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Chit Chat About Books > Reviewing 2012

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message 1: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments We survived the Mayan's prediction of the end of the world and move on into 2013 with great expectations.

I thought it would be fun to look back over 2012 and review what we've read.

How many books did you read? Did that meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations?

What genre did you read the most?

What were your 5 stars?

What were your 1 stars?

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite?

Anything else that was of interest?


message 2: by Janice, Moderator (last edited Dec 31, 2012 07:44AM) (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments My 2012 Goodreads goal was to read 65 books. I read 100! I don't know how I managed to do that, except maybe for challenges and tbr topplers that kept me motivated.

When I joined the group Around the World in 52 books, I wasn't sure I could read a book a week. Funny thing is that while I read double that amount, I only read 36 books for that challenge. I will finish the remaining 16 books in 2013.

According to the stats link in "My Books" I read more mysteries, followed closely by historical fiction.

My 5 stars were Mistress of the Art of Death, The Book Thief, The Blood of Flowers, Still Alice, The Persimmon Tree, and 11/22/63

My 1 stars were The Fey, The Elephant's Journey, A Pale View Of Hills, The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, The God Complex, and Black Rock Prison

Two authors I had not read before 2012 that I have fallen in love with are Bryce Courtenay who unfortunately passed away this year and Jo Nesbø. I think I might actually have a crush on Jo. LOL!

The longest book that I read this year was 11/22/63 at 849 pages!

I'm tempted to put 100 as my goal for 2013 especially since I know there are a few clunksters in my various challenges. I think I'll put 80 as my goal and see what happens.


message 3: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments I was just looking at my stats under "My Books" for 2011 and 2010. All three years, the longest books I had read were all Stephen King!

2012 - 11/22/63
2011 - The Stand
2010 - It

I had better pick another long SK novel for 2013 so that I don't break the streak!


message 4: by [deleted user] (new)

Good thread, Janice.

I haven't been actively using GR all year, so this doesn't quite reflect the whole year.
I read 53 books.
3 earned a single star:
Knights of the Black and White by Jack Whyte (dire)
The Interpretation of Murder, byJed Rubenfeld (which made my skin crawl)
Zoo Time, by Howard Jacobson (which I expected better things of.

But I did award 5 stars 4 times:
2 re-reads:
Mort, by Terry Pratchett. First read 24 years ago and it still makes me giggle.
Beowulf: A New Verse Translation by Seamus Heaney which I feel should be read aloud that sometimes I have been known to...
and 2 new books:
Pies and Prejudice: In Search of the North by Stuart Maconie. maybe I'm the right age, but I loved his references and the way he both exploded and played up the stereotypes of the North.
Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell - which I just loved - so thanks to whoever suggested that for the monthly read - a winner.

Longest book was Human Traces by Sebastian Faulks at 787 pages.

My most read genres were history and detective - you can see my penchant for historic detective fiction coming out there!

For 2013 I will aim for 100 books (I like round numbers), and have started on the alphabet challenge. I also want to read more non-fiction. I enjoy the absorbing of new information, but don't do that enough. I also want to continue to try and read things I wouldn't usually, and stretch myself out of my comfort zone. All of which is greatly helped by hanging around here >:-)

Happy new year, happy new book.


message 5: by Kimberly (last edited Dec 31, 2012 08:20AM) (new)

Kimberly | 2033 comments How many books did you read? Did that meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations? I read 244 books. I was expecting to only read 150

What genre did you read the most? I think it was YA novels that I read the most

What were your 5 stars? I had 68 Five Star reads so I don't think I'm going to list them all.

