Raise your hand if you’ve ever reviewed a book!
Which is probably all of us, let’s be honest, because well you are reading my blog and it IS a book review blog despite frequent undignified rumours being spread that it’s just an ode to cake. * Reviewing books sort of comes with the bookworm life. Some of us hate it, some love it. I fall headfirst into the latter category.
I REALLY LOVE TO REVIEW BOOKS! You can probably tell due to 969 reviews I have up on goodreads. I just love telling people what to do! ** I love sharing opinions! I love writing bullet-point lists of reasons a book is great or, alternately, reasons why a book is like a salad and there’s nothing fun or good about salad. There is only darkness.
But, like all fun things, book reviewing has a dark side. Because it’s actually really difficult. There are at least 43 struggles we’ve probably all faced while trying to review books and I’m about to share 10 of them with you. I’m not sharing all 43 because (A) my posts are so long, dude, how do I even manage this, and (B) I’m frightfully lazy so who has time for typing this all up. So take what you can get, my pineapples. And let’s see if we all experience these relatable struggles! ***
* The rumours were spread by me. BUT THEY’RE STILL NOT TRUE. I HAVE MORE INTERESTS THAN JUST CAKE. Sandwiches for instance, and stationery and cute dogs.
** I joke. I JOKE.
*** Hopefully it’s not just me or I’ll just have to laugh awkwardly and sit in the shadows by myself eating an awkward sandwich and avoiding eye contact. Oh wait. That’s my aesthetic anyway.
1. YOU HAVE TO USE WORDS AND WHAT’S UP WITH THAT.
The alphabet is a very good idea and all, until you realise you have to string it together to form coherent sentences. Because we can only get away with so much “AFJSKDALFDJ” in reviews. And sometimes sentences are hard??? Like what do I think about this book?? I don’t even know.
Plus everyone else always seems to have their words in order while yours are just running about like manic chickens. It’s daunting!
Such Professional Reviewer #1: This book is a thoughtfully crafted work of modern art that will poignantly touch the hearts of many.
Such Professional Reviewer #2: An astounding and profound analysis of the phenomenal complexities of human nature.
Me: Some of the characters were potatoes and the plot twist made me go ACK!! ACK!!
HOW DO I HAVE A BOOK BLOG.
ME AS A PERSON
2. YOU HAVE TO ACTUALLY HAVE THOUGHTS.
Look some books just give me 0% thoughts. And this doesn’t even mean they’re bad?!? Like I might love a book so very much that all I can say is…I loved that book so very much. Which is nice, but not very convincing.
Honestly the books I love are entirely harder to review than the books I hate. WHERE IS THE FAIRNESS.
3. SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO SUBMIT IT TO PUBLISHERS.
This happens when you are an ARC reviewer. The publishers kindly send you tomes that some author somewhere has cried, wept, bled, and sacrificed sweets to the chocolate gods in order to accomplish. The publisher says “HERE IS THIS BOOK FOR FREE, TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK” and then…you have to do just that.
So much room to panic.
What if you hate it??? What if you have to say “hey that book you gave me FOR FREE absolutely sucked and here’s my review which informs the world of this, wooo, I’m such a good publicity asset for you, feel free to send more books!”
I mean. I want to bury myself. So there’s that.
Look! I’m kidding a little bit here. We’re asked to give honest reviews and everyone knows a good controversial ranty review is sometimes just as enticing as a flailing review. People are negative lemons! They want to see what the fuss is about! We’re just required to be honest. BUT I’M STILL GOING TO PANIC OVER HURTING FEELINGS AND MAYBE BEING BANISHED SOMEDAY BECAUSE I’M SUPER BLUNT.
4. YOU HAVE TO HAVE A INTERGALACTIC BATTLE WITH STAR RATINGS.
Some say 3-stars means “good”. Some say it means “meh”. Some are rating it 3.5 which Goodreads denies exists. Some are rating it 3.14 stars which is accurate for their opinion, but it’s also pi????? And now you can’t focus on their review because pie????????
NO ONE’S STAR RATINGS MEAN THE SAME THING. IT GIVES ME AN EXISTENTIAL CRISIS.
And if you’re wondering what mine mean, while we’re discussing it — like so:
5 stars = I love it so much I will marry it at dawn
4 stars = this is good and solid but I’m not naming my laptop after it
3 stars = basically a meh potato salad, I will consume with no real feelings either way
2 stars = this was bad and I have a pocket of rage
1 star = if this book didn’t exist that’d be great thanks
5. THERE ARE FAR TOO MANY FORMATTING OPTIONS.
Do you do a bullet point list?? Dislikes vs likes? Do you highlight paragraphs? Change font sizes? Mini reviews? Looooong reviews? Photo reviews? To gif or not to gif? Write a poem? Do a dance? Compare it to a grapefruit tree? Do a summary before? Or afterwards? Have a spoiler section?
OR ALL OF THEM?????
6. YOU HAVE TO FIGURE OUT YOUR “VOICE”.
This is just part of blogging in general, to be honest, but I find the bloggers I most like to read have very defined voices. Sometimes this means I feel like I’m reading an intelligent and passionate article, or maybe I feel like we’re having a casual chat, or maybe I’m admiring their ALL CAPS or dry wit or ability to mention cake * in like every single freaking post whether it makes sense or not.
But having an engaging blogging and review voice is GREAT. Also sometimes not easy to find. Is this really how I talk?? Should I be more formal? Informal? Do I use too many all caps??? Do I use too many question marks????????? How many crises are you allowed to have in 3 minutes????? AM I BEING ANNOYING BECAUSE I ACCIDENTALLY HAPPEN TO BE YELLING ALL THE TIME AROUND HERE????
* It’s like I just burned myself. I can’t even.
7. APPARENTLY EATING CAKE DOESN’T GET THE THING DONE.
This is just rude and I have filed a complaint with the atmosphere to come down here and fix this deficiency in the logic of our universe. But if you don’t write a review, guess what?
YOU DON’T HAVE A REVIEW.
And this is just stupid, because surely if I leave a book next to my laptop for long enough while I take a small cake break, it’ll get done by itself, right?
Well, wrong. And I protest.
8. YOU HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE WHAT THE WORDS “SUBJECTIVE” AND “OPINION” MEAN.
I spend about 87% of my time on Goodreads giving definitions of these words. Because apparently people don’t get the point that BOOKWORMS DO NOT HAVE A HIVE MIND AND WILL NOT ALWAYS AGREE. It’s silly because no one expects us all to like marmalade. This is because marmalade is evil and a sin upon this universe. But there is literally NO ONE on this planet who is going to stab you in the throat for not liking marmalade. *
But apparently books are different and we should all agree?
HAHAHAH NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN.
If I write a 2-star review on a hyped book, I’m guaranteed to get hate these days. The price of having a large following I suppose. Which is DUMB. I have just as many feelings as I did when I had 2 followers. ** The other day I even had a bunch of people telling me to stop liking a book I gave 5-stars. I’ve been told I don’t have rights to have opinions, that I should change my reviews to reflect someone else’s opinion who felt their opinion had more worth. I mean…I cannot even with the internet sometimes. I’ve started throwing chickens at people because I’m so done.
It’s just an opinion, dude. And honestly, who am I? I AM NOBODY. MY OPINION ON A SMOL PAPERBACK DOES NOT EVEN MATTER!!!
* Not even me. But if you eat it and die, I told you so.
** I have 4 feelings by the way, and they’re an endangered species so I take good care of them and only get them out of their box on Tuesday afternoons.
9. IT’S HARD TO GIVE FULLY OPEN OPINIONS IF YOU’RE PRIVATE ABOUT YOUR LIFE.
Sometimes I really relate to a book because it is about a minority aspect that I identify with or an experience I’ve been through. BUT. I don’t want to tell the internet the details! Because it’s my life!! I WANT TO KEEP IT IN A TIDY BOX OF PRIVACY, THANKS. But these days it seems that if you don’t clarify that you personally have life experience on the topic: your opinion is void. I find it so awkward when people are telling me my view is WRONG when I want to whisper, “Well, I lived this so…I should know.”
I just have to stand there awkwardly and say naught and throw more chickens.
I feel bad about all the chickens?? Maybe I’ll throw chicken sandwiches instead??
10. FORGETTING ALL THE THINGS IS THE REALITY.
I am actually Gandalf because I have no memory of this place. And this isn’t because I left the review for 2 weeks. This is because I left off the review for 2 HOURS. I’ve been informed this is because I read too fast, but honestly?? No, sit down you’re silly. And I don’t even know what I had for lunch. Or what my niece’s name is. Or how long I’ve been wearing this tee shirt. I’d say my faulty memory is just who I am as a person. Plus apparently it’s an INTJ thing to have a bad memory so, boom.
LIST OF THINGS I ALWAYS FORGET WHEN REVIEWING A BOOK:
- author’s name
- how it started
- how it ended
- the middle smudge
- cool neat quotes that should change my life but what are they
- what anyone looked like
- characters’ names
LIST OF THINGS I ALWAYS REMEMBER WHEN REVIEWING A BOOK:
- my opinion on the cover
- my overall feels of the entire tome
- which character I’m in love with, but this is either the (a) dog, or (b) antihero…so that’s easy
- how many times I dropped it on my face while reading because my arms get tired okay
But no matter how much I complain, I really love reviewing still!
I like getting my thoughts down! I find that writing my opinion (1) helps me to remember the book a bit better (and I obviously need all the help I can get) and (2) it’s fun, (3) it’s therapeutic, and (4) look at me, I just like typing okay? It’s my thing. I love having an opinion and a voice and also subtly yelling at people about good books I want them to love too.
This post is TOO REAL 😂😂
Especially the first point, since English isnt even my first language!
Also the last one about things you always remember: y e s 😂 I always have so many things to say about book covers.
Negative reviews are the worst because I hate to say mean things even if they’re true, those poor authors T^T
But usually I just try and write the same way I would write to a friend to let them know what I thought and if they should read it or not and why!
(Point 9, so true! I’m always debating what to reveal about myself and I just don’t feel confortable doing so, ugh)
SO YOU ARE TRULY JUST AMAZING TO KNOW MORE THAN ONE LANGUAGE, DUDE. I JUST HAVE TO SAY. I mean, I struggle with English and it’s all I have.😂 Why can’t reviews just be our analyses of the covers? That would solve all our problems.😂
I feel bad about negative reviews…but I also find them WAY easier to review than good books?!? It’s so unfair. Liiiiiife is unfair.😂
But that’s a really good way to approach reviewing! YOU ARE WISE.
Aw :’) Well, I love the english language! I find it so much better to convey thoughts and excitement! French is super difficult with all its grammar rules…
But hey, mastering a language, wether it’s our own or not is always difficult!
Ahaha totally!
True… There’s not the stress about wanting to explain perfectly why it’s so good or why people should read, because on negatives ones it’s just… “this sucks because this and that”, hahaha!
Well thank you, I appreciate the compliment x’)
Hi Cait,
I recently discovered your blog. It is awesome. I love your posts and the way you write them and the pretty pictures you take (I also follow you on Instagram).
I recognise a lot of the things you mention in regards to book reviewing. Sometimes I’m just not sure what to say about a book! It’s particularly difficult for a longer series, then I don’t always know what to say about each book individually as often my feelings for all the books in the series are somewhat similar (ie. I read books for adults, YA books and children’s books, and some of the series I read books are pretty long and I don’t always have different thoughts on each book). Some books give me not much thoughts as well (like, I also read picture books from time to time, sometimes I’m just not sure what to say about them). I don’t have a book blog but I do write book reviews on a book forum. I try not to wait too long with writing the review or it’s even harder to figure out what to say. I never have to submit anything to a publisher as I don’t have any ARCs (no blog and all that). I don’t give star ratings in my reviews anymore as I’m often torn over them and then feel like changing my mind at a later time, but on GoodReads I do give a star rating because they ask.
Anyway, I mostly just wanted to say I love your blog! It’s so pretty and colourful and I love reading your posts.
Hey Athena!! OH HELLO AND WELCOME!! (And thanks for coming over to my blog. <3 This means so much to me!!)
I toootally relate to this too *nods* Like I read comics sometimes and I like reviewing but like...what do you even say?!?🙈 It's so hard! And then if one leaves it too long while deliberating I forget 78% of what I was going to say anyway.😂 I sometimes am tempted to quit star ratings, but I also like how it gives a quick overall....even though sometimes it's soooo inaccurate, haha.
