Rating Descriptions

(1) My bookshelf

The highest rating is when I’d let a book in my home live under my roof on my bookshelf. If a kid found it and read it on their own without me knowing about it, I wouldn’t need to be helicopter mom making sure they didn’t get anything bad from it. I am very choosy about what I would let live in my home because when I was a young reader I found books all the time and read them under the covers of my bed—in secret!

(2a) Needs Parent Supervision

A 2nd-tier rating is when the book needs parent supervision. These books tend to have a lot of value, but may need parent guidance or censoring. I’d let a kid check it out from the library; that way I can make sure they’re the right maturity; also I’d make sure we discuss or I know they’d be ok handling some of the issues the book brings up. In short: I’d want to know my kid is reading it and be able to parent accordingly.

*If a book is highly recommended but needs Parent Supervision, then I might rate it as a hybrid of both My bookshelf and Needs Parent Supervision.

(2b) I Like It, But…

Another 2nd-tier rating is I Like It, But… Some Families May Not. This is for when a book has issues that may bother some families, but these are not my issues, or I think I’d still let it under my roof despite feeling less enthusiastic about the issues. In my review I let you know what might be concerning so that you can decide for yourself.

(3) Not For Me

Not for me is for when a book bothers me, or I don’t think the good outweighs the bad (but some families might disagree; I’m a bit of a square), or the main plot and thrust of the book simply doesn’t have much in the way of redeeming qualities.