What were your 1 stars?
Crank (Crank, #1) by Ellen Hopkins Earth and Ashes by Atiq Rahimi عتيق رحيمي The Talisman (Volume 1) The Road of Trials by Robin Furth Wildflower by Anne Schraff Arctic Winds (Alpine Woods Shifters, #1) by Sondrae Bennett The Silence of Our Friends by Mark Long Beneath a Meth Moon by Jacqueline Woodson Holding on to Zoe by George Ella Lyon Honey Badger Don't Care Randall's Guide to Crazy, Nastyass Animals by Randall A Dixie Christmas by Sandra Hill Xoc by Matt Dembicki 30 days of night volume 1 by Sam Kieth Freedom Is Blogging in Your Underwear by Hugh MacLeod The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Tim Conrad

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite? I sure did! I found dozens of new to me authors many of whom I've actually become friends with.


message 6: by Travis (new)

Travis (travistousant) | 6011 comments 5 stars reread the The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien The Judas Strain (Sigma Force, #4) by James Rollins Amazonia by James Rollins Blood Diamonds Tracing the Deadly Path of the World's Most Precious Stones by Greg Campbell and Greg Campbell is an author who only has 3 books but I like his style. I also began reading my grandfathers fav author louis l amour which I had no interest in when he was alive but reading these since he passed reminds me of the way he used to tell us stories. Wow that was kind of a heart felt explanation dont tell anyone.


message 7: by Roz (new)

Roz | 4381 comments What a great way to look back on the year and see what we've accomplished and maybe want to repeat or do better next year.

How many books did you read? Did that meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations?

I'm not a very fast reader and can't always devote the time I want to reading. Something always seems to get in the way. So I set my goal at 60 and managed to read 66. I think next year I'll set my goal at 75 and see if I can stretch myself.

What genre did you read the most?

I think I read a lot of crime/mystery and historical fiction. I'm going to redo my shelves this year so they fall under only 1 category instead of multiples.

What were your 5 stars?

I had 6.

Moloka'i, The Yellow House: A Novel, The Distant Hours, The Lost Wife, Forgotten Bookmarks: A Bookseller's Collection of Odd Things Lost Between the Pages and Heir of Novron.

What were your 1 stars?

Happily there weren't many of these. But there was one, unfortunately. I felt badly about it too, because it was a childern's book I got through a Goodreads Giveaway. It was Blue by Gordon R Sparks.

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite?

Kate Morton, Judith Tarr, Christopher Moore, Gillian Flynn are some of the authors I'll be looking for in the coming year. I'm still pretty wide open when it comes to genres.

I enjoyed reading about what everyone else was reading and the various challenges some of you participate in. And I'm intrigued. So this year I'll participate (officially) in most of the challenges, topplers, etc. in YLTO and I'm also making up my own lists for Around the World, Across the USA and Canada. I don't know how far I'll get, but it's my own 'little' challenge.


message 8: by Ann (new)

Ann (disciple45) This is a great thread! I read 104 books this year, a little over my goal of 100. I will try for 120 this year since I have discovered this group and plan to participate in the challenges and monthly reads. I couldn't really single out my genre, although I tend toward mysteries and light thrillers which seems to have continued on this year.
I had several 5 star books, which surprised me when looking back. I tend to be very hard at giving 5 stars - the book has to be pretty much perfect for me.
I gave the Prize to:
Zoo Trouble the Water
The Thirteenth Tale and The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake. I gave no 1s this year, although I had a couple of 2's. If I feel a book is that low to me I usually don't finish it, I invoke the 100 page rule, and move on! There are too many good books out there! Didn't discover any new genre this year but there's always 2013!
Looking forward to another year of enjoyable reading. Happy New Year to you all!


message 9: by AmyK (last edited Dec 31, 2012 02:35PM) (new)

AmyK (yakyma) | 1045 comments I read 50 books for the year...which was my goal (for a total of 15778 pages!!). Most of them in the second half of the year (which was when I started YLTO)

Longest book read was A Storm of Swords which came in at 1074 pages. The top 4 longest books came from the same series as a matter of fact.

My genres were pretty mixed this year, but lots more non fiction than i usually read.