Oh! Yes! Sometimes I really want to talk about how I relate to a character or how something was portrayed super well and I would know because I’ve experienced it, but it’s just too personal :-/ So in those cases I was either say nothing, or I’ll just give a vague statement so that people don’t know which character I’m talking about or why exactly I relate. Probably not very helpful to be vague, but maybe better than nothing? Like at least I pointed out there was something realistic in the book even if I didn’t say what, haha. And yes, I always have crises over ratings. It’s even worse for me because I’m really badly, terribly indecisive about everything, so ratings are like the bane of my existence.
It’s so hard right?!?? Like I don’t WANT to be super personal on the internet all the time hahaha. It’s so hard to find that balance of being vague so you don’t have to bear your soul for strangers, and actually sounding like you know what you’re talking about.😭 People just need to be more chill omg.🙈
This post is so so so SO relatable! I swear I was thinking of writing a discussion post on this- pinky promise- but I kept procrastinating and never did one 😀 Anyway, you’ve put all I feel about reviewing brilliantly into words- especially the 8th and 9th ones are super relevant these days. One of my biggest problems when reviewing, though, is actually getting started. I always sit around blankly for sometime till I find a proper coherent thought to actually start the review with. And then when I get into the flow it’s all alright. Alsooo, star ratings are so misleading! Mine are similar to yours, though- and I tend to be a bit overly generous with 4 stars xD
I’ve been procrastinating this for AGES TOO.😂 I should’ve put that on the list…procrastinating eeeeeverything of ever = basically the blogger’s life.😂😂 And omg those starting sentences! YES. THEY’RE SO HARD! Like I admire those people who summarise their whole thoughts in the first sentence and usually I’m like “well this was great” or “This was horrible” and then insert gif here.😂
Hey life is short! Give out nice star ratings, I say!
DUDE.
This is why I struggle with reviews: 1) Do I spoil things? 2) Should I be analyzing? 3) Reveal personal connection? I am okay confessing, but what if someone is like, “NO YOU ARE FAKE!” 4) Imposter syndrome, all the time. 5) Oh no. Some giant in the book blogging world disagreed with me. *Deletes everything* (This happens a lot. I hate it. My anxiety just goes, “They hate you. Disappear. Now!”
Other concerns:
1) How do they get GIFs in their posts? 2) Do I have to get the GIFs too? 3) Am I stuck up because I was taught GIFs make you less professional. 4) Is this supposed to be professional? 5) What is professionalism on the internet anyway? 6) Man, my head is burning. Too many nervous thoughts.
*NINJA POOF*
*VANISHES*
SPOILERS ARE SO HARD!! I realised in my review the other day that I gave too many spoilers and had to go back and edit it on Goodreads. Like sometimes I just get too carried away.😂 And omg it’s so hard when one has anxiety and battles all of this. Like let’s just build pillow forts and gets some delicious snacks and hide away, shall we?
Yes! Another problem I have is putting all the thoughts together. Like how on earth does character development relate to a beautiful description of a landscape? I have no idea. I probably overuse transition words like “and”. And I, too, find it easier to write about books I didn’t like than ones I did. The imbalance is not fair. Alas, the things we do for books. 🙂
That’s why I use bullet point lists so I don’t have to try and connect things.😂REVIEWING IS HARD. SOMEONE GIVE US A MEDAL AND ALL THE CAKE.😂
Well, for what it’s worth I think you write the best reviews. You are clear, exact and you tell me what I need to know to makeup my mind whether I’d like to read the book. Top shelf, Cait.
On the other hand, I am also very great at not writing reviews for that matter.
Omgggg MY DAY IS MADE, THANKS, BEEZ. <3 *gives you cake*
THIS IS RELATABLE. For me, the toughest thing about reviewing is the formatting. Do I highlight? Bullet list? Since I’m an ace at stressing over petty things, formatting SERIOUSLY freaks me out.
Great post, Cait!
Oh, and I’m also totally with you on the occasional “can’t I just say I loved it?” And yet you have to make a whole review out of one thought! IT IS HARD.
It’s hard when you love a book so much but like your only thought is: I LOVED IT! And like…that’s it.😂 Help.😂
Of course you like reviewing. Over 900 books? GOSH YOU ARE CRAZY. Plus I think Netgalley is the best ever. You don’t have to really worry about your opinion! But when an author enquiries you to review a book, it can totally get nerve wracking. I always feel like what if they read this review and think that their writing is worthless and then just stop writing??😂😂 it’s silly but still.
Sometimes reviewing can get dumb since I recently read a book and I just liked two things in it, still I gave it three stars. Plus I really think half star ratings are needed. Like we have the rereading option now, we just need half stars on GoodReads please and thank you🙏😂
I KNOW I’M CRAZY. IT’S A CERTIFIED FACT THESE DAYS, DON’T WORRY.😂😂 (Actually do worry. We should all worry tbh.) And zomg I looove netgalley. I can email my snarky reviews and not have to have a publicist reply at all.😂I die when I send back negative reviews to actual publicists…it’s sooo nerve wracking haha. NETGALLEY: THANK YOU FOR EXISTING.
Aaaaah I relate so much! I just started a blog like 2 months ago or so and yes reviewing is HARD! Especially with the bad memory haha. Fun fact I’m INTP so details? No thanks 🙂 goodreads is my quote heaven, but that’s probably not an option for you when you’re reading ARC’s.
Also, definitely still looking for my voice, no clue where I left it…
Ah, yes, I’m not supposed to quote ARCs at all! But I cheat and sometimes do (but I just put a disclaimer for them not to be reused because they might not be final hehe) but quooootes are great. And omg don’t worry, voices come! Just keep blogging!! 😀
I pretty much agreed with all of this, I’m stealing your star scale by the way 😀
You’re welcome.😂😂 That star scale is just my brain at its weirdest haha.😂
Ikr??? I leave a review until the next morning and it’s like wham. I’ve forgotten everything apart from my feels.
At least we get to maintain our feels, but seriouslY WHY IS REMEMBERING THINGS SO HARD.😂
You know what my biggest problem with reviews is? I mean, the one I’ve noticed lately?
The fact that I seem to give 4 stars to the majority of books. I mean.. I do like them. But.. It’s like I like all books 😐 or do I just really manage to pick such good ones..? I look at you with all those 2 star reviews, and I’m sort of jealous 😀 funny thing to be jealous about! But.. I sometimes think, maybe I’m soft..? I mean, I think I have given 1 star to maybe 2 books. IN MY LIFE. 2 stars.. Only to those that really piss me off or disappoint me. But the majority I read is good! And I just wish GR had half stars, then everything would be better xD
But the point is, I wonder if I’m just a soft rater 😐
The words part is so very true! 😀 I sometimes think I use too many GIFs. But I can’t not use them! I just love them so much in reviews. Tell me it’s not wrong xD hahaha
Ditto on the thoughts as well. Some of the books I REALLY LIKED end up giving me 0 thoughts. But 100% emotions! Hence the GIFs.
And it seems I’m going to say DITTO on every little point of yours! Like, free ARCs is one thing, but what if you’re writing a review for a book of a person you actually know? You’ve been friends with on GR? :/ currently reading one like that. God I hope he doesn’t let me down cause I wouldn’t know what to do :/ or rather, HOW to do what needs to be done.
So far it’s a good book though. Thank god.
But I’ve always thought you’re so tough with your 2 stars and everything! Always looked up to you because you CAN stand by your opinion. Can’t believe you have those same “what if I hurt the author” feels as me xD
I think your ratings pretty much correspond to mine. That would mean that I really do read a lot of books I liked xD so weird.. I swear I rated 90% of what I read 4 stars last year.
Haha, I can’t actually believe that it’s not only me struggling with this! As a new blogger, the voice thing is by far probably the worst thing for me. Especially because most books make me feel and think different things, so I can be a bumbling maniac after I’ve read some epic fantasy with 10k GIFs in the review, but also a snob if I’ve just read some hard scifi and feel like a scientist (lol)… It makes me feel better that it’s not just me, honestly, thank you for sharing this 🙂
In any case, I think you have your voice figured out 😀 at least that’s how it comes accross when reading your posts. Although I will admit that you are a little different on GR, because I guess that place is a little bit more hostile than your own blog (or I assume it has been in the past)
It also always really puzzles me how you can magically make color noise appear good in the photo. WHAT. EVEN. CAIT.
Random tangent.
Ha, well, you at least see that you’re connecting to a book because you’ve lived it, even if it’s something you want to hide. For me a lot of the time I won’t even know why is it that I’m responding so ardently :O
Your posts always make it so easy for me to write a tome of comment replies 😀 because they’re structured like that. So I say it’s totally your fault that you have to read this blanket of text now :DDD
Nice post. Very like. Such wow. Totally relate.
Dude you shouldn’t be jealous of low starred books.😂 I feel like I waste SO MUCH TIME reading because I keep hitting all these sucky books ,haha! But that’s awesome you love mostly everything you read. You have excellent book-picking skills. 😉 And we all know I’m a super picky book eater these days.😂
I honestly do NOT read books from people I know!! Unless I’m very very sure I’ll like it haha. Because I can’t stand staying I didn’t like it…it’s too terrible if you know that person! If I ever get published, I’ll basically just hide from goodreads permanently.😂
And yes! I actually as just saying in another comment that I feel I’m different on goodreads vs the blog. But YES. I’m also a lot harsher on GR because that’s where I review straight after reading, whereas on my blog I’ll tone down a bit and be a little kinder haha. But thank you! I’m glad you like my blogging voice!! I don’t know what I’m doing half the time and I feel like a flat pancake BUT SO LONG AS IT’S MOSTLY WORKING.😂
Ah, don’t hide. We all know you write well. I’m also very curious about your books 😀 snippets, you see. We have witnessed it.
I am jealous of bad ratings because it makes me feel like I am a mediocre dumpling with no opinion xD but yeah – maybe you’re right. I should just think that I have terrifyingly good book picking skills 😀
It’s alright if you feel like a flat pancake, Cait, because I’ll tell you – PANCAKES ARE SUPPOSED TO BE FLAT xD and they’re good as well 😀 but that’s beside the point. I mean, if you worry about your blogging voice with your millions of followers and worshippers, then I don’t know who shouldn’t worry 😀 (basically, you shouldn’t worry xD) hah…
Also. Brother’s Ruin, that book I posted I was super hyped up to read. Verdict: TOO SHORT, TOO GOOD. It’s one of those even you might like (APART FROM TOO SHORT). It was so hypey I don’t even know. Mages, rogue mages, secret mages, not allowed to marry, and they make clocks tick. And they can kill humans with their mystical machines. And and and.. Oh my god, I hope she writes another one soon. MUCH TOO SHORT!!! Don’t you just hate it when the author keeps you reeling like that xD
I seriously find reviewing so hard, so I relate to all of these! But especially the whole having to find words to describe how you feel about a book. There are plenty of books I’ve liked, and just been like, “I liked this because I liked it…”, and really can’t pinpoint exactly why.
Plus the voice thing is hard too. I feel like my regular posts have a totally different voice to my reviews which is annoying. My reviews alway seem to come off really formal for some reason, whilst discussion posts are more chatty. I think I just got used to analysing books in essays when I was at uni, so i just automatically go super formal when I’m reviewing!
Great post! 🙂
Same, I mean, sometimes even my reviews feel WAY different on Goodreads to here?! Or some days I’m just not feeling creative and my reviews are like dead pancakes.😂 The book blogger life is hard, honestly. We deserve so much cake.
Cait!! Hello, I’ve been a silent follower for so long, but I guess today I just wanted to leave a comment, because I stayed up all night reading All the Bright Places, because who needs sleep and I feel all the feels and the struggle is real. 🙁
Your reviews are the best reviews out there. You are the reason my TBR pile is taller than me (not that this is difficult anyway), I always read whatever you suggest, cause I know I’m gonna like it!
Also, as a fellow INTJ, I agree with the memory thing. Sometimes I am so impressed with my goldfish memory :O
Just keep being you. Honestly I wish I could meet you and talk to you and see your face, because I know you are such a beautiful person inside and out and I want to hug you and get to know you *awkward fangirling moment here*
Kisses from Greece, I will just be over here admiring your work and hoping to meet you one day 😀 😀
Omg hello, Dimitra!! I’m so glad you commented! WELCOME AND HELLO. *gives you all the welcome cake*
And also fjdskalfd I love and adore All The Bright Places. <3 BUT IT IS ABSOLUTELY HURTFUL TO OUR FEELS. I UNDERSTAND THE TRAGEDY OF IT. *shrieks from the hilltops*
I take proud and evilly happy blame for exploding your TBR.😂 Books are worth it! And also INTJ hi five! We're practically the same person here.😂
The really bad thing is that my three star ratings can mean anything from ‘it was alright’ to ‘I enjoyed it, but it’s missing something’ to ‘it saved itself with the ending’ to ‘My feelings confuse me’. At least your stars have set meanings! :’)
Sometimes, I find I can’t review a book right away. Other times, the longer I wait, the harder it gets.
