2 years ago
138
When I’m not reading, 1 of my favourite past times is watching movies and consuming media astir movies. Among my favourite YouTube channels is WhatCulture, an online civilization mag covering film, gaming, TV and more. They marque apical 10 lists that nonstop maine down rabbit holes for hours.
Seriously, I ticker these videos capable to place astir each of their presenters by dependable alone. Recently, portion watching a video comparing Rotten Tomatoes spectator and professional scores, my hubby suggested I instrumentality the idea, but for books. I figured my friends Jules, Josh, Ash, Ellie, Gareth, and the remainder of the WhatCulture unit would enactment it.
Thus, I decided to excavation astir and spot if I could find immoderate YA books that critics and readers disagree on. I soon discovered that assorted hunt presumption and Goodreads perusals were time-consuming and yielded varied results. I began to regret my prime of topic.
Enter my ever-logical, engineer-brained hubby erstwhile more. “Did you Google ‘Rotten Tomatoes for Books’?” helium asked. Surely that was mode excessively easy, right? Wrong. Somehow, I’d ne'er heard of Book Marks, a tract created to delegate scores to books based connected professional ratings. Readers tin comparison their takes successful the remark conception for the books, but I mostly utilized Goodreads for scholar reviews.
With the assistance of my husband, Book Marks, Goodreads, and Google, I person frankincense compiled a database of YA books readers and critics didn’t hold on. Please bask this list, and don’t archer my hubby however overmuch smarter than maine helium is. He’s already the cute 1 — he doesn’t get to beryllium the brains of this cognition arsenic well.
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YA Books Critics and Readers Don’t Agree On
Book Marks uses a four-point system: rave, positive, mixed, pan. The standing is based connected astatine slightest 3 reviews from wrong 3 months of the books work date. Conversely, Goodreads uses a 5 prima strategy and anyone tin complaint a publication astatine immoderate time. As such, some books from marginalized creators person been unfairly reappraisal bombed. I tried to power for that successful my information by besides checking Amazon ratings and reviewing comments w hen books centered LGBTQ themes and/or main characters of color.
Additionally, Book Marks didn’t person a precise robust young big section, truthful I supplemented with different books via my chaotic goose pursuit crossed the web. Often, I utilized Kirkus reviews oregon School Library Journal for this. I volition enactment wherever that is the case.
Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Critics: Rave; Goodreads: 3.5/5 stars
Marketed arsenic a “feminist Lord of the Flies“, this communicative follows 3 girls astatine an isolated land boarding school. Their teachers and classmates person each died of a sickness called the Tox, that has made the satellite beyond the school’s walls deadly. Critics universally raved, calling it “excruciatingly beauteous and excruciatingly brutal.” Readers were much mixed, citing the 2nd fractional of the publication and the ending arsenic turnoffs.
The Queen’s Assassin by Melissa de la Cruz
Goodreads: 3.47/5 stars
Though astir 1,900 Goodreads users disagreed, critics loved this YA phantasy romance astir a warrior and apprentice falling successful emotion and uncovering kingdom-destroying secrets. School Library Journal praised however its “action-packed communicative captures readers’ attraction from the start, expertly weaving crippled twists, betrayal, magical elements, and traces of wit throughout.” Goodreads users took a drastically antithetic stance, with naysayers calling it basic, bland, and boring.
The Buried by Melissa Grey
Goodreads: 3.30/5 stars
This communicative takes spot successful an underground society, 10 years aft a catastrophe made vulnerability to sunlight achy and the extracurricular satellite dangerous. Critics enjoyed this claustrophobic fearfulness acold much than the 745 readers who rated it connected Goodreads. Publishers Weekly called it “a provocative dystopian offering” portion Kirkus Reviews described it arsenic “a dystopian John Hughes young big novel.”
Chemistry Lessons by Meredith Goldstein
Critics: Positive; Goodreads: 3.26/5 stars
I don’t cognize wherefore capable critics reviewed this publication for it to beryllium connected Book Marks, since it lone has 716 ratings connected Goodreads and a specified 42 connected Amazon. It’s astir 17 twelvemonth aged Maya attempting to usage her mother’s probe connected pheromones to triumph an ex-boyfriend back. Critics appreciated Maya’s quality development, the science, and the pistillate scientists. Conversely, readers didn’t similar Maya oregon her plan.
Modelland by Tyra Banks
Goodreads: 2.94/5 stars
I americium truthful grateful that our Book Riot editors made maine alert this publication exists. As an avid erstwhile Tyra Banks and America’s Next Top Model fan, I’m ashamed to accidental I had nary thought Banks had written a YA caller astir a cutthroat mountaintop exemplary bootcamp. I, similar critics and the 233 Amazon readers, find this terribly amusing. Publisher’s Weekly said “the operation of absurdity, societal commentary, and acquainted tropes makes it an enjoyable blameworthy pleasure.” Goodreads reviewers didn’t find it to beryllium immoderate benignant of pleasure, arsenic the astonishingly debased mean standing shows.
Act Cool by Tobly McSmith
Goodreads: 3.85/5 stars
August has the accidental to be his imagination performing arts school, but to bash so, helium has to contradict who helium is arsenic trans. Readers connected Amazon gave it 4.5/5 stars, portion Goodreads users gave it a respectable 3.85/5 stars. However, its Kirkus reappraisal was acold little positive. Despite its evident potential, the reviewer blasted its “maddeningly repetitive prose…unnaturally rendered exposition, and an overburdened plot.”
Wicked As You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic, #1) by Rin Chupeco
Goodreads: 3.41/5 stars
In this YA fantasy, a cursed prince and a almighty miss prevention a kingdom from the Snow Queen. According to Kirkus Reviews, it’s “a deftly executed melding of folklore and world grounded successful modern issues.” On Goodreads, however, readers reported that the publication tried to cram successful excessively overmuch overly analyzable worldbuilding and skimped connected the quality development.
Mary, Will I Die? by Shawn Sarles
Goodreads: 3.29/5 stars
It’s the cleanable look for a teen horror: an municipality fable with a creepy supernatural being everyone’s heard of. In this case, it’s Bloody Mary, who volition either amusement you your existent emotion oregon guarantee you dice young. Kirkus Reviews called it a “a deliciously disturbing, twisted tale.” Goodreads users thought the characters were one-dimensional and that the communicative wasn’t arsenic scary arsenic the cover.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Okay, truthful these past fewer entries are well-known books that are loudly loved and hated. This mega bestseller has astir 8.5 cardinal ratings connected Amazon and Goodreads, with mean ratings of 4.7 and 4.33 respectively. Unfortunately, critics were little taken with it. One reviewer for The Guardian called it weak, monotonous, boring, and unoriginal.
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
Everyone loves to hatred this book. I hardly person to constitute this. Reviews are rather mixed connected some Amazon and Goodreads, but the bestselling publication and movie franchise has not suffered from the ambivalence. Critics from a assortment of well-respected outlets specified arsenic The Washington Post and New York Times hated the underdeveloped protagonist, problematic relationships, and amateurish writing.
Writing this database was a operation of amusive and precise overmuch a symptom successful the butt. I privation determination was genuinely a Rotten Tomatoes for books, due to the fact that I cognize determination person to beryllium thousands of books that could’ve been connected this list. Regardless, ne'er fto anyone yuck your yum — work what YOU like!
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