Looking forward to tackling some of my to-read list in the ABC challenge this year!!!


message 10: by Rusalka, Moderator (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments I don't have a huge amount of time to read which is very sad, so I aimed for 25 books this year. I read 34 so very happy with that effort.

Longest book was Anna Karenina at a piddlely 813, however no surprise seeing it took me over 5 months to read (with getting distracted with Challenges, Topplers, more interesting books). I was trying to read shorter books this year to get more in.

5 star reads were House of Many Ways, The Lacuna, Purge, Last Chance to See and Pounamu Pounamu - nice to end on a 5 star-er. (These are goodreads 5 stars btw)

1 star reads are no surprise with Heart of Darkness, The Zahir and the abandoned Saving Fish from Drowning.

Around the World challenge made me read so many different and interesting books I would have never picked up otherwise. Writing styles are so different around the world, I really recommend people do this at some stage in their reading adventures, even if it's just 5 books at a time or so. Loving Scandinavian and Eastern European lit especially.

Read so many more non-fiction books than usual (usually only one a year if I'm lucky). Discovered Audio books, especially when Douglas Adams is narrating. And will be reading more of Sofi Oksanen as soon as she is translated in to English (cummon!!) and Haruki Murakami


message 11: by Rusalka, Moderator (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments Janice wrote: "and Jo Nesbø. I think I might actually have a crush on Jo. LOL!."

I haven't even read anything by him and I have a crush on him. Find some interviews of him. I highly recommend it ;)


message 12: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Rusalka wrote: "Janice wrote: "and Jo Nesbø. I think I might actually have a crush on Jo. LOL!."

I haven't even read anything by him and I have a crush on him. Find some interviews of him. I highly recommend it ;)"


Ooohhh, but I have. :)


message 13: by Rusalka, Moderator (last edited Dec 31, 2012 05:10PM) (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments Janice wrote: "Ooohhh, but I have. :)"

I'll be in my bunk.


message 14: by Pragya (last edited Jan 01, 2013 03:45AM) (new)

Pragya  (reviewingshelf) | 3954 comments Janice, this is not a good thread for my TBR, I ended up adding all the 5 stars to my list, there goes my new year resolution of trying to work on my TBR. :(

How many books did you read? I read 167 books as opposed to my goal of 100. I think this year I'm going to keep is around 80, I will be busy working on my PhD.

Longest Book - Digital Fortress - 510 pages.

What were your 5 stars? Mistress of the Art of Death, Still Alice, Amy and Roger's Epic DetourWaterfall, Torrent, Fine Cooking Comfort Food: 200 Delicious Recipes for Soul-Warming Meals, Crimson Footprints

What were your 1 stars? I Love You, Beth Cooper, Imaginary Girls, Breaking Lauren, Love Finds a Way: 3 Modern Romances Make Falling in Love Simple and Sweet, Loving Summer, Farsighted, The Land of the Wilted Rose, Tangled Ties to a Manatee, THE HALO EFFECT, Can Love Happen Twice?

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite? Lots of new authors. Love Lisa Tawn Bergren

Anything else that was of interest? I read 100 more books than 2011. :)


message 15: by Kat (last edited Jan 01, 2013 05:34AM) (new)

Kat (katzombie) | 2478 comments It's so much fun to look back.

How many books did you read? Did that meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations? I read 176, which was above my goal of 150.

What genre did you read the most? TEOTWAWKI books made up nearly 40% of my reading!

What were your 5 stars?
I'm overly generous with my stars, so I had a lot of five stars, but my 5 star + reads: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Partials Battle Royale The First Days Every Day

What were your 1 stars? I didn't have any - I tend to abandon books that I'd hate enough to 1 star!

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite?

Gillian Flynn and David Levithan are two authors I definitely intend to read more of. Genre-wise I was all over the place!

Anything else that was of interest? I was shocked to find I only listened to 8 audiobooks this year! I'll definitely be working on that in 2013! Oh, and my longest book was The Winds of War with a wrist-straining 896 pages.


message 16: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Rusalka wrote: "Janice wrote: "Ooohhh, but I have. :)"

I'll be in my bunk."


