two very different sides of human nature. This book showed the best of people helping other people. I'm really glad that I picked it up. I ended up using it for Book Riots "A book by a journalist or about journalism" however it's worded.
Hello, Universe- Cute!! A nice mix of new friendships, and bullies. I wish the author had touched more on the bullying, but it left a lot for discussion, and I think I will probably buy a copy for my 3rd grade daughter. Used for PS- " takes place in a single day"
Fight for Life- Started reading this with my girls and they are LOVING it. I finished it myself ahead of time, because I wanted a preview of just how many animal deaths were in the book, so I could decide if I needed to edit while reading, but I don't think it will be too much for them. The main character is very relatable to my daughter right now , so I think its a series she will want to continue with. Also a cute girl power book ( about age 8 and up) with kids standing up for animal rights. I didn't use this for any challenge ( I didn't even count it on my GRs goal...why? because I didn't plan on it and it has an ugly cover that I don't want to look at again lol)
The Silent Patient- Holy Crap!!! 5 stars!! I loved this! I honestly had a WHAAAAAATTTT!!! moment where I figured out what happened literally 2 pages before the big reveal. Couldn't put it down. ( For ATY " a psychological thriller" )
Nine Perfect Strangers- Meh. Love Lianne Moriarty but I'm quite sure this is not her best work. I was underwhelmed although I did really come to like some of the characters. And the end was just a mess for me. ( for ATY " something new"- new release by author)
QOTW- I don't get crazy over rating books, and I'm pretty generous with my stars. I also don't usually review. If I do it's more my own thoughts so I can remember what I read. I've started trying to use the progress notes instead so I can just write stupid one liners. In general an A-HA moment like above or something that makes me very emotional ( good or bad) will get a 5 star from me. Also if a book leaves me thinking, or I can't stop talking about it, 5 stars. Most of my reads are 4 stars. I notice this year I'm being a lot more picky and giving more 3 stars, and saving my 5 stars.
2 stars... the more I think about it the more I want to go back and change my review of Nine Perfect Strangers. I feel like I gave it a 3 based on my feelings about her other books that I've read :/
In general I think I use similar ratings systems to a lot of the rest of the group....
Carmen wrote: "Milena wrote: "Carmen, I just added like 3 books to my TBR based on your update!."The Binding'd better be one of them haha! I should get paid for all the people I got to add it haha!"
I just added The Binding to my library hold list based on your enthusiastic recommendation.
I also started an "all-time favorites" shelf since I realized that it would fill a big hole in my life to have them all in one place. I have 23 books listed.
Serendipity wrote: "Forgot to add that the first time an author actually liked one of my reviews and ratings sort of freaked me out. I hadn't considered the possibility an author would actually read what I said about their book before. I think I was pretty generous for a while after that. It's only happened once and I'm a bit nervous to read anything else by that author now. I worry I'd hate the book, give it a low rating and spoil his day as a result!"I had an author respond to my review once as well, and I was really glad I hadn't written one thing I had considered writing. And I was pretty generous for awhile after that as well.
Sara wrote: "I'm planning to read Wildcard this year as well. I really loved Warcross (unexpectedly) so I'm trying not to get my expectations too high for the sequel :)"Yeah I think Wildcard is getting much more mixed reactions than the overwhelming positivity Warcross had. But I still enjoyed reading it, and after Warcross's cliff hanger I was so eager to see how it ended.
Been a little under the weather so I got a bit more reading done than usual. Continued making progress on Notre-Dame de Paris (I'm at the part where Gringoire has accidentally wandered into the Cour de Miracles) and Shakespeare's Sonnets which continues to be a lot of not what I thought it was. Who knew Shakespeare's main goal was the get pretty people to have more babies. (to be clear: I'm kidding). I also finished a book this week: The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle! I loved it! I loved everything about it. 5 stars!
QOTW:
I don't typically agonize over my rating. I typically stick to the GR star descriptions: a 5 means I loved it, 4 is I really liked it, a 3 is I liked it/it was average, a 2 is a book that was just ok/not good but didn't hate it, 1 generally means that I hated it or that there's nothing redeemable. I generally have a gut feeling of where it falls and I just go with that instinct. I'm not a person who needs 1/2 stars; I pick a number and go with it. I can be a little stingy with both my 5's and my 1's; I want a stronger emotion with those ratings than with my middle ratings.
I don't rate books I don't finish unless I just absolutely hated them. It feels unfair to rate a book that I didn't read all the way through, but also I sometimes need to just get rid of my venomous hatred via a 1-star rating.
Heather wrote: "Serendipity wrote: "Forgot to add that the first time an author actually liked one of my reviews and ratings sort of freaked me out ..."Yeah, that really freaks me out. Renee Ahdieh liked my revi..."
You can only be honest. Most people respect honesty so long as it is delivered in fairness and without venom..
Elizabeth wrote: "Raquel wrote: "Oh, and I do always review my DNFs even if I don't rate them. I think someone earlier said something to the effect of 'you can't have an opinion if you didn't finish' but I completel..."This is why I often check out the 1 & 2 star reviews. Long live the filter!
Teri wrote: "Carmen wrote: "Milena wrote: "Carmen, I just added like 3 books to my TBR based on your update!."The Binding'd better be one of them haha! I should get paid for all the people I got to add it hah..."
Ohman the pressure is really on now. I am expecting dozens of messages yelling at me that they hate me because they thought it was terrible, or yelling at me that they hate me because I inflicted this pain on them haha!
And I am so glad I started my Absolute Favorites shelf! There are 16 in it so far, but like I said, only the first ones of series, otherwise it gets so clogged up haha!
Christine wrote: El wrote: "DNF'd Where'd You Go, Bernadette"I’m glad I’m not alone! I wish I had loved it, but it just got on my nerves. ..."
I'll watch the movie though because I think it'll be better on screen.
Jessica wrote: "Stardust whoch I found absolutely terrible and disappointing, especially because the movie is one of my all time favorites. ..."I gave Stardust 2 stars because I thought it was just ok but I really liked the movie. One of the instances where I thought the movie was better than the book.
20/50 ! Slowly making progress!I do agonize over star ratings. I feel that often I might be overly generous with stars, and there have been times where I have given books different ratings on GoodReads compared to my own personal trackers because it was a local author who may visit me at work and I do not want to offend anyone!
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (other topics)Avid Reader: A Life (other topics)
Where'd You Go, Bernadette (other topics)
Chocolat (other topics)
The Girl with No Shadow (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (other topics)Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (other topics)
Stephen R. Covey (other topics)
Gabriel García Márquez (other topics)
Stuart Turton (other topics)
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Gah! SAME!! Also: torturous instead of tortuous (is it REALLY that hard to keep them straight??) - such a common mistake in books, always drives me nuts. NO ONE IS BEING TORTURED ON THIS WINDING PATH.