Ratings scale

I've already written about my standards for reviewing, but I realized my ratings scale of one to five stars makes absolutely no sense without some idea of why I rate things the way I do. And so, what I'm looking for when I mark books the rating I do:

Five Stars—I want everyone I know to read this book so we can talk about how awesome it is. Reading this book changed my life. I thought about it when I wasn't reading it, and I see myself reading it again.

Four Stars—I greatly enjoyed it, and would recommend it to people who like that kind of thing. There were minor flaws and a few things I didn't like, but they didn't detract from my overall enjoyment.

Three Stars—I liked it, but I'm not going to be singing its praises from the rooftops. I can understand why people who do love it feel the way they do, but it's not for me. There were a number of faults, but not enough that I wouldn't recommend it.

Two Stars—I didn't like this book. I could barely get through it. I'm sorry I didn't listen to my gut, and discard this after the 100 pages I give a book to convince me I should finish it. There were more flaws than good points.

One Star—I couldn't finish it, or I'm sorry I did.. The themes were noxious, the characters unlikable, and I don't understand what people find appealing about it. I cannot strongly warn you enough not to read this book.