Is that an Aussie saying? I'm not sure I understand. Is that like saying he can park his shoes under my bed any time?


message 17: by Kat (new)

Kat (katzombie) | 2478 comments I shall attempt to translate, but I'm from the South so maybe I'm missing something in the inflection.

In other words, she's off to bed, but that's not necessarily a saying that would include Jo's company!


message 18: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Kat wrote: "I shall attempt to translate, but I'm from the South so maybe I'm missing something in the inflection.

In other words, she's off to bed, but that's not necessarily a saying that would include Jo's..."


ROFL! See how misinterpretations can get me into trouble.


message 19: by Emily (new)

Emily (emilserv) | 487 comments I read 91 books, which exceeded my expectations (49 last year)

I think that I read the most books in the fantasy genre. I also read more non-fiction books this year than I usually do.

I'm usually stingy with the 5-star rating so I only had one:Finnikin of the Rock.

I had 21 4-star ratings.

No 1-star ratings

My newly discovered author in 2012 was Melina Marchetta. She was responsible for the 5-star book.

My longest book was Moby-Dick at 704 pages.


message 20: by Rusalka, Moderator (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments Janice wrote: "Kat wrote: "I shall attempt to translate, but I'm from the South so maybe I'm missing something in the inflection.

In other words, she's off to bed, but that's not necessarily a saying that would ..."


Oop actually that time Janice was closer. Not an Aussism, quote from Firefly. The character that says it is a guy, so that may convey it a little better...


message 21: by Rusalka, Moderator (last edited Jan 01, 2013 07:22PM) (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments Cheers Emily. I didn't know Melina Marchetta wrote any fantasy... will have to check it out.


message 22: by Cherie (new)

Cherie (crobins0) | 21484 comments I read 96 books last year, which was above the goal I had set at 65 .

The longest book I read was A Storm of Swords @ 1178 pages. (I have read all of George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones books so far.

I gave 5 stars to 17 books (too many to list).
Only The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta got 1 star from me.

I pretty much read anything, but there were a lot of YA in the mix from last year.

I my favorite author from last year was Veronica Roth


message 23: by Kat (new)

Kat (katzombie) | 2478 comments Rusalka wrote: "Janice wrote: "Kat wrote: "I shall attempt to translate, but I'm from the South so maybe I'm missing something in the inflection.

In other words, she's off to bed, but that's not necessarily a say..."


See now you are really confusing things by using pop culture references ;-) I wasn't really in my TV watching years when that series came out!


message 24: by [deleted user] (new)

I think it's really interesting how may 5 stars people give, as a percentage of the read for the year. On the (admittedly small) sample above, from ~1% (Emily) to 27% (Kimberley). Average 5 star hit rate would seem to be 9.4%, meaning that, on average, 1 book in 10 is a super star.

So are the "Kimberley"s just very good at picking books they'll love? Is the "Emily" end of the spectrum marking too hard? or never satisfied? or stretching outsiode their comfort zone? It's so hard to work out what makes a book worth 5 stars that this is probably meaningless, but it's interesting to ponder.


message 25: by Kat (new)

Kat (katzombie) | 2478 comments Helen wrote: "I think it's really interesting how may 5 stars people give, as a percentage of the read for the year. On the (admittedly small) sample above, from ~1% (Emily) to 27% (Kimberley). Average 5 star hi..."

It's certainly interesting, Helen. I've often felt that I'm overly-generous with my 5 stars, and sometimes afterwards I've actually regretted rating a book so high.

But I think 'It's so hard to work out what makes a book worth 5 stars' is because it's such a personal thing. Even if a book isn't a literary masterpiece with life-changing ideas and theories, if we have had fun reading it and being in that world, does it make it a 5 star, 4 star or even 3 star? Personal choice :)


message 26: by Almeta (new)

Almeta (menfrommarrs) | 11154 comments Rusalka wrote: "Oop actually that time Janice was closer. Not an Aussism, quote from Firefly. The character that says it is a guy, so that may convey it a little better......"

