Star Ratings

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The Age of Stars

We live in the age of stars, not the ones in the sky nor the famous actors, but the system of ratings we issue for everything from toilet paper to movies. I’ll be the first to admit that this system comes in handy, especially when I’m in a city I don’t know and looking for a good place to eat.

The convenience comes at a price, however. There are distinct shortcomings to this system. A star rating without comment does not add meaning. What one person enjoys or deems absolutely essential may be completely insignificant to someone else. Bots can be used to create false ratings, so there’s that. Beware excessive praise; it’s likely to be technologically enhanced.

Curiosity and Tolerance

More to point, looking at the world this way, as experiences to be ranked on a system from one to four, can shut down curiosity and tolerance. It can deprive a person of the invigorating experience of having long-held assumptions proven wrong, or incomplete, or better yet, simply more complicated than we’d assumed.

Such moments are what I live for—those slap-in-the-face wake-up calls. I love how they open the gates, widen my view, and astound me. May I continue until death to welcome the challenge of fresh thoughts. If there’s a secret to living well, this might be it.

Reading for Uniqueness

For a couple of years, I was a fiction interviews editor for an online magazine called The Artisanal Writer. My role was to choose amongst recent releases of books of fiction published in Canada and interview the authors about craft. Unlike with conventional book reviews, my personal taste was irrelevant.

Instead of wasting time trying to decide whether I liked a book or not, I focused intently on what made each book unique. What was the writer doing that I hadn’t seen before? Which qualities in the writing or story had the most impact? Given the opportunity to ask, what questions about how that book came into being would prove most interesting?

A Two-Way Conversation

Sometimes the author would tell me as an aside in our email conversation that they hadn’t considered what I was asking and really appreciated the opportunity to think about it. Deeper inquiry is like that. It’s a two-way conversation that is good for everyone involved.

As I was preparing interview questions, I would read each book at least twice, often three times and sometimes four. Each new reading was more satisfying than the last. Looking for what is unique, paying attention to the how of things, takes more time, but it is so much more rewarding.

I’d go so far as to say reading this way is also encouraging in the full sense of the word. To see possibilities beyond what I’d assumed, fills me with courage. It means there is always more I can learn or try. Nothing is impossible? Maybe. Oh my.

A Change of Mind

Let’s stop for a moment and consider the binary nature of likes. Yep, whether a thumbs-up, a check-mark, or a big juicy heart, the choice is so oversimplified it is practically meaningless. We have been duped, I’m just saying. My hope is that we do not forget the benefits and joys of dialogue, of asking questions, of making observations and challenging each other, of heaven forbid—changing our minds. What kind of magic might that unleash upon this messed up world? I wonder.

What if we reopened ourselves to more fully experiencing, not only books, but life? This is how I enjoy living and it’s why I have decided to no longer give star ratings for books. Please don’t think this was an easy choice. I’m very aware of the potential uplift stars can give authors. Instead, when I feel moved, I gather my thoughts and reactions and share them as comments. I try as much as possible to stay away from the like/don’t like binary or the three versus four stars internal debate. Instead, I ask myself if I might have missed something. And if necessary, I read the book a second time.

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