Thursday, September 12, 2013

What I've Learned from Goodreads

I recently jumped on the Goodreads bandwagon. It's been an engaging distraction for me to rate books, review books, recommend books...and see what my friends and others have been rating, reviewing and recommending.

Goodreads is an interesting place, full of opinionated readers who really know what they like. And what they hate.

I will often look at reviews of my favorite books out of morbid curiosity. And I can't help but feel this rising surge of indignation when someone stomps mercilessly on one of my favorite reads. Especially when I come across a 1-star review that says something like, "If I could have given this book fewer stars, I would have!" or "This book was a complete waste of time!"

And then there is the reverse. Books which I would rate only 1 or 2 stars are many times beloved by others. (I feel bad when I hate a book. Really.) I read those 5-star reviews and think to myself, "Really? You think that plot was engaging?" or "Five stars? Even with that horrid meter?!"

So I have come to a conclusion: Someone somewhere is going to hate my book. It's just the way things are. If someone can give 1 star to Karma Wilson's A FROG IN THE BOG, then it's not so hard to believe that it could happen to WHAT ABOUT MOOSE? or any of my other books that may get published some day.

When it happens, I'll be ready. And I won't let it bother me none!



2 comments:

  1. I haven't been on Goodreads much, but I've heard lots about the star system there. I know a lot of people just use it to keep track of the books they're reading, so I might go that route at some point :)

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  2. Jessica, it's also great to see what friends are reading and recommending. It's always fun to find a new book to add to my TBR list!

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