Love that Firefly! For a moment i thought you meant this Firefly!


message 27: by Almeta (last edited Apr 14, 2013 01:03PM) (new)

Almeta (menfrommarrs) | 11154 comments In 2011 I had a goal of 150 and only read 123. In 2012 I set the goal to 150 again. Thanks to YLTO!! and my family's competitive nature, I read 231 books, or 59272 pages. I wrote a review for 1/3 of them, most of which were mysteries and serialized.

I gave 5 stars to:
Someone to Run With
Mistress of the Art of Death
Life of Pi
Trash
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The Speed Queen
The Secret Scripture
Genesis
Envy the Night
The Store
The Night Circus
Gone Girl
The Invention of Hugo Cabret


I guess my friends don’t recommend 1 star books! I did give 2 stars to:
Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems
Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive SCRABBLE Players
The 13th Element: The Sordid Tale of Murder, Fire, and Phosphorus
Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time
Tales From The White Hart
The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty
Longboat Blues
Shimmy Shimmy Coke-CA-Pop!: A Collection of City Children's Street Games and Rhymes
I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
The Imperfectionists

I enjoyed the works Ariana Franklin and mourn her 2011 death.
I was most impressed with Gillian Flynn (She better be writing right now.)
I count on Colin Cotterill, and Spencer Quinn mysteries.
Christopher Moore and Carl Hiaasen repeatedly kept me entertained.
Jussi Adler-Olsen gave me hope for a new series, and then dashed it with the second book.
Tana French continues to impress.
I inexplicably cared about the life of a snail and the escapades of a sport agent.The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating and Michael Connelly's Myron Bolitar
The Store was just too close to home.
Let the Right One In and Seed were creepy.
Darynda Jones is a guilty pleasure.
AND Donald E. Westlake is still hanging around!

I drank lots of tea, stayed up all night laughing, tolerated scallywags trying to steal my man, made my first pop-up, cursed Henrietta ‘s doctors, took abuse and cookies from moderators in equal measure, forgot how to clean house or pay bills, found out that the British talk funny, learned that not everyone plugs their car in during the winter months and made lots of new friends. ☻


message 28: by Snoozie Suzie (new)

Snoozie Suzie (snooziesuzie) | 937 comments We don't talk funny, you lot do: you can't spell neither. As for plugging your car in that is just bizarre. Lol! x-D


message 29: by [deleted user] (new)

I spent a year in Texas and got my answer to the "Gee, don't you speak English funny?" observation down pat. Who's the language named after? So who speaks it correctly? yup - it ain't you lot.

*links arms in solidarity with Snoozie Susie*


message 30: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Great lists, Almeta! I'm in agreement with your observations on the various authors. I will have to try Donald Westlake. :)


message 31: by Almeta (last edited Jan 02, 2013 02:31PM) (new)

Almeta (menfrommarrs) | 11154 comments Helen wrote: "So who speaks it correctly? yup - it ain't you lot...."

Snoozie Suzie wrote: "We don't talk funny, you lot do: ..."

See right there....Who calls people "a lot"? It's y'all or youse guys! :D


message 32: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Snoozie Suzie wrote: "We don't talk funny, you lot do: you can't spell neither. As for plugging your car in that is just bizarre. Lol! x-D"

ROFL! Ahhh viva la difference. :)


message 33: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Almeta wrote: "I drank lots of tea, stayed up all night laughing, tolerated scallywags trying to steal my man, made my first pop-up, cursed Henrietta ‘s doctors, took abuse and cookies from moderators in equal measure, forgot how to clean house or pay bills, found out that the British talk funny, learned that not everyone plugs their car in during the winter months and made lots of new friends. ☻"

