What Are My Criteria for Book Reviews?

Not in a flippant, anti-intellectual kind of way, I promise. But the goal here isn’t to provide a full analyses with set categories and criteria. I think that’d suck out all the joy I set out to find.

After a while of not reading anything, I’m trying to approach this in a more fluid way. A book makes me feel what it makes me feel, makes me think what it makes me think. What it doesn’t, it doesn’t. These reviews are essentially the free-flowing thoughts and opinions of someone who wants to read for joy without totally closing their critical eye.

Of course, I want this blog to actually be useful to you after all. In other words, the reviews can’t just be a stream-of-consciousness breakdown, but I’m also not the biggest believer in the 5-star system. How could we possibly standardize what each star means for everyone? Instead, I start each review with a simple set of questions to give a quick overview, but with a bit more detail than a star rating. Below that, I dive into my complete review, with key points highlighted for easy skimming.

Though not a one-glance score, these overviews hopefully give you a quick sense of the story and whether it might be something you want to pick up.