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When I rate Books

Tommy_A_Jones 09 Feb 09 at 4:19 p.m. GMT

When I rate books I start with 10 and take a point of f if I don't like the Characters - Like in Sparkling Cyanide  another if I don't like the plot  - Endfless Night, another if I wouldn't read it again - Endless Night, Lord Edgware Dies, TMORA and others,  another if it wasn't memorable - Halloween Party, Blue Train and another if there wasn't something that made me read the book for instance I loved the ide of the setting of COTT and Death In The Clouds and another if I didn't enjoy, Endless Night, MIE and Sparkling Cyanide come to mind I also take apoint away if I thought Agatha Christie didn't play fair (You know which ones I mean) Oh and I also took a point away if I thought it could be improved - Like if I think a Poirot book should have Hastings or Ariadne Oliver or if I think it could have done without Colonel Race or in the case of The Moving Finger I think that book didn't need Miss Marple and MIE should have had her, I will also add points if missing Papers or Jewels are involved or if someones dieing words are involved, I never give zero as I think every Agatha Christie book deserves 1 point for being an Agatha Christie Book and I take a pooint away if I only finish it on my second time of trying - like in Third Girl. So I don't add points I just take points away when I am asking myself if I liked the book. What are other peoples way of scoring? I put this topic here mas it includes all Detectives.

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12 replies

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Lone_Wolf 10 Feb 09 at 4:21 a.m. GMT

Like I alreay said:

0 - Ugh, what a horrible, badly written book. I pity the trees which were used in the process of making the paper for it.

1-3 - It's badly written, but it has some redeemable qualities, few that they may be.

4-5 - A mediocre work. It has some worthy parts, but not more

6-7 - Well, it was an enjoyable book, but I find parts of it lacking.

8-9 - A good and interesting book, well worth your read.

10 - OMG  this is one of the best books EVA!!!!!111!!!

hobbit 10 Feb 09 at 9:26 p.m. GMT

winnebago, I am confused. You say you 'will also add points if missing Papers or Jewels are involved or if someones dieing words are involved' but then also say 'so I don't add points I just take points away when I am asking myself if I liked the book'. Is it me or is that a bit of a contradiction?

When I personally score books, which I very rarely do as I feel it a little unnecessary, I usually follow the system that if I liked the book I think of reasons worthy of point-deduction and if I did not like the book I think of aspects which are worthy of point-awarding.

Hobbit

detectivepauljohn 11 Feb 09 at 9:02 a.m. GMT

Lone_Wolf

0 - Ugh, what a horrible, badly written book. I pity the trees which were used in the process of making the paper for it.

he he he =)

Tommy_A_Jones 11 Feb 09 at 3:51 p.m. GMT

Yes Hobbit I was confusing wasn't I I meant was I score loke this; Start with 10 and then; 1. Do I like the Characters? If so stay on 10 if not -1 2. Did I like the Plot? If so stay on current score if not -1 3. Was I able to read it 1st time around? if yes stay with score of not -1 (TZ and The Secret of Chimneys both lost a point here) 4. Was there something about the book that made me want to read it if yes stay with score if not take a point away - this can mean Papers Jewels, last words and if the murder takes place in a place where pewople can't escape like an Island, Train, Aeroplane. 5. Would I read it again if yes stay with score if not -1 Sparkling Cyanide anide, Murder is Easy, Endless Night, Lord Edgware Dies and TMORA all lose a point here aswell as The Big Four,but I have read COTT and ABC many times and will read T&T; books and BB books and Why Didn't They Ask Evans? again I am sure. 6. Were There Characters in it in a better book if no stay with score if yes -1 so ECN is rated lower than Mrs McGinty's Dead. 7. Could it be improved? If yes -1 if not stay with score. I take a point away in The |Moving Finger because it didn't need MM and take a point away with MIE becasuse the book needed MIE and in Sparkling Cyanide Colonel Race was useless so took a point away there and in The Man In The Brown Suit for the same reason. and I take a point away if the solution is unfair 8. Was it Memorable? I give all the T&T; ndle Brent Books and Why Didn't They Ask Evans a point here nand take a point away with MIE, Spartkling Cyanide, Halloween Party, ECR and The Big Four. 9. Did I enjoy it? I took a point away if I didn't and added 1 if I did, I must have had a brain storm sorry, I also put them in Catagories; Poirot's, Miss Marples, Tommy and Tuppence books, Bundle Brent books, Non-series books and Short story Collections.

squatty 15 Feb 09 at 11:42 a.m. GMT

Winnebago - that made me laugh out loud. That must be one of the most complicated scoring systems I've ever seen. I still dont really get your point about jewels. If jewels appear in a book, does that mean you automatically deduct a point? That seems a bit unfair on jewels lol.