When I was typing my response to your message, I didn't see this paragraph. I giggled all the way through. Great observations about 2012. :)


message 34: by Cherie (last edited Jan 02, 2013 03:48PM) (new)

Cherie (crobins0) | 21484 comments I was going to edit my original post, but decided not to. Here is the list of books I gave 5 stars to in 2012 (one more than counted the 1st time):
West with the Night
Code Orange
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
The Twelve Knits of Christmas This one was not for the text, but the knitting that the author did!
Animal Wise: The Thoughts and Emotions of Our Fellow Creatures
Fox Tracks: A Novel This is the only one I really think should have been a 4 star, but I had not read any of RMB's books in a long time and this one was really good - IMO
Out of My Mind
The Yellow House: A Novel
Still Alice
Jellicoe Road
From the Ashes I read it, I liked it, I wrote a review and gave it 5 stars - but I cannot remember it. Bizzar.
This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection
Pollyanna Who would not give this one 5 stars? I had seen the movie so many times, but I never had read the book before.
The Cricket in Times Square
The Map of Time
11/22/63
The Phantom Tollbooth
The Graveyard Book

On the two star note, I only gave two:
Fifty Shades of Grey Maybe it should have been a 1 star but I cared for it a "little" more than my 1 star book noted in my original post. The other was. Zombies Don't Cry I tried to like this one for Amy, but I couldn't.

Almeta - I loved your wrap-up! LOL


message 35: by Emily (last edited Jan 02, 2013 04:12PM) (new)

Emily (emilserv) | 487 comments Helen wrote: "I think it's really interesting how may 5 stars people give, as a percentage of the read for the year. On the (admittedly small) sample above, from ~1% (Emily) to 27% (Kimberley). Average 5 star hi..."

It is pretty interesting. I had 2 5-star books in 2011 (~4% of my reads). I give a book a 5-star rating if I basically pull an all-nighter to finish it.

I personally believe that I'm just a stingy rater. A lot of the books that I read have a GR rating of 4 to 5 stars because I tend to prioritize those ones for reading. I do recommend my four star rated reads to friends.


message 36: by Travis (new)

Travis (travistousant) | 6011 comments My opinion is if goodreads would adopt half stars there would be a lot of 4.5 not so many 5 star ratings. They need to give the half star thing a thought.


message 37: by Travis (new)

Travis (travistousant) | 6011 comments I too only 5 star if it could be put in a multiple read catagory


message 38: by [deleted user] (new)

I would re-read a 4 star. For me, the 5 stars are for the ones that do something to me: move me, turn me inside out, cause a eureka moment, make me cry (with sadness or laughter), the ones you can't forget. So I have lots of 3 and 4 stars, but fewer 5 stars.


message 39: by Rusalka, Moderator (new)

Rusalka (rusalkii) | 18930 comments I just looked over my 5 stars in total. And I find a lot of the books I have given 5 stars to are from my childhood or teenage-hood. Isn't that interesting... They are still worth that now in my mind and how I remember them and how they have shaped me.


message 40: by April (last edited Jan 03, 2013 06:13AM) (new)

April | 970 comments Great thread, Janice!

2012 was a very busy, crazy, hectic year. Although I'm glad I have a lot "stuff" behind me, I'm delighted to be moving on with 2013.

How many books did you read? Did that meet, exceed, or fall short of your expectations?
I set my goal at 75 and finished with 80. Not too bad. However, I did set my goal lower as I expected to read a few "chuncksters". Sadly, I didn't meet my "chunckster" expectations. I'm not a fast reader and I still want to read a few "chuncksters" so I will up my goal by 5 books this year. Or, should I go ahead and aim for 100? Decisions, decisions, decisions!

What genre did you read the most?
I'm an eclectic reader so this is difficult. Interestingly enough, I don't really enjoy the mystery/thriller but I can see that I read quite a few of those! I think the majority of my books would be literary fiction.

I also read 4 books by Kurt Vonnegut.

What were your 5 stars?

