Poll

I would love to see half stars. Some books only deserve a half star to begin with...oops?

Yes, please do half stars!

I think it's fine the way it is. However, I would love an indifferent option. Instead of either "like" or "didn't like", I would appreciate an option for books that I didn't feel one way or the other about.

I have been whining for half stars since I started here.

No way!

I have no idea why this is, but I ALWAYS want to give half stars, 2.5, 3.5, 4.5 etc rather than 2, 3 or 4. Illogical I know.

So yes, half stars please

The correspondence of stars with words should also be changed. I don't give (only) 3 stars to a book I like and 2 stars for an OK book!! Come on - an OK book should get 3 stars (Two and half would be even better)

I think the five star rating is oversimplified and relative. It seems everybody is assigning different significance to the stars. I think the meanings of the different ratings should appear as hints so that readers are reminded what they mean. A lot of people give three stars to books they like while for others it means "average" or "not good enough".

YES!! And they should have a 10 star ratings instead of only 5!!!

Yeah. A 10 star rating and better hints should improve the current rating system (which is useless in its current form)

I'm not so sure the 10 star idea is good. I'd personally be boggled as to how to use it. It's OK when a book is excellent or extremely poor but how about all the books in between.

I like five stars but half stars would be great. I would need to go back and rerate.

YES YES YES!

Half stars would be great. Sometimes it's really hard to choose between one rating and another and being able to give something a half star would help immensely.

Half-stars would be awesome!

The problem is all the current stars would be worthless. You would be needed to upgrade your vote to each book. I'm game because there is a lot of different between a 3.5 book from giving it a 3 or 4.

I think deciding the grade we want to give is away better, it is like giving more freedom for us to choose and freedom is great! :)

I'd love half stars, but they've said numerous times that it won't happen. Maybe now that Amazon owns it, but it's doubtful.

not only would I like half stars, i'd like something for no stars or indifference as well.

I review for a site that allows 1/2 stars and it rates the books more realistically.

Half stars would be a dream come true!

That's a defo YES then lol!

Eyehavenofilter wrote: "I would love to see half stars. Some books only deserve a half star to begin with...oops?"

I agree....=)

On my blog, I rate from E- to A+. Half stars means that if somethings is a B+ read I can give it 4.5!

Definitely! That would be like grading without minuses or pluses. There's a difference between a B and a B+. I end up putting the actual rating in my review and having to agonize over rounding up or down in the actual stars granted.

Half stars would be great .. I usually round up or down depending on the read and include this in my reviews.. would be better to have the option available

First it's half stars....then would some people want 1/4 stars??? I think simple is best. Just leave it alone. The Goodreads staff, I think have enough to do with just running this website, do we really need to be so picky? That's just my opinion, though. I know I'm in the minority.

I picked one of the half star choices but I also like the idea of being able to mark it as indifferent.

I have been stuck on what to rate a book so many times. Adding half star ratings would help SO much. Plus, most people do it already anyway. Why not make it official. If you don't like it, you don't have to use it.

I prefer 10-stars rating ...

I'd prefer an entirely different rating system, as 1-5 stars just doesn't seem to be much of a difference. But if I have to settle for getting half stars then I'm cool with that, as I think that .5 star would help a little.

I like the 1/2 star idea and would also like an indifferent or DNF. I don't think it is always fair to give 1 or 2 stars to something I couldn't finish just because it did not interest me. It may still be a great book to someone else.

I prefer to have rating out of 10 vs half stars. Either way, a bit more variety would be better.

Yes, half stars would be awesome!!! :-D

Yes!

Definitely YES!!!! :)

Half stars would be great!

YES!

A 10 star rating system is the SAME as a 5 star rating system with half-stars!! And YES, it would be great!

Yes

I am not really sure about half stars but I would like to see a wider classification of the present system. Most books I like (or in any case find some redeeming qualities) so I seldom decide one and very often select two. There is a very big gap between like and really like and almost as large between really like and awesome. I think these areas should be covered.

Erik wrote: "A 10 star rating system is the SAME as a 5 star rating system with half-stars!! And YES, it would be great!"

So true, Erik. :)

I don't see them implementing 10 stars because it will mess up the system they currently have - but adding half stars should only change things for people who want it. People who are not interested in half stars can keep doing whatever they had been doing in the past and those of us who want half stars could re-rate the books who needed it - which wouldn't be all of them because I also rate books with 3 stars, etc.

Half-stars please!

Don't do 10 star system. That would mess up the whole system and 5 stars is basically the same as 10 stars really. But I would really like the half stars.

Yes I'd love to have half-stars

It should have been implemented long ago.....

I would really appreciate the option to rate a book with zero stars. Sometimes I pick up unbelievable bad written books that giving them one star just hurts -- but I want to rate every book I read. So I have to give them this one star which in turn distorts my average rating.

Please, please don't.

The simple star rating system at Goodreads is one of the best on the internet and one of its major draws.

By setting the "two star" level at "OK", i.e. I'm indifferent, there are already three levels of liking a book to choose from. That can be tough enough as it is at times.

Then there would be the problem of having to re-rate hundreds of books to fit the new rating system.

This is the worst idea GoodReads has had for quite a while.

Hi Lee,
It's my understanding that this isn't a Goodreads idea or poll. The poll was set up by a regular Goodreads member.

Terri wrote: "Hi Lee,
It's my understanding that this isn't a Goodreads idea or poll. The poll was set up by a regular Goodreads member."

Ah, how odd. Thanks!