I use all-caps all the time when messaging people, or commenting, but I don’t think I actually use it a lot on my blog? *Shrugs*
I KNOW RIGHT?!? It’s like 3-stars encompasses a whole secret language. Hoooow are we to know which it is. Someone got mad at me for leaving a fairly positive 3-star review once and they’re like “that should’ve been 4 stars” and I’m like “dude, I was completely MEH about the book. I didn’t hate it, but didn’t love it, so 3 is like middle ground?”😂 Although technically 2.5 should be middle ground…
GAH.
CRISIS TIME.😂
I totally agree with you about rating books, it’s very subjective and it looks like everyone uses their own rating scale. This is the reason the review is more important that the rating. And you point about figuring your own voice is very important.
You are right the more followers you have the more negative comments you get. Why can’t people feel different about a book but still be civil about it? It makes me sad. Just do your thing, Cait.
This point is very interesting: “IT’S HARD TO GIVE FULLY OPEN OPINIONS IF YOU’RE PRIVATE ABOUT YOUR LIFE.” And this is so very true: “But these days it seems that if you don’t clarify that you personally have life experience on the topic: your opinion is void.”
Amazing thought-provoking post, Cait!
It iiiis so subjective, it’s hard! Haha. I mean, half the time I don’t know if a book is 2 stars or 1??? And like 3 stars means “meh” to me but “good” to so many other people! IT’S HARD.😂 And omg it’s ridiculous about the haters…like I would LOVE to have a discussion of differing opinions on a book. But no one wants that?!? They go straight to calling names and being rude. It’s so dumb, bleh.
Hi, Cait!
Yes to all of those. (Except for the hate part, because I can’t relate to that because sobody seems to read reviews anymore these days. They are always the least visited posts on every blog I know. And here I thought readers would be educated daisies who are happy that not everybody is the same and entitled to their own opinion. Guess I was wrong.)
I usually tanke notes on the books I want to review so I don’t forget to mention things I deemed important while reading. Naturally I never have those notes with me when I’m actually writing the review. 🙁 Which reminds me that I haven’t written a review in about two months. What am I doing!?
Hach, a really nice post, Cait my dear appleblossom. Have a great day! 🙂
LG, m
PS. One more thing: I thought your neighbor was the one with the chickens. Does that mean you’re throwing other peoples’ chickens? 🤔
People seem to find my reviews very easily to hate on them haha. BUT GAH, I’M JUST WHINGEING. IT’S REALLY NOT THAT BAD.😂 But I’m glad we still relate to the struggles. *hi fives* Taking notes is so so organised though…you’re AMAZING.
I’m really impressed you remembered my neighbour had chickens.😂😂 And I’m only FAKE throwing chickens haha…although tbh, my family is constantly throwing the neighbour’s chickens back over the fence. So that happens.
Ugh, I find reviewing to be a challenge! It’s my least favorite thing ever, but I still do it anyway just because sometimes it’s fun to rave or rant about a certain book, depending on how I feel about it!
Star ratings are honestly such a pain; I can’t deal with them! There are lots of books where I love them, but I don’t think they’re five-star worthy, just four-star worthy??? And 3 stars for me are sort of meh/negatives ratings, but I know some people consider them to be positive??? I honestly don’t even know. 😂
(Also, on an unrelated note, CommentLuv seems to hate me because it doesn’t show my latest post even though I checked the box. WHY???)
Star ratings are just out to make our lives miserable, let’s be real here.😂 I mean, is it 4.5 or 5? Is it 3 or 2.5? HOW ARE WE EVEN TO KNOW. SOMEONE DO THE MATHS AND FEELINGS FOR US.😂
(Ack sorry about comment luv!! I don’t know why it’s disagreeable? But I can still see the link to your blog so I can click on that.😂)
This post is super relevant! Yes writing reviews are HARD! Like how do I word asdjlkvjn??? I find it especially difficult to pinpoint what I liked without rambling. Also I believe that my memory does not exist. I’m soooo behind on reviewing books right now which is making me procrastinate even more… The intergalactic battles between star ratings haha – the struggle is too real. Another awesome post Cait!!
WORDS ARE HARD. WHY MUST WE WORD. *throws the alphabet out the window* 😂 I’m always up-to-date on reviewing though, thankfully, because I review straight away. If I even go A DAY I forget everything.😂
Yes reviewing is hard!! Sometimes I worry if all my reviews sound the same?? One thing that’s so hard is giving reasons! Like I can tell you a million times how much I love a character but when you ask me WHY I love them, I’m all..hmm…oohh…idk :/ And pie!! Yes pie 😛 😛 ..I’m really scared about sending negative reviews to authors and publishers 🙁 I know the author must have toiled so hard and I hate to be harsh! But then I gotta be honest too!! *sigh* And yes, star ratings are so hard to understand!!
I know how you feel!! Like I don’t think authors should READ reviews anyway, so I don’t write them with the author in mind, buuuut I don’t want publishers to like ex me off the list or something.😂
Totally agree with what you’ve said. I’ve been doing this six years and even though it’s slightly gotten easier, it’s still so damn hard sometimes. I find the hardest ones are the books that I love and then the books that I really disliked.
For those that I love, I cannot put into words how much I loved the book – for example, my THUG review. I adored that book, but I don’t even know if my review makes sense. But, then to books that I disliked, I don’t want to pull the book down. I didn’t like it, that doesn’t mean other people don’t. And I now there is a chance that an author is going to read the review – and I don’t think I am a mean person.
I am not sure I’ve found my voice. Maybe? I don’t know.
It’s sooo hard to review excellent books!! I mean, I just want to say ‘READ IT. NO MORE WORDS NEEDED’ but apparently that’s not always totally convincing?😂
It’s OK, Cait. You can throw the chickens. They’re pretty stupid. (I’ve owned several.)
I’ve owned chickens too. They ARE so stupid omg. And our neighbour has stupid chickens that are always in our yard and we’re always throwing them back. *shakes fist at chickens*
I actually find that it’s easier for me to write a review when I hated the book, than when I absolutely love the book. It’s so hard to put into words all of the reason that I loved a book, but really easy to list things that I hate. I’m always worried about upsetting an author/publisher when I really didn’t enjoy a book. But honest is honest, right? lol! Great post!
I’m the SAME. I feel bad, but it’s true?!? Like somehow it’s easier to write a detailed lists of hates instead of just “I LOVE IT! I LOVE IT!”😂😂
My idea of reviewing books is rambling about how great-horrible-adorable-deplorable-totally-amazing it is until everyone is thoroughly confused and reads it just so see what the heck am I talking about. And I only review books in person.😛
(Psssst! I love spoilers! *hint hint* ) 😆
Most crazily, ~Olive
Reviewing books in person is a TRUE TALENT!! If I fall apart writing them, I’m doubly worse in person.😂 I just end up saying “Umm, it was a book about STUFF.”
Whew! That was exhausting just thinking about!
I don’t mind coming up with *words* and *thoughts* but I do have super anxiety about the TBR books sitting there in judgment of me. I have a vision of all the nice publicists in their offices refreshing their email, waiting for me to send my review in. And in the other hand is a big red pen getting ready to cross me off their list. I know, I know. I am definitely not that important. I just feel like I am letting people down if I don’t get to a book.
I totally have that in the back of my mind too.😂I feel like “omg this is going to be THE negative review that gets me fired from reviewing forever”.😂😂 I’m SURE it doesn’t work like that but…heheh. We can panic recreationally can’t we?!
I agree with the whole thoughts thing. WHAT DO YOU MEAN I ACTUALLY HAVE TO PUT MY EMOTIONS ABOUT THIS BOOK IN WORDS? HOW DO I DO THAT.
And the whole “your opinion is wrong because it’s not my opinion” thing is so frustrating. I recently got an EMAIL from someone who disagreed with my (very strong) opinions on a book, came to my blog, found my contact form, AND EMAILED ME TO TELL ME HOW MUCH THEY HATED MY OPINION. Like, that’s not good. I admire your dedication, but still…not good.
WHY DO WE HAVE WORDS. WUT R WERDS. HELP US. *sobs to cake because it understands*
Dude, that sucks about that person. And honestly I’d like to rage and say “THAT’S UNHEARD OF AND SHOULD NOT HAPPEN!!” But I get comments and DMs about the same thing and just…gah. I spend more time on Goodreads saying “hey dude I never asked you to agree with me” than actually DISCUSSING the book. Why is everyone so defensive?!? I’d love to actually discuss books more!! Did you answer the email or just ignore them?
I love reviewing book, too – and it is hard! I am almost always able to find the positive in books I read, even the “blah” ones. I’m easy – I just love books and have tremendous respect for authors. But when I come across a read that was truly horrible, where I found no enjoyment (rare), that’s when I have the worst time reviewing. I don’t like doing hack jobs – can’t stand to pick a book apart. BUt sometimes, it must be done.
Rebecca @ The Portsmouth Review
Follow me on Bloglovin’
I’m glad you can find the positives even in the blah books!! Sometimes I can’t and I feel sooo bad haha.😂 I love books so much and I think authors are superheroes, although I kind of think authors shouldn’t ever read reviews so I don’t review with them in mind.😂 AT LEAST WE KNOW ALL OF US STRUGGLE WITH REVIEWING! *hi fives*
YES! Reviewing is hard. If I don’t review a book right after reading it, I forget all the characters’ names. I can’t even remember real people’s names, so remembering the names of fictional people is impossible. I’m also worried that all my reviews are starting to sound the same because I’ve written several hundred of them now. They’re starting to feel formulaic. This is distressing.
SAME. Real people’s names are bad enough, and they’re all basically named Jennifer and Bob. But like in books…I can’t even spell them half the time let alone remember them.😂 I basically write reviews without even mentioning the character’s names. “Protagonist” and “love interest” work, right?!?
yes, yes, YES!
All of the things.
I agree with all of the things!
I don’t even think I have a voice? Maybe it just hasn’t decided to make an appearance yet, but also I think my voice changes depending on the book I’m reviewing?
IS THIS EVEN ALLOWED?
I feel bad about my lack of voice, but ho-hum.
Also I totally panic before having to write a review.
Like 5 pages before then end of a book I start thinking about it and worrying that I have absolutely NOTHING to say.
Yet as soon as I start writing the words always flooooow like a spilt cup of tea.
But always the panic first.
Why?!
No fair brain!
The only rule of blogging is DO WHAT YOU WANT <-- well so decrees me right now.😂😂 I have such good rule systems omg. hehe. But I totally get the panic about reviewing! At least we're not alone?!?
Reviewing is hard! I have yet to find a format and voice that I think works well for me.
I’ve also noticed you seem to be getting a lot more hate recently on some low-star reviews. I can imagine that’s super frustrating. The people have been really big jerks, but you’ve handled them really well!
Also you used a gif from Hornblower! 😀
Aww, thanks, Abi!! It absolutely sucks on Goodreads half the time…I mean, do I ignore it? Respond? I DON’T EVEN KNOW. *flaps about*
HORNBLOWER IS THE BEST THOOOOOUGH. OMG I was so obsessed with it as a teen. Okay, who are we kidding. That is not past tense.😂 I love Hornblower and Bush and Archie so much.
Right? Yeah I’m sure it’s hard to know what to do. But you’ve done really well with them so far!
YeSSSSSSS. Archie is totally my favorite. 😀
Opinions are like salad. There are many varieties. The tomatoes, the cucumbers, the different types of dressings. And if people want to think there is only one kind of salad in the world, they are simply misled, and foolish. If someone likes French dressing instead of Russian, it is ALL GOOD.
Take note, folks.
This is an absolutely beautiful comparison. :’) Except I pretend salad doesn’t exist, so you’re forcing me out of my delusions, Daley, how dare you.😂
😉 😀
*growls at all the disrespectful people who don’t respect your opinion*
it’s so weird because I would really REALLY like to review books but… it’s so hard for ALL THESE REASONS A BILLION MORE and also I just forget?? And I’ve already read the book and either been annoyed that I didn’t like it OR been abused by the feels crushing, so I don’t want to have to rehash those emotions again XDD
i’m such a weird XD
*feeds my growling pet cake* AREN’T YOU THE BEST.😂 And like I totally get it! Reviewing is hard and yet it’s my favourite but YET IT’S HARD. For someone who claims to be a writer, I absolutely suck at words.😂
Yes! So much this. You have to have actual thoughts. And make thoughts coherent. Bah.
