Accuracy of Ratings

The accuracy of ratings is something I've been thinking about for some time as I've finally started adding to my bookshelves on Goodreads; it's still an ongoing task! This project has taken me longer than expected, especially as Goodreads doesn't allow for half stars, whereas I have that option on LibraryThing. As I've added books, I've had to take my best guess on which direction I should move – up or down.

In the midst of this process, I started wondering if my ratings were fully accurate as to how I might rate books today. I realized that these ratings serve as more of a snapshot in time than a complete representation of the book's content. This led me to ponder the following things:

• How often should I change ratings?
• Is it okay that I change them?
• What if I can't when it's in a static format (e.g. image)?
• Has my criteria for rating books changed over time?
• When I receive new information that affects how I look at a book, should I reread it to see whether my original rating stands or should I just move on?
• If I was unaware of something blatant at the time I rated a book but it still affected me positively, is it more accurate to capture the impact or the content?
• Have I been in a certain frame of thinking that has allowed me to be biased against or for particular books?
• If a book quotes an author who at the time was renown for their teaching but it later comes out that they actively engaged in sinful or criminal behaviour, how would that affect the book I'm reading where the author isn't involved in that?
• And so on.

I understand that ratings can be very serious as they affect both authors and readers. At the same time, I also think that anything anyone shares is still subjective and should be viewed as a partial glimpse of the whole picture. That's why I am grateful for aggregate scores and charted breakdowns.

The best conclusion I've come to for myself is that giving a book a certain number of stars should be flexible enough while providing as reasonable a case as possible (if I feel like I can share that information). Since I've added a lot of books over the past decade or so that I haven't read in years, I haven't been comfortable in going back and adding a rationale; however, for more current reviews, I try to identify why something may have kept me from a full five stars.

I also want to allow there to be a space for further reflection, so I've decided that moving forward, I won't include any star ratings on my monthly round-ups as it's in an unchangeable format. I'll still include the ratings in individual book reviews, but I don't want to go back and see that something I gave 3 stars to was because of the mood I was in and is really a 5-star content book, or vice versa.

I'll share a few examples of how my book ratings have changed over the years:

• The first one that comes to mind is Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. Honestly, I loved it when I first read it in high school as it took a story from the Bible and modernized it, which I didn't even know was a possibility. This introduced me to other books by the author, such as A Lineage of Grace and several others, but Redeeming Love still stood out to me as something quite different. However, having grown up now and realizing that there was actually a r*p* scene in the book amongst other problematic issues, I could not in good conscience recommend it with the glowing 5 stars that I once assigned to it. I don't know why my mind glossed over that information at that age (I'll chalk it up to being younger and not being fully aware), but in reality, the book is probably more at a 2 or 3 for me now. However, if I only look at the positive impact it made on me and how it opened up doors for me to other forms of Christian fiction, it still stands up there. I was so torn on this rating on Goodreads that I finally relented and gave it 4 stars, but I don't think I'll be too keen to reread it again anytime soon.
• I'm a lot harder on Christian non-fiction now that I was in the past. I don't know if this additional scrutiny is because of discernment or if I just have less tolerance for when I see certain authors being quoted whom I would not read, and thus, don't want to have to read their words elsewhere. If the book reads like a memoir, I may be more lenient because I don't see it as a Christian teaching resource so much as an accounting of God's work in someone's life. That being said, I do find it problematic when I come across material that preaches a particular belief or lifestyle that I may not agree with or engage in personally. For some reason, more Christian books (at least the ones I've come across) seem to be advocating New Age practices, which is such a red flag for me, as it makes me question the rest of the book's content. It's definitely been unsettling when I already try to vet the Christian non-fiction books I read!
• On the other hand, I think I'm more generous with most forms of Christian fiction, ironically enough. I've found myself giving a lot of 4 and 5 star ratings to the Christian fiction books I've read in the past year (with a few notable exceptions) because even if the content isn't perfect for me, I can try to see where the author is coming from and what I hope they're trying to convey. If something is 4 or fewer stars, it's usually the case where the book may have veered too close to the edge for me or if a character is somehow absolved of their sins without repentance. Some examples include the one bed trope where the characters seem to be playing with fire, a character's surly attitude affecting how they treat others without demonstrated apologies, or a character misleading someone to make themselves look better. However, I'm thankful that most of these scenarios are more the exception than the norm, which is why I don't mind giving so many books 5 stars, especially for indie authors who are very intentional with proclaiming the Gospel. Will I look back one day and realize I could have been more critical with doling out this rating? Maybe, but in the moment, I don't want to retract that rating unless I have a very good reason.

There are so many things that go into a book rating. For me, I recognize that my mood, life circumstances, and even what I just finished reading might all go into it. My hope and prayer is that even if a rating only serves to act as a snapshot that it can still be honouring to others based on the information I have at the time.

I suppose the beauty of reading many reviews is that it can show just how many perspectives there are in the reading community. While I do what I can to give books the most accurate-to-me at-the-time rating, I also acknowledge its fallibility and limitations. How can an entire reading experience be confined to just a sheer number? How can each book be equated to others when there may be no equal? And finally, how do I know I don't have a glaring blind spot when I read? All of these questions are at the back of my mind each time I finish a book, and yet I willingly go through it again and again. The things that we do for the love of reading and sharing about it with others! 😊