Book Review System

            I thought I would take a moment to explain the way I review books. As a mother, I have found myself wishing many times that I had written down my thoughts on a book I read, whether it’s one of the books I read for my own pleasure or something I have read to my children. Over the years I have read so many books that I even lose sight of what some of the seldom read picture books are about. So I started keeping track of my own books for future reference for those times that a young reader outgrows the teen chapter books and asks to borrow a book from my personal, and rather extensive, library.

            I know the rules about never writing in books (this rule doesn’t apply to autographs by the author), but by trial and error, I discovered the best way to keep a book review with the book is to write it on the front cover. So if someone picks up one of my books, opens the cover and sees: 4/14-CR-Good-14. It means I read the book April of 2014, it was good and by my standards it is appropriate for anyone aged 14 or over. Sometimes I’ll add a few comments like if it was my favorite book by a certain author or if it’s the first in a series and books one and two are appropriate for young readers but book three is not.

            This method has been working well for me as it means I can quickly see at a glance what book may or may not be okay for a young reader asking to borrow a book. It also means I can let that reader look through my books and choose for themselves what they want to read, so long as they understand how the books are rated.

            Now that I am doing book reviews on my blog, I will be keeping the same system but giving a bit more detail so my readers will understand why I chose a certain young reader level for that book. To make things easy for my readers here’s a quick look at my young reader rating scale.

13- Means it is okay for readers age 13 and up. The book is either about teen or adult situations but they are kept to a minimum and come through as just the way life is.

14- Okay for readers age 14 and up. The book has some situations that are adult level, encounters with outlaws, shootouts, violence, but it is kept to a minimum.

Low adult- has adult relationship situations but very little and nothing too detailed

Adult- has adult relationships that go into some detail

Very adult- had adult relationships that are (in my opinion) best kept out of the hands of young readers.

As I write these book reviews, I will also be writing a short review of each book. Now as a writer I find I have a hard time saying a book is bad. After all, somewhere out there is an author that has fallen in love with the characters and spent countless hours writing that story. And my review of that book is nothing but my opinion. What I think is bad, someone else may love. So I refuse to say a book is bad. I will comment on what I felt as I read the book and give it a rating similar to the way I rate them for young readers. Here’s a look at my rating system.

Did not enjoy- this is rating I will reserve for the handful of books that I only make it through the first few chapters. This could happen for a number of reasons but will usually be one of the following. 1) Set in a time period I do not enjoy, 2) poor writing, 3) story line that is too graphic for my tastes. Books with this rating will not become permanent residents on my book shelf.

Fair- Means I read the book, but did not truly enjoy it. Most books with this rating will not be kept.

Good, but not likely to read again- exactly what it says.

Good- most of the books I read will get this rating. It means I enjoyed it and will be keeping it. This rating covers everything from the barely enjoyed to just under the very good level.

Very Good- means I very much enjoyed the book, will be keeping it and will reread it.

Loved it- this rating is reserved for the handful of books that touched me emotionally. There’s a good chance if a book has this rating it made me laugh, cry, or both.

            I hope this will help anyone reading my reviews to understand why I gave a book a certain rating and what each rating means.