Why do people insist we have thoughts, UGUUGHHHH. SO RUDE.😂😂
Honestly I am sooo in love with this post 😭😂I haven’t written nearly as many reviews as you but the ones I have, I definitely relate to a few of these😂 whenever I write negative points I try to say it in the nicest way😂
*shares cake of reviewing sorrow with you* At least we know we’re not alone in the reviewer pain, right?!?😂
Yes to all of these!
Especially the first one because words are hard especially when I forget the easiest English words ever. Or throw several languaes together in my head and end up with some weird English/German/Luxembourgish/French hybrid. Knowing several languages is hard.
And yes I forget half of the book right after reading it too. You could probably show me a picture of the main characters while I’m still reading it and I’ll go “Is that really how they look? I thought they looked different..” xD
Also I think it’s a scandal that reviews don’t write themselves. Someone needs to do something about that!
OR LET’S JUST MAKE UP A LANGUAGE. #winning 😂😂 But honestly English is my only language and I fail at it, so. You’re amazing.😂
I’M ALL FOR IT 😂😂
The only difference is that I fail in several languages because I lost the ability to speak even one without failing 😂
I LOVE THIS POST! I actually find review hard to write, because as ESL person, my vocabulary is not THAT good, so I don’t have a lot of words to use, they don’t feel enough! That’s why I tend to do mini reviews or gif review. But the thing is, when we got ARC, I can’t exactly send gif review as feedback to the publishers right??? That’s why it’s s hard for me omg. Also sometimes the book affect us personally, like maybe we experience it before, hence we give it high rating, but we can’t talk about that because we’re too private about our lives… It’s so hard!
I totally get that!!! THE STRUGGLE IS REAL. Although honestly I think a lot of publishers don’t mind if we use gifs/photos/whatnot to express our thoughts of a book, because if it’s a bit different, it can attract more attention!!
These facts. They are so true.
I’m very pleased you think so. 😇
And let’s not forget about how awful it feels to
1) give a bad review
2) continue giving bad reviews
3) notice your last 5 or so reviews have been 2 stars or below (if you use such a system)
4) send that bad review back to the publisher AND THEN ASK FOR ANOTHER BOOK
5) promote that bad review because you need/want views on your site.
Omg all of those. 😭😭 Too relatable aghhghhhg.
I love this post; thank you for making me feel better 🙂
Because I find it *super hard* to say bad things about books, my blog is more of a celebratory site and not a “review” site *As someone who thinks about writing a book all the time but has only about 1 page written, I know how much heart, soul, and hard work would have been put into all these books and feel like who am I to say bad things about it especially if other people do like it. (I am not saying other people should give bad reviews I am just saying that is how I have chosen to best enjoy my own blogging.)
The other thing I struggled with recently relates to your #9 where I can see how some people would deeply relate to a book (or movie in my case) but because I am not one of those people with those specific experiences or minority aspects then I find myself afraid to say anything out of respect for those people….
All in all – it is super hard but we love it. Thanks to you and all book bloggers and reviewers for doing what you do!!
Ok above I meant: “I am not saying other people should not give bad reviews…” I left out an important “not” there. Commenting is also super hard ha!!
That’s totally fine! I get that! I think people should blog/read/review however they want…and if negative reviews aren’t for you, then that’s 100% cool! I don’t mind writing negative reviews, but sometimes I get a bit TOO honest.😂 I need to chill haha.
Reviewing is hard, but so long as we’re having fun, right?!
Okay, so I really could relate to what you’re writing. I wanted to start doing more reviews on Goodreads and keep my blog only for “special” books and other book related posts.
But
(a) I don’t know where to start, like, really, what can I say about this book?
(b) I wonder how much I should write
(c) I wonder how much Information I should include and
(d) I wonder why I am trying at all because no one is listening ( which is something which surely doesn’t apply to you, dear)
So here am I, constantly staggering between “I really want to do a book blog and create beautyful content” and “Okay, I really should stop, because nobody cares.”.
And yes, there was sarcasm in it.
Like, one reason I really like your blog is because of your tone. I really can relate to it 😀
Greets, Ella
http://passionandpages.blogspot.com/
I HEAR THE PAIN. THE PAIN IS MUTUAL BETWEEN US ALL. *shares cake of sorrow with you* Honestly I ask myself all those questions too and I’ve done hundreds of reviews and have been at this for years.😂 I think we’re all just doomed to have no idea what we’re doing ahha.
Aww, thank you!! I’m really glad you like my blog! MY DAY IS GLAD.
Oh my god I have a memory problem too and it is so annoying, I swear. Someone says, “Can you recommend a book? Pretty please with brownies?” and then I’m like, “oh, (INSERT TITLE OF BOOK HERE)!!!! This book is so so good i LOVED IT.” And they ask me what it’s about and I just stand there staring blankly at them.
So. Annoying.
Like, dude. Why.
I HEAR YOU. IT’S SO RELATABLE AND SO ANNOYING.😂Or honestly, people say “recommend me a book” and I’m like “do I even read” because every title has fled my memory immediately.😂
YAAAAAAAAS TO ALL OF THIS. Okay so I literally have no one to shout at about books but I SHOUT ANYWAY BECAUSE WHY NOT. Mostly I write reviews for books (on Goodreads) because I know exactly NOBODY in real life who likes reading??? I LIVE IN THE WOODS WITH PEOPLE WHO DON’T KNOW WHAT LIFE IS ABOUT OBVIOUSLY. But whenever I see a movie/TV show with my family we have to discuss it and like psychoanalyze it for DAYS AND DAYS because idk that’s just who we are. xD So I’ve been raised to SHOUT AND SHOUT about a story after I finish reading it…tbh I don’t know how someone can just read a book and put it aside and forget about it?? Like….I need to flail. And analyze. And fall down a rabbit hole of overthinking it. :””)
BUT ANYWAY YES. All these reasons are sO LEGIT and I admire you for your ability to write good disappointed reviews because if I was reading ARCs I would be probably the most picky and bitter bean ever and PUBLISHERS WOULD HATE ME TO THE MOON AND BACK. I’m so hard to please it’s annoying tbh. :’) but YES I ALSO GET YOU ON THE STAR RATINGS YES. For me, 5-stars is like: ASDFGHJKL BEST BOOK EVER. 4-stars is like: vey vey good but not the best thing ever you know what i’m sayin. 3-stars is like: I AM MIXED EMOTIONS…liked some things and didn’t like some things. 2-stars is like: ughhhhhh I would never read this again because how limp. And 1-star is like: TBH WORST BOOK EVER. But everyone’s stars are different!! It’s so fascinating to me. We will all be so happy when Goodreads finally has half-star ratings. 😉
I HEAR YOU, ABBIEE. IT IS A STRUGGLE. *cries piteously for our loss of having no real bookworms in our life* And like even if our reviews are random shouting, as long as we’re having fun right?!?😂 (Oh by analysing shows/movies is cool! My mum loves doing that except I never watch movies so they just end up analysing around me while I’m reading under the table.😂)
I’m like so rubbish at liking books these days. WHY DO PEOPLE STILL SEND ME BOOKS. I’M LIKE AN OLD DEAD BITTER GRAPE.
Mixed emotions though…like how do we rate those?!? I need a 3.5 stars so often.😂
As always you are very much on point with your post. I agree on ALL THE THINGS! And I have the exceptional memory of an avocado and I can’t remember jack about anything that happened in a book either or how they looked or how old they were or what even was this all about? But I still like reviewing. I don’t write about everything, because sometimes there is just nothing to say, but in most cases I find it really important because it’s like the finish to my reading experience – the closing chapter if you will.
*hi fives like an avocado* And I mean, who even knows how we DO review with our pea-sized brains, but at least we try??? Someone give us cake for trying. Also someone pay us omg.😂
THE PREVIEW PICTURES ON YOUR BLOG MOVE, HOW COOL IS THAT?!
Writing reviews is so hard, I question every sentence I write I swear to God. I abuse the thesaurus function on grammarly because I can only say “really” and “awesome” so many times before I question my ability to write words.
YAS. I KNOW. I’M AMAZING.😂 (Just kidding. I totally did NOT code this blog at all haha.)
And like at least we get brownie points for using a thesaurus right?!?
Awesome! This is the best post I have seen today. Yes, yes. So difficult to pen down thoughts with words. And the agony of giving a negative review. But then we have to. Because we gotta give an honest review. Totally agree with you about not wanting to have your private life on the internet and people judging you for it. Why? Why? WHy?
Omg thank you!!😂 That makes my DAY. And words are just hard…and unfortunately I often find negative reviews easier to write than positive reviews?!? And that’s not faaaair because I just want to flail over books I love!! And I wish the book community AT LEAST would be a bit more considerate about privacy. But they’re really not.🙈🙊
Everything about this post is so real! I feel like no matter how many reviews I’ve written, every time I sit down to do one I’m cringing and worrying if I’m doing it “right” or if I’m going to receive hate from people who don’t even follow me. I also totally have an identity crisis over ratings…there are certain books I will never give less than 3 stars (classics, anything by a marginalized author) because I don’t want to receive the hate and because I know that even if I hated it, it’s an important book. So for me 3 stars is “this was decent” and 2 stars is “meh” and 1 star is “can we please chuck this book off the face of this earth kthnx”. Anyway, long story short, I really enjoyed reading this post. It made me giggle out loud at multiple points. It’s nice to know I’m not alone in my feels. <3
WE CAN JUST BE HERE RELATING SO MUCH. *share cake of sorrow with you* 😭😂 And I’m really glad you enjoyed the post! At least you can know you’re not alone with the star-crises, right?!? And sometimes words are just SO HARD.
Yas! I can never remember anything about the book as soon as I try to review it and then I end up having to go back and re-read a bunch of it and it’s never as good the second time round, ya know?
I actually sometimes like books better the second time round…but like who has TIME for all that re-reading?!? The struggle is real.😂
Haha true!
I absolutely LOVE your randomness in your articles. You let me laugh out loud and I LOVE it!
I’M SO GLAD THANK YOU. 😊💕
OMG reviewing books is SUPER hard!!! Thankfully I am nowhere near big enough to have a following that a) reads all of my posts and b) if they do read them actually comment on the post so I have the added treachery of if someone finds this will they like it and stay or hate it and tell people not to go near me as if I have the plague! (which I do not btw – just to clear that up. Plague free since 2014….) I do honestly really struggle with the voice thing as well! Like what if one post sounds super happy because that’s how I was feeling then and the next one is super sad and boring to read even though I loved the book, but I was super sad and depressed that day?! Man book reviewing is hard and I am only sometimes about that life – generally tuesday and sundays.
Btw, I loved this post. I connected to it so much!! Thank you!
YAS for being plague free! *gives you cake as reward* 😂
And like somedays I write great reviews and somedays they’re SO DUMB I CAN’T EVEN. Why is it all so hard.😂😂
Thank you! *accepts cake in thanks*
I know exactly how you feel haha!! If only they wrote themselves!
Identity crises over star ratings–YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Oh my word. Did I ~love~ this book? Or did I just ~like~ this book? Did I like it on a 3-star level or a 4-star level? WHY ARE THERE NO HALF STARS? Will I hurt the poor little book’s feelings by only giving it 3? Was it bad enough to deserve 2? Could any book ever be bad enough to *gasp* deserve 1? Am I just being cruel and heartless? I am not a published author anyway so wHAT DO I KNOW??????
#somebodyhelpme
And like if you read a REALLY REALLY REALLY good 5-star book it then makes OTHER really good books juts feel like 4stars?? But maybe they would’ve been 5 if you hadn’t of read that super spectacular one earlier!?!? HELP.😭
dude. Reviewing books is HARD. Half the time I have too many thoughts and I CANNOT FOR THE LIFE OF ME COME UP WITH COHERENT SENTENCES TO EXPLAIN HOW I FEEL. Sometimes there isn’t a GIF to explain how I feel. I don’t know what to do when this happens. I kind of mash the keyboard until something readable comes out.