Tommy_A_Jones 15 Feb 09 at 1:20 p.m. GMT

Sorry if I confused you squatty, I meant if jewels or papers or dieing words or mysterious messages found I add a point which is I suppose unfair to books which don't have those elements - I think they are called maguffins but I love those added extras I would also add to this part of scoring are the Detectives trying to discover who a person known by a secret name is like in N or M or at least one Non -series book or 1 MM, I agree it might sound confusing and I think I might have overlapped on some areas but the systerm works for me and other peoples system works for them and maybe if you end up thinking Ugh what a badly written book someone might feel differently, I feel let down if the spouse of a victim or the Host ends up being the Murderer but others might feel differently, I also felt let down (When you don't know until the end that the Murderer is married to the Victim that is different, Anyway I like the book I am thinking of it was the first that I read with that sleuth.

Pegleggy 20 Feb 09 at 9:01 p.m. GMT

I'm now aged 62 but first began reading AC books from around 14 years of age. I've read about 60 of her books so many times but have never had any scoring system. I always knew in my heart whether the book was good or not from the fright factor. I would start reading the story sitting in a chair right up by the fire, then as the story progressed through the day (usually a weekend as schoolwork done), mum would shift me several times so she could reach round to put coal on the fire. If, when bedtime came round I was huddled up in a corner with my back to the wall, then I knew the book had frightened me to death and I would hardly be able to take myself off to bed. We still had candles in those days in our old stone cottage and the dark winding staircase seemed to hide every murderer going. I had nightmares by the plenty but thankfully there was no H & S zealots around so I was left to get on with it. If anyone has suggestions of similar authors able to create this fright factor then I'd love to hear from them, but sadly despite years of looking I've still not found one to emulate AC.

HeiseiHolmes 24 Feb 10 at 6:03 p.m. GMT

Where do you think she didn't play fair? Most of the books are properly clued so that with a bit of deduction we can arrive at the killer. Personally I can't stand jewels, but that's just my humble opinion.

Lone_Wolf 24 Feb 10 at 7:34 p.m. GMT

Let's list our rating of all the AC books we've read, for fun. No explanations, just the pure magic of numbers. "Very Good" ratings higher then 7 are bolded, "bad" ratings lower then 4 are italized.

Sometimes I am able to say why I like or dislike a work, sometimes I don't.

The Mysterious Affair at Styles - 5

The Secret Adversary - 5

Murder on the Links - 2

The Man in Brown Suit - 4

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - 6

The Blue Train - 4

Murder at the Vicarage - 5

The Sittaford Mystery - 4

Peril at End House - 7

Lord Edware Dies - 5

Murder on the Orient Express - 7

Three Act Tragedy - 5

Death in the Clouds - 5

The ABC Murders - 10

Dumb Witness - 4

Death on the Nile - 10

Appoitment with Death - 9

Hercule Poirot's Christmas - 8

Murder Is Easy - 9

And Then There Were None - 10

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe - 5.5

N or M - 5

The Body in the Library - 6

Five Little Pigs - 9.5

The Moving Finger - 8

Towards Zero - 5

Sparkling Cyanide - 5

The Hollow - 10

Taken at the Flood - 6

Crooked House - 9

They Came to Baghdad - 7.5

Mrs McGinty - 5

They Do It With Mirrors - 5

Lone_Wolf 24 Feb 10 at 7:34 p.m. GMT

Cont.:

After the Funeral - 8

A Poclet Full of Rye - 6

Destination Unknown - 2

Hickory Dickory Dock - 5.5

Dead Man's Folly - 3

4:50 from Paddington - 3.5

Ordeal By Innocence - 5.5

Cat Among the Pigeons - 5

The Pale Horse - 8

The Mirror Crack'd - 5

The Clocks - 4

A Caribbean Mystery - 5.5

Bertram's Hotel - 2

Third Girl - 3

By The Pricking - 4

Halloween Party - 4

Nemesis - 6

Curtain - 5

Sleeping Murder - 7

Lone_Wolf 24 Feb 10 at 7:42 p.m. GMT

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And BTW, MIE didn't need miss Marple, IMO at least. If she were here, I'd suspect Honoria Waynflete immediately: "Hey, what is that Waynflete woman doing here? We already have miss Marple in the role of a smart elderly village spinster. That makes miss Waynflete redundant, unless there's something more to her then meets the eye". The reason I didn't suspect miss Waynflete was that she seemed so like miss Marple at a first glance. Adding Marple would cancel that out. 

Maybe that's why they completely changed the plot when they adapted MIE with McEwan.

MissQuin 24 May 10 at 4:05 p.m. GMT

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I think that the adapt of Murder is Easy was a travesty! The problem with adding marple, to non Marpl books, is that the sleuth already in them, becomes a spare part.

The Pricking of My Thumbs -Tuppence wasn't needed, so became a muddled old drunk.

Murder is Easy, Luke just seemed to aimlessly hand around, not doing much.

Towards Zero- same think, the detective in that (changed from Battle) was just agressive and unpleasant.

Chimneys- not seen it yet, but sound like Anthony Cade has little to do.

The Sitaford mystery- havent seen, but it supposed to be terrible.

The Pale horse, will proabably make mark Easterbrook ( great character) look foolish and unneeded.