Night by Elie Wiesel
Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James (OH, I am hanging my head in shame for rating this book a 5!)
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J.
Gaines

A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne
Room by Emma Donoghue
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
The World According to Mr. Rogers byFred Rogers
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renée Russell
Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Collector by John Fowles

What were your 1 stars?
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
The Sleeping Doll by Jeffery Deaver
Simisola by Ruth Rendell

Did you discover any new authors or genres that have become a favorite?
Gillian Flynn, John Fowles, Donna Tart


message 41: by Almeta (new)

Almeta (menfrommarrs) | 11154 comments The words "It was Amazing" compose a phrase that makes me pause.

Sometimes I think "I really liked this read", and am about to award five stars. Then I stop; "Yeah, but was it really AMAZING?" Many of my books get dropped to four stars after I ask myself that question.

And sometimes after time has passed, I change a five star to a four as well... A "What was I thinking?" moment.


message 42: by April (new)

April | 970 comments Sorry about all the BOLD!! That was NOT my intention! Grrrr!!!


message 43: by Almeta (last edited Jan 03, 2013 06:10AM) (new)

Almeta (menfrommarrs) | 11154 comments April wrote: "Sorry about all the BOLD!! That was NOT my intention! Grrrr!!!"

You can edit your message, and correct your Bees! Probably didn't corrrectly close one off with the slash. Happens to me all of the time.

Grrr! is right!���


message 44: by April (new)

April | 970 comments Almeta wrote: "The words "It was Amazing" compose a phrase that makes me pause.

Sometimes I think "I really liked this read", and am about to award five stars. Then I stop; "Yeah, but was it really AMAZING?" ..."


agreed!


message 45: by Janice, Moderator (new)

Janice (jamasc) | 57447 comments Almeta wrote: "The words "It was Amazing" compose a phrase that makes me pause.

Sometimes I think "I really liked this read", and am about to award five stars. Then I stop; "Yeah, but was it really AMAZING?" ..."


That's me too. I have trouble when someone asks me the question, "What is your favorite....." Then I have to sift through the grey matter to find the best, the perfect, the most amazing thing to fill the blank. I find it very difficult to give 5 stars for that reason. Was the book perfect? Was it utterly amazing?


message 46: by Roz (new)

Roz | 4381 comments You're absolutely right about that 5 star qualification. It makes it hard to choose it. Was I really AMAZED? Was I left breathless? Am I still thinking about what I read a month, 2 months, a year later? Do I even remember what it was about? (That last one may just be a senior moment) I think I have more 3 and 4 star books but some might get a half here and there. They rate a bit more but don't quite make it to the next level.


message 47: by [deleted user] (new)

I've certainly re-read a book and changed a score, or actually marked a different edition, so scored it twice. Sometimes a book can change so much from what you thought of it first time. Some books don't take well to a second reading - the surprise or originality isn't there. Others read differently because you're a different person or in a different state of mind from the first reading.

I don't choose books based on GR ratings. I sometimes think that the books you love are also the books that someone else hates - it's a thing of extremes, there's nothing vague or middle of the road about them. They're Marmite books. Whereas books that sometimes score highly are books that are liked - thus earning lots of 4s - but not loved. I'm prepared to risk the odd dreadful book for the occasional book that stirs my soul.


message 48: by Pragya (new)

Pragya  (reviewingshelf) | 3954 comments LOL! Love your observations, Almeta!


message 49: by Snoozie Suzie (new)

Snoozie Suzie (snooziesuzie) | 937 comments 'Marmite books' - I like that term. But sticky and smelly books would result. (I'm a hater for the record)


message 50: by Cherie (new)

Cherie (crobins0) | 21484 comments I like your senior moment, Roz. I have those too. I think I may rate 5 stars a little too easily, but it all depends on how I feel at the moment that the book is finished.

I had to go look up Marmite and how it applied to books, Helen. I see this all of the time, as I read various strings about where people are discussing the books they are reading. LOL


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