I love reviewing books but I also forget half the important things that should be included! I’m like this book is amazing wait who wrote it? what was the plot? idk I’m too busy crying over my ship or whatever. One thing I TRY to do but often fail at is write little notes in a tiny little notebook as I read. Most of the time they’re scattered, but they help me remember when I’m trying to condense my feelings into words! OH ALSO BOOK-RELATED DOODLES. THOSE HELP ME CALM DOWN. I don’t know what my or anyone’s star ratings really mean. My 4 could be really generous whereas someone’s 2 could be super generous. I’m no critic, I just have a lot of feelings!!! 🙂
WORDS FAIL US, KRIS. IT IS NOT FAIR BUT IT IS HOW IT IS. *shares cake with you to dampen our sorrow* What even are words. 😭😭
HAHAHA YES TO ALL OF THESE. I REALLY struggle with reviewing books I love. Like, I really need to write my review for Bone Gap but I’m procrastinating writing it because Bone Gap is a work of pure art and my review will basically consist of me saying ASDFGHJKL too many times which isn’t the best way to persuade someone, probably.
My review for Bone Gap was TINY because I couldn’t think of anything to say except “IT’S BEAUTIFUL AND WHIMSICAL AND WEIRD GO READ IT NOOOOOW”. I mean, what more is there say!??😂
Knocked it out of the park, Cait. I’m always surprised when people get hate for giving their honest opinion. Discussion about the opinion, sure, Thoughtful discourse, go for it. Full on hate? Just NO. It shuts down any further communication. I usually enjoy reading about people’s differences of opinion in regards to books. What is one man’s junk, is another man’s treasure.
So true!! And plus like conversation is why we review books right?!? It’s more interesting to discuss than just go straight to hate!!
This is so accurate. I think my biggest struggle is that I tend to like or dislike books based on outside factors like how much time I had to read or who I was with or how aesthetic the view where I am is or that one of the characters reminds me of someone I know…. that is kind of difficult to explain to people as a solid reason as to why I did or didn’t like the book. Most times I have no actual words to explain how I am feeling and a voice…. what even is that??? I am 90% sure I don’t have one of those….
I understand COMPLETELY. Sometimes I love a book and like…I can’t even say why because I just LIKED IT.😂 And I have how I can give a long and detailed negative review, but ask me to tell you more than 5 reasons why I LOVED a book?? I’m dead.😂
Ahh yes. I find negative reviews so much easier to write. Even if I loved the book I can easily find the little parts I didn’t like but I can’t explain the massive things I did like.
I loved this post! #relatable
Tbh, I always love your posts, but this spoke to me on many levels. Forgetting everything, what do stars even mean, like, even with me they occasionally misbehave and decide to suddenly have different meanings, you know, casually. I am lucky though because I have zero followers so nobody yells at me! Great! And no one can tell I’m usually lying when I say “review to come” (or at least mean it more along the lines of “I love reviewing but HALP I can’t do thoughts for 10 years and maybe when I really feel bad it’ll come because #preassure?”)
Words are hard. Also, I have too many emotions and never know what to do with them, like, how can I explain this chaos in a review, I don’t even get it myself? I’d suggest sharing with you, but maybe you’re better off without them 🙂
Omg I never say “review to come” because that is the #1 lie of the century, isn’t it?!?😂If I don’t review it ASAP there is no way a review is coming because I won’t even remember I read it in 2 days ahhahha.
Words ARE hard. We should get an award for even attempting to word.😂
Yeah, I always think that if i say it, it will motivate me to actually do it. And then it doesn’t. Rude 😀
Oh my gosh this post had me laughing and crying at it’s truthfulness xD
I love your blog so much!
OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH. <3 THIS MAKES ME VERY HAPPY.
It’s SOOO true though! After a while, I literally don’t even remember what the FREAK I read. I don’t remember character names, if I liked it, plot twists, or anything. Unless it’s Harry Potter, I’ll most likely forget the character a week after I read the book. Good post! Have a AMAZING DAY!
WE ARE LIKE TWINS IN THIS.😂 I mean, what was that book I read 4 days ago? I haven’t the foggiest.😂
I suck at reviews. I always forget to do them, and then I forget everything. Plus if I really like a book it’s mostly just gibberish, I can’t articulate my feelings.
Your reviews are the best though, they always make me laugh!
Aww, I’m so so pleased you like my reviews!! <3 And omg the better the book = the harder to review!!
THIS IS SO TRUE. My problem is I always accidentally shred the book super meanly and then I have to edit out the mean parts or I just stammer about how good it was without actually saying anything worthwhile. Also when I DNF books I’m like what. do i say. Especially if it’s an arc…sigh. It’s a struggle.
I have that problem too bahhah.😂 It’s a problem right?!? Although sometimes I just put my opinions out there all harsh and blunt because EH. Who cares. (Apparently the internet cares.) But really…like what is our opinion? It’s just an opinion!!
Haha, I just did a mini reviews post yesterday, and I totally agree! And I’m not in the position to have haters at my tail, but omg it is the absolute worst when people say that your opinions are wrong. Excuse me, but they’re OPINIONS and not FACTS, so they can’t be wrong??? Only facts can be wrong??? AND WHY DO YOU CARE ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT MY OPINIONS ARE WRONG OR NOT??? WHAT ABOUT YOURS??? IS YOURS WRONG???
(No it isn’t because no opinions are wrong. Duh.)
And btw, that bookstagram pic of the Raven Cycle was #goals.
YESSSS SO. VERY. TRUE. Like why do people care so much about MY opinions anyway?!? I am literally nobody. I just have a laptop and internet connection.😂 I’m giving opinions not demanding everyone agree with me! WHO CARES WHAT I THINK.😂
(omg thank you. <3 I take so many photos of them because IN LOVE.)
Reviewing is hard. I don’t always do it, most of the time I just put star reviews. I do always scroll through GR looking for reviews with gifs though, because they are #awesome! I usually only review books if I have strong things to say. I do read your reviews though. I love how they have the spoiler button on GR too! Whoever invented that deserves a million dollars! I understand reading a fantastic book and having nothing to say except it was really good. Its like it was sooo good words cannot describe. I wish sometimes I could read a book for the first time over and over again. Especially with All the Bright Places, and the Problem With Forever. I will never get over those books.
Gif reviews are pretty fun!!😂 I review absolutely everything because #addicted, but half the time I don’t even know what rubbish I’m typing. IT JUST HAPPENS. But omg thank you for liking my reviews. <3 It means a lot to me!!
I agree 😛
There are so many books I need to review and I’m buried under them like “HALP” but I also kind of don’t want to get up because books???
And I have feelings I promise it’s just sometimes it takes me a while to really assess over everything in the book and figure out how I like the book because sometimes I like it when I’m reading and then I stop and then I’m like “Wow. That wasn’t that great at all.”
I DON’T KNOW. and I love your creative reviews, seriously! I have no idea how to format my review and I always feel like they’re too short or I’m not saying enough and I look at other reviews and I’m like “STAHP HOW DO YOU HAVE SO MANY WORDS IN YOU”
Ooh I get that too!! Like sometimes I don’t even know how I felt about a book until I begin the review.😂 and then I’m like “Woah I thought I liked this but look at all my negatives”.😂
This is so true. I usually end up pushing my reviews off so long I forget I even read the book in the first place O.o And when it finally comes down to it, how do I even put all of what I’m feeling into words? Like, can I just write a review that is nothing but adjectives describing my emotional state at the time I read the book?
Also, that sucks that people hate on you for your book opinions. I mean, they’re OPINIONS. It would be a pretty boring world if we all agreed on EVERYTHING. I’ve never really experienced review hate, but I did have a friend who recc’ed me a book that I LOATHED and she seemed to think it was wrong that I didn’t like it 🙁
Anyway, I LOVE your reviews and blame you for the exponential growth of my TBR.
Let’s just fling around adjectives and gifs and then escape to be wild and free in the deserts. #ExcellentLifePlan
And I know right!?? If we all agreed the world would be DUMBLY BORING.😂 I just don’t understand why people feel so attacked when I don’t like their favourite book! Especially if I don’t even KNOW Them.😂
N’awww. You’re so nice <33
Ugh yessss! Stringing together my thoughts into sentences that make sense is HARD! I kind of know what I want to say, but verbalizing it is tough work, so I give you a lot of credit for always have such a smart and funny reviews! 🙂
~Sara
Aww, thank you, Sara!! That means a lot! Because half the time I have nO IDEA WHAT I’M DOING EITHER.🙈🙊
I totally feel you on these! I especially feel awful writing negative reviews! I always have so much to say about the things I didn’t like because they are often easier to pinpoint than the things I did like!
As for getting personal – I struggled with that recently! I wrote a review for The Program but got really personal with it and I was terrified to post it and open my life up to so people! I think it helps that I don’t have tens of thousands of followers like you do, so it was a tiny bit comforting in that sense, but still! I was so scared!
Also, thank god I’m not the only one who forgets everything about books. I’ll remember the general plot but I rarely remember character’s names unless it was made into a TV show/movie, or I’ve read it more than once! Like you, I’ll remember my overall feelings but it’s highly unlikely I”ll remember the author or character’s names hahaha whoops. I’m an INFJ so we are close!
It is so much easier to write negative reviews than positive sometimes. AND I DO FEEL BAD ABOUT IT.🙈🙊 Often negative reviews receive waaaay more views for me too, which makes me feel bad, but agh, I can’t even control that!!
And I totally get the fear. <3 I mean I don't have THAT many followers (haha thank goodness) but I mean it doesn't matter if 3 people ore 300 people are reading it. When we put bits of our personal lives online, we can't take it back. It's a bit scary.
I have to agree with all your points. I review books on my blog. I end up spending more time writing the review than I have done reading the book itself. I find that it more difficult for me to write fiction reviews than non-fiction.
Agh the struggle is real!!😭😂😜 It’s so hard to articulate thoughts sometimes!
Oh, I can relate to pretty much all of these 🙂 I actually haven’t had anyone get mad at me for having a different opinion yet, for which I’m immensely grateful.
It has taken me an unfortunately long time to figure out my blogger voice. It’s different from my writer voice, which is weird, I guess? Although I guess my writer voice is whatever character is yelling at me at the time, so maybe it makes perfect sense. Ha. Haha. Yeah … Still, I think that’s one of the most difficult parts of writing certain reviews, because sometimes I want to get all academic with it and that would just be weird on my blog. And sometimes I want to just flail, which would also be out of place. And sometimes I say screw it, this book is special anyway so what if it gets a different type of review?
I feel like even after I’ve finally settled on a star rating I always find myself questioning if that was the right rating. Like, “I just gave this book 5 stars, but it was WAY better than the last book I gave 5 stars to. Does that mean the last book shouldn’t have gotten 5 stars?” And then I have a crisis of faith in my rating system. It’s all gut feel anyway. But it’s sooooo difficult to make a decision and stick with it!
I’m grateful too that you’ve been spared that!! I hope it stays that way!!
And honestly my writing vs blogging voice IS very different too. Like sometimes it overlaps but I approach writing novels very differently. And yessss, I think we should just write reviews however we like and however makes us happy.
And omg the 5star thing = relatable. That was me after finishing A Conjuring Of Light. Like I read a REALLY good book after it but…it wasn’t AS GOOD as ACOL…so was it still worth 5stars?!? #CrisisIntensifies
God Cait, this is too true. TOO TRUE!! Sometimes I just enjoy the book but have nothing much to say which is bad when you want to write a review because obviously you gotta write something and a review which is just one sentence just doesn’t cut it apparently. Anyhoots, another great and funny post. 😀
I’m so so glad you liked it!! And whyyy is it that positive reviews are SO HARD TO WRITE!??!?
SO TRUE!!!! It is so difficult to coherently put together an opinion/though/review which make sense to others and not only to us the reader/reviewer (and isnt just made up of jibberish which only I understand).
I think I’ve literally just concentration my all on characters in my reviews that I forget there was actually a plot/story that ppl would rather learn about…😂 also like u said formatting…to bullet point? To include gifs….how formal/informal should this be? Having to factor in all that and put my feeling and thoughts out on a page is definitely TOUGH!
Negative reviews are tough to approach…no matter how polite and respectful I try to be its not enough that I end up apologizing for how I feel about it…which makes me feel weird. Definitely how sometimes you get an ARC, read the book, and have no thoughts what so ever on it 😅
I don’t even put a rating coz of the whole identity crisis. Like how I like something enough to give it a 4 star but…when I sit to review there’s more issues than pros to the book…so what up with that?! So I just gave up on rating it all together…with Goodreads I just go with how I feel when I’m done reading
Great post, totally related to every bit of it…even on eating cake 😁
I totally get that!! 😂sometimes I just talk about the characters and then I see others reviews, analysing the themes and messages and I’m like “Waaaait. What happened there.”😂😂 I’M HOPELESS.
