New Year, Never a New Me

Star ratings are not a new phenomenon. They have been in use for at least a century, according to the three minutes of googling I just did, for hotels namely. Roger Ebert, the lauded film critic, had a four star rating system and is the partial origin for the now common phrase and rudimentary rating system "two thumbs up." This is not to knock Ebert, more to knock the perversion of art criticism and communication, not only with others but with the self. Now you may be thinking, "who cares? It's not that serious." And it wasn't for me either, until I realized star ratings started affecting how I view the books I read.

To preface my relationship with the five star rating system (popular on sites like Goodreads and Letterboxd), there are a few tidbits that are necessary to know. I will be the first to admit that I am not a "chill" person. If I rate something a 5 out of 5 stars, I believe that this work of art has imprinted itself on my soul. This doesn't mean the book has to be great, or good even (I am looking at you, Twilight), but it has changed me as a human being. 4 out of 5 is essentially, yes I enjoyed it thoroughly, but it did not revolutionize me internally. While a one star is "I can't even believe this shit was published, and I am fuming."

Now this is all fine and dandy, so where does the issue come in? As I go through my list of books I have read this year, I found myself sorely disappointed by my lack of 5 star reads. I felt as if I was reading the wrong books and even questioned if I like reading. Well I better like reading, as I am devoting my entire career to the written word. But I digress. I have enjoyed many of my read books this year but many of them were not books that would alter my literal soul. Fireworks didn't explode behind my eyes, my philosophy on life remained stagnant, and there wasn't an effect on my wardrobe (a telling factor). This is okay. Not every song you hear will be on an obsessive loop for 10 hours straight, and no matter how hard I laugh at Talladega Nights, I am not rating it a 5 out of 5. With these star ratings, nuance is lost. I will be writing a review to justify my rating not my thoughts. I am tired of being sheepish over my star rating.

Additionally, someone's five star rating is meaningless to me. What is their definition of a five star? Are they looking for entertainment? For emotion? For the beauty of language? Hopefully all of the above! But that undefined average star rating online? Utterly useless. I will no longer contribute. Who knows, maybe I'll actually remember what I read when I think more about the book afterwards than the stars that I'll log into Goodreads.