this post was submitted on 13 Jul 2026
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Do you normally read books with less than 4 stars? (programming.dev)
submitted 1 day ago by cactus_head@programming.dev to c/books@lemmy.world
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I struggle with this a bit. Even if the book is 3.98 stars, i view that as not passing lowest bar. I consider most 4 stars books to not be there time, but rather the number of stars is how i filter out bad books

Also, how do you use your stars? Do you change your rating often?

For me, it generally goes like this:

  • 1 Star -Either its so bad that its offense or i dnf it
  • 2 Stars - Either bad or mediocre, not really work any time
  • 3 Stars - An okay book with a couple of redeeming points
  • 4 Stars - A great book with some flaws that bother me
  • 5 Stars - An excellent book, i am jumping in my sits.
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[–] moonpiedumplings@programming.dev 3 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Similar to the other commentor who ignores stars and only reads reviews, I do something similar, but I mostly only read negative reviews.

The problem I have is that positive reviews too often just uncritically praise the book, telling me nothing about why the book is good or why it might be bad. (And the fact that bots are so prevalent only makes this phenomenon worse).

On the other hand, negative reviews often directly state what the reader disliked about the book. So, I hunt through negative reviews to find reviews that hint, or directly mention having elements of the book that I like/am in the mood for.

For example, one time I was in the mood for fantasy where the protaganist does magical research. So I found this one book and started looking through reviews, and I saw this 2/5 star review where the reviewer was complaining "MC never fights, they just research and grind in the lab all day". I started reading that book immediately, and I had a great time.