I hate having to apologise for my opinions! But I often find myself doing it so hopefully I don’t get attacked.🙈🙊
Oh yes I find it hard. I read a lot of similar books and find – if I don’t review them at once – the plots sometimes get mixed up in my little mind.
I rarely remember characters’ names and often forget what a book’s about a week after I’ve read it (though I’ll remember once someone starts describing the plot).
And I struggle with the formality and stuff. I tend to be pretty much ‘me’ in my reviews, though think that’s something I’ve been struggling with for a while and am cutting back (re blogging in general) a bit at the moment as a result.
I think we should all just focus on being us in our blogs and reviews!! I’m sure we’ll just be happier and have more fun.😂
Honestly, reviews like yours are 1000x more helpful. I don’t like reviews that require me to have a dictionary handy in order to read and interpret and feels like a lawyer’s treatise and you’re like dude, what even are you saying? I know all of those words by themselves but when you put them together like that you lost me. “Potatoes”… “ack!” Finally someone who is coherent!! #Helpful
Also, anyone who wants you to conform to a hive mind, just tell them “what? You’re brains aren’t good enough?? YOU WANT TO SUPPLEMENT WITH THE INTELLIGENCE OF MY BRAIN THE SIZE OF A CITY*???? Well I’m afraid my brain and opinion is patented and you will have to invent your own, my little grapefruit.”
*(see what I did there, anyone?? ILLUMINAE REFERENCE. 😆👍🏼 I’m so mightily pleased with myself. Cake for me)
It is a compliment that they wish to purchase your intelligence, really. And I mean, seriously, if you don’t have the right to have an opinion, then they don’t have the right to have the opinion that you don’t have the right to have an opinion. And mate, why are we doing this. We are more mature than my four-year-old nephew, right?? And just so many lols at “stop liking X book”. Just on command. Stop liking it. BOOM. Man, if I could like/dislike a book on cue, I would be an HP fiend like no one else.
I HEAR YOU ON THE LIFE PRIVACY!!!!!! CAN WE JUST SHOUT MADLY ABOUT THIS FOR A MINUTE?? BECAUSE I AM IN UNINTELLIGIBLE AGREEMENT WITH YOU AND CANNOT WORD SO I WILL YELL INSTEAD BECAUSE THIS IS SO TRUE!!!! Also, I was talking with someone once who said that an author was not representing a certain disability correctly at all, and I was like, “uh, his kid has it, so I think he knows”, but I wasn’t certain and #awkward and also I’m allergic to in-person conflict so. I kept silent. BUT THIS IS EVERYWHERE. I mean, even if you DO have experience with something the author is addressing and you don’t feel like it accurately represents what you go through, that doesn’t mean it isn’t an accurate representation for someone else! We are different! Our struggles manifest differently in different people! Yay! #WeAreAllUnique!!! Grrr, I hate when people don’t get this though!! *throws 27 chickens*
Sorry. Participatory rant over.
Also I love yelling my opinions in other people’s faces, then calmly adding “but it’s fine if you don’t like it but you must read it go and do thou likewise right now and scream your opinion back at me when you’ve finished, mmkay??” And walking away like nothing happened. 🤣
I KNOW RIGHT?!?! I don’t get it when people fight me about my opinion. Often I say “what makes your opinion more valid than mine?” Because that’s what it boils down to. Some people just honestly think they’re more entitled to an opinion. *rolls eyes*
I LIKE YOUR ILLUMINAE REFERENCE. ADIAN FTW.
You hear me on privacy…says she who stalks me.😂😂😂
And YES! I also struggle with the accurate representations. Like often I’ll say “look this book stuffed up with the anxiety rep” but then I’ll read another review by a person also with anxiety who is like “this was meee!!” so now I make SURE to put in “there’s a spectrum and it’s subjective, but in my experience, the rep was wrong for this and this and this reason”. But like the trouble is what if I don’t WANT to tell people things about me?!? Like there are aspects of my life and minority experiences I don’t want to share!! The internet should respect that, especially the book blogging community. but they don’t and it’s so depressing.
I agree 100% with your salad comment!
Also I started a book blog to review books and I failed miserably because I remember I loved it but that’s about it, plus characters names are hard (especially if you are ever trying to discuss them with an actual human in real life and you aren’t sure on the pronunciation)! Though this post has inspired me to start back up again because it’s for me, to remember my feelings and I should not care if one person or none agree with me. At least my two dogs love me, even though I must work to keep them in the life they have grown accustomed to (and I can’t even train them to make my food).
Salad is just an accident, let’s be real here.
Omg pronouncing names is the WORST. 😂 Lucky I only talk books online haha. But AHHH, I’m so glad you still like reviewing and are going to start again! I mean, I complain a lot, but I DO LOVE IT AND WILL NOT STOP.
I hear you with the trouble with useless dogs though. Mine is totally ridiculous. Doesn’t clean up his own toys, takes over my bed, does not do housework??? Like what’s the point of him??
OMG!! This is a very important topic and one you hit close to home, but I still have no idea what my ‘voice’ is, sometimes I feel like my views are not really deemed as important (why would a bunch of people want to know what I think right?). And I suppose sometimes when I look at other people’s reviews, I guess I feel discouraged because they can write so eloquently and I all write is a pile garbage. I also too have problems deciding how I should write a review? I spend at least couple of mins deciding the format and then writing and omg sometimes I am consumed by book love so much my brain has a bit of a memory relapse (big word?) it is like I have just forgotten everything I just read.
Other problems, I suppose choosing the write gif or picture is a real struggle, I want a picture that will exactly show how I feel about a book. I don’t really pay attention to star ratings should I?
And once again Cait you are awesome, have I told you how awesome you are and how much I loved reading your posts?
Aneesa @ A Crave For Books
I feel the SAME WAY.😂 I mean, apparently people DO like to know my opinion on books…but why?? Who even am I?? Just a little nobody bookworm.😂 And yes I read others reviews and am like “how did they summarise this so well when all I’ve been doing is judging the cover for like half my review”.😂
Thank YOU. <3 <3 Honestly it's the most encouraging thing to know people like my posts. It makes blogging 5000% worth it. ❤️❤️
YOU PUT IT INTO WORDS. I love the idea of reviewing books, but when I sit down to do them, I come up totally blank. Mostly because I can’t think of how to do the book justice without spoiling it, or I’m scared of making it sound horrible because the book is way better than any summary I could ever write. (Maybe this is why I like reviewing horrible books so much, because I can’t rant and rave like a lunatic and not worry about how I portray the book. xD)
AT LEAST WE CAN SUFFER TOGETHER. *shares cake of suffering with you* And omg it’s so scary worrying about spoiling a book, right?!? Like sometimes I think an aspect is so obvious it will be obvious to everyone. And then people get mad at me for putting in a spoiler. AGH. HIDE ME.
*whines like an entitled five year old* REVIEWING IS HARD. Especially when I’m just starting to review books. I painstakingly write my thoughts in an entertaining and informative way (At least, it better be. Or I sold my soul to that shady book god for nothing), but then I decide it would be a good idea to see what others had to say about the book. It is frustrating to be a wee tadpole reviewer because PLOT TWIST: I am not the best. I proceed to FURIOUSLY DELETE THE HORRIBLE MESS THAT IS MY REVIEW because if I can’t be the best, why try at all, dangit. XD
Shady book god. 😂😂😂You make me laugh. THIS IS THE BEST. But omg dude, I hear you. I feel like the worst reviewer half the time too…we are all not the best. But so long as we have FUN then we’re doing it right, eh?!?
Yes, this! Agree with all the things. Reviewing is hard! It is really hard and no one ever tells you this. No one tells you that sometimes it’s better to leave your thoughts to stew on a book for a week but then sometimes you need to write all the words right now otherwise, you will never remember having a single thought on this book. You learn whether or not you have a good memory because 99.9% of the time I forget the MCs name. Like, always. Why are their names so unmemorable? And the pressure to write words sucks when you have such a meh reaction to a book. Can that just be my review in one word? Meh. It was meh. Why is that not acceptable? Why do I need to justify my feelings? Why can’t I say I really liked it? It was pleasant like a sunny day but it won’t stay with me and, much like a sunny day in England. I liked it while I was reading and then instantly forgot it and that’s cool with me.
Ugh, I don’t know why I have a book blog when writing words is so hard. I think it’s because it’s fun. At least that’s what they tell me.
I always forget the protagonist’s name too!! Especially if it’s 1st person…like how on earth am I supposed to remember it.😂 I was just reading a book written in letters and so they mentioned each other’s name EVERY CHAPTER. Did I remember them? Nope.😂
I FEEL ALL THESE STRUGGLES!! Keeping a reading journal helps a bit when it comes to what points I want to address in reviews, but half the time I forget how to English and can’t fully explain the things haha.
HOW DO WE ENGLISH. WHAT ARE WORDS. WHY IS THIS SO HARD.😂
I never ever remember the character names, which is really quite annoying as I then have to go back and find it, and by the time I’ve found it, I’ve lost my train of thought. The most annoying thing though, is when you’re writing a review of an audiobook and you want to mention a side character and then you have to spend 30 years trying to find the name cause you don’t know how to spell it and you don’t own a text copy of the book???
OMG THE AUDIO THING IS SO RELATABLE!! I’m listening to an epic fantasy series I LOVE and I keep wanting to mention the secondary characters…but I literally can’t. I haven’t the FAINTEST how to spell their names.😂I only can spell names of the characters mentioned in the blurbs.😂
ARGHH FANTASY NAMES!!!
I literally spend all day recommending books, I have no problem verbalizing likes and dislikes, being engaging, funny, etc. When it comes to actually writing coherent opinions down… urgh. I’m the worse. I briefly contemplated youtube, but then I’d have to have a nice background and would it even be possible to edit out the sounds of my gremlins screaming through the house? Probably not.
Omg I’m laughing. 😂 The gremlins could be your background music? That would be super catchy.😂
OH MY GOSH #8! There is actually so much fear when you publish anything even slightly controversial. Because we are not allowed to have Thoughts™.
ARGH ARGH IT’S SO DUMB. But you’re so right. Don’t dare have a thought that’s different from what the majority say. 😭
OMG THIS. For me personally, the hardest part of reviewing is putting my thoughts into words. I know how I feel about a book by the time I’m done reading it, but articulating my thoughts into a coherent review is a much more daunting task. And I think everyone feels the pain of star ratings haha (especially since Goodreads won’t let us have half stars *cough cough*). Thanks for sharing Cait and, as always, fabulous post! <3
It’s so daunting.😂 And like there’s so many ways to do it and are we saying too much??? Too little??? IT’S HARD. Goodreasd could solve like half the world’s problems by including half stars but nooooooo.😂
I love how ALMOST everyone on here understands the struggles of being someone who reviews books. I am particularly new to the game but I do see the appeal in reviewing books. I mean, you get to state your opinion on books you read (psh…who doesn’t like doing that?) but then again your opinion is also INVALID!!! People love to complain. I think it’s one of the easiest things to do (next to eat cake and sleeping), but whatever you put out into the internet-verse usually pisses off someone to an extent. For the most part I write reviews for myself. As you stated Cait, reviewing a book helps with remembering what it was about and the characters involved. That way you can correlate each story-line with each book written. Sometimes it’s hard keeping tack (especially when there are fifty million sequels or prequels to a particular set of books). I think my biggest struggle is whether or not I am putting enough material into my reviews. You know…like did I cover the characters and their personalities enough? Did I talk about how the plot progressed? Did I talk about the style of writing or how many points of view the book had? etc etc. I don’t know if I should write lengthy reviews or try to find a middle ground. I try to stick somewhere in between that. I want a longer review without being overwhelming to the person reading it. It is DEFINITELY hard work! There is no doubt about that. Also did you see that Maggie Stiefvater is going on a book tour? I am moving in the next three weeks and she will only be an hour from where I will be living! I think I may be taking a little road trip in April! *Flails excessively*
IT’S SO TRUE. Complaining is very easy for some people. 😂 I was always raised with the mantra “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” but apparently the rest of the world doesn’t agree with that.😂
And YES! I write reviews for myself first and foremost too!! Even if no one read my reviews, I’d still write them. <3
And knowing whether we say enough in our reviews = very relatable struggle. AGhhhh. I'm always worried I'll give too many spoilers, or not give enough info.
AFJDSKALD I HOPE YOU GET TO MEET HER THAT'S AMAZING!! I wish she'd come to Australia!!
Oh Cait, so much of this is just YES. Because goodness, reviews are HARD. I actually scheduled a post earlier, and part of it was about how I USED to review things versus now- and I would ALWAYS be so worried about the publisher part. Because how do you say “Oh, by the by, this book is the actual worst ever”? That seems rude! Such a struggle. And ratings! RATINGS are the DEVIL. And finding things to say! Oh, I cannot! Ever! Right now I am in this dreadful reading slump where everything is just “meh”. I almost wish I hated all the things, because at least I would have something to say? Right now, I am trying to do mini-reviews on a bunch of 3 star books and I just want to say “I nothinged this book”. That might *actually* end up being my reviews.
And please continue throwing the chickens, okay? They probably don’t mind. They’re probably glad to be of service. Because honestly, it’s such CRAP. And it IS because your reviews pop up first on Goodreads and such I am sure, that people see them and go into attack mode. But WHY? Like, I might be low-key bummed if a close friend doesn’t like a book I recommended or something, but that is because I feel like I let them down. Randos on the internet? I could not possibly care less if they liked the same book I did. We don’t all have the same tastes! And thank goodness for that!
I’m also really sorry about the privacy thing, and I think it is something that more people should take into consideration. I am not a super private person, but I totally understand that others are- and they (you) have every right to be. Your opinions should be no less valid because you don’t want to discuss every detail of your life publicly. And honestly, I hope that people reading this will remember that the next time they think “but that person doesn’t know!” because maybe they DO. And even if not… whose business is it anyway!?
That… got a little tangent-y. Sorry. I think that enough cake should just put you into a sugar coma and maybe your hands will just type on their own? That could be a thing! Also, I remember NOTHING when I sit to write a review. It does not help that I am usually waiting far too long after I read the book to do it but… #ProcrastinatorProblems
IT’S SO HARD AND SO MUCH PANIC. I mean, I’ve been reviewing for publishers for EVER and they keep sending me books unsolicited even though I hate on them. 😂 But it doesn’t stop me panicking that one day they’re going to be like “no cait you are too awful and we’re never speaking to you again”. *has quiet panic attack*
Dude, I didn’t even KNOW my reviews come up on goodreads first a lot until someone was having a tantrum in my comments about how UNFAIR it is that me and my negative reviews are everywhere and I was like “What???? I had no idea???” 😂😂 And it’s dumb because my negative reviews go viral WAY more than my positive ones! So people think I’m 99% a book hater, and I actually write so many happy reviews too. They just get lost. 😭
And YES! I also feel bad for other people who struggle with the privacy thing, because I’ve seen them mention it on twitter. It’d be nice if people didn’t always assume others don’t know what they’re talking about, right? 🙈🙊
YOUR COMMENTS ARE ALWAYS PERFECT. NEVER APOLOGISE. <3
REVIEWING IS SO HARD! Some books are just so meh and it’s so difficult to write about them. Other suck so much and your post ends up being 2000 words long because you’ve just been talking about how sucky it is. And then…you love a book.
And have nothing to write about.
#storyofmylife
I honestly struggle with book reviews about my favourite books because it’s so hard to write and put into words exactly why I love them. It’s too damn difficult.
IT’S SO TRUE AND SO NOT FAIR!! I honestly spend WAY more time/details on negative reviews than good ones. But like how much can I just repeat “it’s perfect go read it”?😂
I refuse to use star ratings except on sites which MAKE you like Amazon and NetGalley (I keep my Goodreads private,) because star ratings are an arbitrary construct meant to quantify unquantifiable qualities of culture, and also are deeply subjective. They are also flawed in terms of genre comparison and generally give too overly-simplistic a view of your thoughts and opinions of a book. (And that sounded quite smart for once – I’m pleased with this.) BREAK FREE OF STAR RATINGS!!! (The All Caps are still your fault.)
I find that when it comes to reviewing books, I’m either like, ‘I liked this book because… it was… good… and stuff,” ….or I write WAY too much and have to somehow cut it down.
I always wonder whether my reviews are actually any *good,* – like, are people actually reading this? And if they are, is it just to be polite? Or do they, somehow, inexplicably, actually find me interesting? Lol.
Star ratings are pain.😂The subjective part is what gets me, because like “good” for me might be “meh” for you and LIKE WE’RE USING THE SAME RATING??? IT’S HARD.😂 And I got blasted once for giving a relatively positive review but only 3stars and I’m just like “It was okay but I didn’t fall in love with it?? What’s the problem here??”😂
WHY ARE WORDS SO HARD THOUGH.
And omg I have the same thoughts actually…like are we just all saying “great review!” because we’re used to saying it or do we MEAN it?? CRISIS INTENSIFIES. *shares cookies with you to get us through this trauma*
This post is the truth!! I always forget the name of the characters, and I need to read the plot or other review to remember the names!XD
And when I need to send my review to the publisher or to the author… omg the panic. I always thinking (if the review is negative) that they are going to hate me and I’m like: why I can’t love this book like everyone else?
Thanks for this post <3
Names are SO HARD. I barely ever mention any names in my review except for the protagonist’s…because I’ve forgotten everyone else.😂And if the protagonist is in 1st person so their name isn’t usually used — THEN I’M SO DEAD.😂
You get all the brownie points for making this post relatable af, Cait. XDD I have thought and felt all of these things. WHUT ARE WORDS CAIT? IDEK.
I’M SO GLAD IT’S RELATABLE.😂 Obviously we reviewers should be given more cake for our efforts, right?!?
Why in TARNATION has GoodReads not enabled half star ratings yet?? Don’t they realize how much easier that would make EVERYONE’S LIFE? Star ratings are hard enough; some people put any book they’ve enjoyed as a 5 star, while some people only rate books that are omglifechanging as 5 stars; some people think 3 stars means pretty good, worth reading, others HORRIBLE BOOK WOULDN’T PAPER BY BIRD’S CAGE WITH IT. *shakes head* You’re right, reviewing books is hard.
BECAUSE GOODREADS IS DISAGREEABLE. Although I suppose I can’t yell too much since they finally gave us a re-read feature!🙈🙊 But I stillll am sitting here in hope of half stars.😂 That half star can make a huge difference!??
We ought to be pAID IN CAKE for our efforts tbh.
Hi! This post seriously made me laugh out loud like a thousand times!
I totally identified with most of the things you said, especially with the part of ARC reviewing. I’ve been recently sent my first two ARCs, and I am in the process of reading them. But I am jus so worried the whole time about WHAT will happen if I don’t like the book and what I will say when I have to write the review knowing that later I’ll have to send it to the author!
Totally agree with the hurting feelings part, too.
Thanks for this awesome post, and I also sometimes find reviewing to be hard, but other times easy. It depends on the book. Separating my thoughts on sections (like plot, characters, etc.) really helped me!
Loved this so much! Bye!
OH I AM SO GLAD IT MADE YOU LAUGH. My day is made!😂 *gives you cake*
It’s honestly terrifying reviewing ARCs sometimes…although I PROMISE publishers don’t eat your soul if you don’t like the book hhaah. But the fear is still a problem…and like I’ve been ARC reviewing for 3 years and I still often procrastinate sending back negative reviews.🙈🙊
Cait, oh my god. This is why Paper Fury is one of my favourite blogs. Because 1) You’re awesome so that helps 2) You write posts like this which are so damn relatable its as though you divulged deep into my brain and managed to make sense of it and 3) Because you have such an engaging and entertaining voice which shines through every post you publish, it makes it a joy to read your so aesthetically pleasing posts.
Honestly, as evidenced by the ghost town that frequents my blog, I struggle with all of the above when composing reviews and relate to this post on like a spiritual level! However, number 1,2,6,7 and especially number 10 (holy crap I’m not the only one who struggles to write a review two hours later and then fears she’s got memory loss, THIS IS SUCH A FREAKING RELIEF), are like my whole blogging life story. This is gold.
PS. I literally wrote and published like my first review in ages yesterday and I was like “HOW DO I EVEN WORD?” It was stressful, especially because I LOVED the book and wanted so badly to do it justice. So this post makes me feel better about that.
AFJDKSLAD THANK YOU, SUNNY. <3 This comment makes my day honestly. 😂😊💕 And I'm glad it's relatable and I'm not alone in my reviewing crises! And I'm also glad the posts are fun/engaging to read. Like that is my ultimate goal in life so I'm sooo happy it's working. THANK YOU.
Memory loss is the worst though, right?!? Like people tell me they're reading a book I recommended and I'm like "ok pls don't ask me about details because I'll die".😂 So embarrassing!
YES YES YES to this entire list! I think the only thing that doesn’t apply to me is the star-rating because I use qualitative ratings for my reviews. I am very new to the book review game, and I still have no idea if I’m doing it right. Are my reviews even about the book? Has my review captured the essence of the book? Are my reviews too short or too long? I have not included any GIFs…is that the wrong way to go? Are readers going to get the humor I’m trying to imply? Am I even half as funny as I think I am? Thank you for sharing the inner turmoil of writing reviews! I thought I was alone with those feelings.
Is there even a “right” way to review?!? I hope not.😂 I hope we can all just review however we want ADN HAVE FUN WITH IT…between all these crises though. haha.😂
YASS CAIT YOU KNOW EXACTLY HOW I FEEL!! Reviewing a book can be pretty tough sometimes, because I never can’t my thoughts together, or wander off thinking about … HOW PRETTY THE COVER IS!! Seriously, it’s like you read my mind…
Thoughts are like very disagreeable little beasts?!? Mine like to run wild in the streets tbh instead of being in nice little neat and sensible reviews.😂
#9 is sooooo hard tbh. Because like, just because you’re part of a marginalised group doesn’t mean you’re actually OUT about it. Which makes people doubt you. Sighhhh.
But anyway, reviewing is super hard. I would add #11 trying to find time to take book photos when it’s not raining/your sister actually wants to use her room. #rude
It’s so truuuue and it makes me really upset.😭I’ve had people say really vicious things about me giving my opinion on a marginalised topic and like…I just didn’t want to puke my life story in my review, okay?! LET ME ALONE TO GIVE AN OPINION ON A BOOK AND NOT TELL YOU EVERYTHING ABOUT MY LIIIIFE. *has small crisis* I wish the internet would stop assuming everyone else doesn’t know what they’re talking about. 🙈
I agree with #11. Or like, the sky being rude and raining on the day you plan a photoshoot.😂
Oh this is so fun. I agree with you. Especially with the rating issue. It is my most struggle in reviewing books. Thanks for sharing. I enjoy this so much. 😀
Star ratings are terrifying.😂 I mean, hOW DO WE EVEN DECIDE. WHAT ARE OUR THOUGHTS. CRISIS TIME.
I can relate to all of these, especially forgetting things…I feel like I need to check the author’s name about 20 times before I hit post!
SAME. And then I sometimes get the spelling wrong and I’m so embarrassed. Like I legit said “The Hunger Games by Sussane Collin” once and like…no cait??? It’s SUZANNE COLLINS how could you even. 😂
I’m finding get putting my thoughts k to paper seems to be harder and harder lately. I almost feel like I need to change up my style. Maybe mini reviews where I rant instead of fully thought out posts? The struggle is real.
SO MUCH STRUGGLE. I alternate between mini and long reviews! It keeps it fun.😂
You see – I don’t UNDERSTAND how you don’t love EXACTLY THE SAME BOOKS I DO??? Why are we not all complete brain replicas? THAT IS HOW THE WORLD SHOULD WORK, OKAY!??
I also have an issue of forgetting things with reviews. And then I remember like a week after I post my review something I wanted to say… Oh well. *sigh*
Writing reviews is HARD. Having an opinion is actually HARD (and not least because putting it out there on the Internet leaves you open to all the rubbish). Plus there’s the finding of all those poor chickens.
I have a serious crisis over ratings ALL THE TIME. How is there only 5 stars? Shouldn’t we be rating out of 100??? I mean, there’s just not enough between one and five… I constantly think back to other books I’ve rated 3 or 4 stars lately and then I have a minor meltdown. 🙁 But what do we do??? In my rating system 3 stars is a good rating, by the way. 🙂 It means I liked it. Didn’t love it, but I liked it.
IT’S SO WEIRD, DI. I MEAN, WHY AREN’T WE BRAIN TWINS???? WHY DO WE THINK DIFFERENTLY??? OMG. IS IT POSSIBLE WE MAY BE TWO DIFFERENT PEOPLE?!? *falls over under weight of this knowledge* 😂😂
And having an opinion IS hard. Especially if it goes against the popular one! I feel like the internet is also getting more uptight about not letting people have their own thoughts too? I have honestly been told off for using the sentence “I want to make my own opinion on this book” and I can’t even. It’s wild.
THIS!!!! All of it! Yes!
I’m so glad I’m not alone!😂
Paddington Bear might stab you in the throat for not liking marmalade. Or, actually, he might just eat it.
IT IS TRUE. If Paddington bear is really like a psycho instead of, ya know, a cuddly piece of fluff.
Yeah. Reviewing…can be so much of a hassle at times. And you definitely listed all the points I had in mind. Like actually writing the review. I hate writing, yet I write book reviews? I don’t know how that computes. And also it absolutely SUCKS if you have no thoughts. Either the book is amazing and you have nothing to say because it was SO GOOD, or the book was just meh and there is nothing to say. You really have to struggle through a book and have it be a mess if you want to write a great review on it, which just sucks you have to read said book in the first place.
And yes to #9. I’ve never been too open about my life experiences, and I’m always afraid someone will call me out as not having those experiences. When I have……. It really doesn’t help that my parents read my blog, and I don’t want to mention anything that’s private to me.
We bookworms are straaange creatures that’s for sure.😂 I mean, I DO love writing and I loooove writing my thoughts out, but the struggles omg. The struggles are REAL. And those books that are too good for words are so frustrating.😂I mean, how can I write a 1K analysis on a book I hated but I then have like 50 words to say on a book I adored?? And those are just “I LOVED IT”. Life is tough thb.
And agh, I struggle with #9 so much. I wish the interent would stop assume we DON’T know what we’re talking about and mabye give each other a little credit?! We shouldn’t have to air our entire private life out into the world to be taken seriously. It’s fair if people want to be really open! But it’s also fair if we don’t.
Oh my goodness Cait, you read my mind! Your posts are always so relatable!
Megan @ http://wanderingsofabookbird.blogspot.co.uk/
I’m so glad I’m not alone in this!!😂
Wow! 900-something reviews on Goodreads??? You are a machine, Cait!
And yes, the sad truth is that the larger your following, the more people APPARENTLY think they can be nasty and this won’t hurt you because it’s like they don’t think of you as a regular person who has feelings, too??? Ugh. Don’t get me started. Just ignore ’em, Cait. We love you. 🙂
Right??? Too many options! I tend to just wing my reviews and have no format whatsoever? But lists ARE an appealing option.
Blogging voice is THE hardest thing. I love yours but haven’t the foggiest clue what mine is??? If I have one? What I would LIKE it to sound like?? Yeah. Noooooo clue.
I get accused of being a machine very often.😜😂 But it’s been like 4 years so THERE IS THAT.
But omg it’s so frustrating ergh. I don’t even get why number of followers matter! I still chat/interact with everyone just the same (although I’m a bit slower lately haha) but I HAVE FEELINGS TOO, EVERYONE. I’m so grateful I know way more lovely people than haters though. <3 *tackle hugs*
I think you do have a good blogging voice!! I think it's distinct and awesome. 😀
Okay, well that makes a BIT more sense, then! 😉
Yes! Focus on the positive! So many people adore this blog and you! Don’t let the jerks get you down – they’re not worth it. 🙂 *hugs back*
Aw, that is so sweet, Cait! You da best!
I identify with several of your points. One I have is reading the book way before NetGalley wants the review posted; then I forget who the characters were, why I liked the book, and any quotes I may want to include. I’ve decided that as soon as I finish a book I will write the review. Copy and paste and ta-da, there’s your post for whoever asked for it. I have 20 book reviews to do and I’m sort of in a panic. I don’t have the time but, ha, I have time to read! I have been reviewing books for several years and LOVE Goodreads!
Omg I get that too with reviewing too early! I tend to submit it to Netgalley early and just have my review up on Goodreads. OR I FORGET EVERYTHING.😜 Goodreads is life. <3
Yes to all of this. I used to be good at reviewing – I look at some of my old reviews and I’m like, “I wrote that?!?!”. They were informative, they were quite long (which angers the Amazon force, who start going on about spoilers, when I have never, ever spoiled a book in my review, ever) and I liked them. But I feel like I’ve gotten worse. It just sucks. I feel like I read books but I don’t absorb them, so I don’t have any thoughts. Then I can’t get them down properly, when I *DO* have thoughts. I tried using GIFs and I liked it, but sometimes it was hard work trying to figure out what kind of GIF to use.
There’s just a lot of pressure. When publishers are sending you things to review and you have tons to read and I just feel so terrible about my reviews, but then on the flip side, I see reviews that are literally five sentences and I’m like???? THAT COUNTS AS A REVIEW? Are you freaking kidding me? I worry when mine are only three paragraphs instead of the usual four but some only write five lines?
Plus, as soon as I close the book, it’s like it’s gone from my mind. Character names, places, it all just disappears, like I’ve closed the book so it’s gone in my head as well. It’s so frustrating! Again, I feel like it’s because I read so many books. There’s just no space, I have read over 1500 books since 2009, and that’s just like MIND BLOWING. So I can totally see why my poor brain just can’t retain that info any more!
Amazon people are insane.😂 But omg I had someone on Goodreads accuse me of leaving Harry Potter spoilers…and he legit spoiled it HIMSELF in the comments and I hadn’t said anything in my review.😂 Some people are so dumb. It’s hard to internet with all these silly people.😂
I do understand about feeling like not absorbing them. I mean, I think it’s okay??? If you read + enjoy it = nothing else really matters. Some books can just wash over us and some can sink in. We should just let them do whatever and ENJOY OURSELVES
*dies of laughter*
*recovers*
Yes yes yes. Reviews are impossible creatures to tame and everyone seems to have better thoughts and words than me. They all wax poetic or say important things or uncover profound truths and I’m just like, “It was so good and I really liked it and go read it.”
#10. I relate to this on a deeply emotional level.
Also, I’ve never written about cake…
I’M GLAD YOU ENJOYED THE POST.😂 It’s so hard when people are so good at them and we’re here just saying “gooooo read it like what more do you need”.😂😂 I will not be being hired for a professional review job any time soon.😂
WHAT.
WRITE ABOUT CAKE, ZACHARY. WHAT ARE YOU WRITING ABOUT IF NOT CAKE.
Everything on this list is completely true.
Although I do tend to leave reviews until the last minute and then I have to skim read the book again because I can’t remember anything that happened, just the general sense of how I felt about it.
I have to review straight away or I forget everything gahhhh. So I understand that struggle so much!
Omg yes all of this but first of all I totally get the voice thing and yours is one I love! The enthusiasm, the yelling, the extremely memorable and unique word choice and synonyms hahaha. But yeah. Sometimes I have so much to say and it all flows and other times it’s so difficult?! Or I can’t exactly articulate why everyone should read it and love it so much like I do. A problem for me is I tend to like books for specific qualities (like we all do) but then my reviews can sound too similar even across genres. “The swoon, the banter! Character growth! Great action, such friendship!” etc. So it’s a struggle to make it sound unique and specific for THAT book. And the star ratings, omggggg. I even change them depending on my own mood. Each 5 star book isn’t equal, and neither is every 3 star book. Frustrating!! But that’s why I choose to use words to illustrate why *that* rating for *that* book. Anyway. WORDS! hahah.
I totally get that with reviews sounding the same too!! I DO THAT. Like are people going to get bored when all I do is rave about sass/stabbing or whatnot?!? *has life crisis* 😂 REVIEWING IS HARD.
Thanks for posting this! I completely agree with all of it (especially not remembering anything besides liking the book, Drives me crazy!). I know how I felt about the story and the characters, but I can’t remember their names, what they look like, or what even happened! Very annoying…
Having a bad memory must be a bookworm curse honestly.😂 We all seem to be wailing about it. *hi fives* WHY ARE NAMES SO HARD THOUGH.
OMG yes to allllllll of the above! Reviewing is HARD and slightly underrated work because so many people assume ANYONE could do it! Which I guess counts as another book reviewer problem, because it almost makes my job harder? Mostly because I want to feel like I’m actually good at my job, and not just because it’s easy 😛 AND DON’T GET ME STARTED ON STAR RATINGS UGH. Though I did write up something for myself that lists what each meaning means to me, so I read through that every time I rate a book. #reviewinghack
Bahah, I get it!! I think anyone can review, but honestly it is something we have to work on really hard to make them easy/fun to ready!! IT’S HARD. WE DESERVE CAKE AND PROBABLY A MEDAL.😂
YES! I would totally love that, but reviewing is fairly thankless work, in my experience.
Oh, Cait. How do you always say so perfectly everything that I’m thinking. This is just … yes. First of all, the comment about other people’s super-professional sounding reviews: I get really paranoid about that. I mean, I should be able to eloquently describe the book in a super-quoteworthy way, right? Problem is, even those start to all sound the same after awhile. And sometimes you just have no words. It happens. Still, I will never give up reviewing because I love it!
OH THANK YOU, NICOLE. This makes me happy that I’m not alone haha.😂 I see those people who get their reviews quoted in book and go “well, nope that’ll never be me” 😂😂
OMG Cait. You’re an INTJ, I’m an INFJ! Hahaha. Agree with all of these especially the number 10. Seriously I think I have a problem with my memory because I forget things like the what happened on the book so that I have a book journal and I will write my thoughts and add it with all the references just to make sure I didn’t miss a thing. HAHA!!
I feel like I have a memory issue too sometimes haha. 😂 IT’S JUST SO HARD TO REMEMBER ALL THESE BOOKS?!? But so long as we’re having fun. :’)
I totally connect to this. I’m an author and a book blogger, so it can get interesting when reviewing my friends’ books. Also, because I’m a writer, I so cannot get away with gushy reviews anymore. I’ve gone back and re-read/re-reviewed a few of my favorite Indie books and had cringed when I saw my reviews from 2009, lol. I can only imagine what it’s like for you, having so many people coming to you with books (btw-your collection looks AWESOME). Good luck! Obviously everyone loves your reviews no matter how much finesse is involved, because they keep bringing their books to you 😀 And that is very much cool beans!
I cringe when I read my reviews from last year let alone when I just started haha. SO I UNDERSTAND THE PAIN! 😂 And, aww, thanks! I’m glad people seem to like my wild ramblings.😂
Waaaay too many things for me to agree with. First and foremost, I love your style. You are hilarious and a breath of fresh air – please never change. I am always impressed with those who remember all the details of a book, because I am all about the feels. My struggles are similar. I have related with characters/stories because I had similar personal experiences, but don’t want to share all the details. I also struggle, because sometimes I feel that the make or break it thing in the book would be a spoiler, and I hate people who post spoilers. So, feel as though I am being vague. I also enjoy reading dissenting opinions about books I loved. It gives me a different perspective. We are not all the same, and come to the table with different backgrounds and experiences. These things affect our opinions of certain books, and I think reading those differing opinions helps me learn, grow, and understand a little more about different things. Awesome post! Sam @ WLABB
I’m so glad you relate and it’s not just me.😂😂 (and omg THANK YOU for your kind words. <3 It means a lot!) And I do just wish the internet would chill a bit about differings of opinions, because we ARE all different and we should be allowed to be that way and embrace different thinkings. <3
I’ll just say TRUE x 10, thank you.
I’m glad you liked it!!
I CAN RELATE TO THIS ON SOOO MANY LEVELS, CAIT!!! That thing you mentioned about using big words and stuff is legitimately true. I finish a book, and the scramble frantically for a pen and a paper to jot down thoughts about the book. Most of the time, I, myself cannot make any sense out of the notes that I make and it’s ANNOYING. WHY CAN’T I JUST GUSH AND WORD VOMIT ALL OVER AND CRY? #bookwormproblems 😂
At least you take notes!! I don’t even bother getting that far and I just flap about at the end.😂😂 SO MANY BOOKWORM PROBLEMS!!
Number 5, is so freakin true. Literally this whole post was like reading my mind. 😘
I’m so glad you liked the post!!🎉🎉
Some of this is pretty relatable. Number 6 really gets to me, because when I started reviewing again, I had a moment of crisis when I was trying to find my “voice” and now, I honestly just smash the keyboard and hope coherent words come out. As long as my thoughts get out into the world and make some sort of sense, right?
That’s totally fair.😂 I just smash the keyboard mostly too tbh. WHATEVER WORKS, I SAY.😂