Here’s my arbitrary and overly elaborate rating scheme for books and movies:

1 Roach:
Ugh. To be stomped on or thrown away

2 Flies:
Better than a Roach, but still not worth your time.

3 Cicadas:
Good, but can be annoying at times. A good way to spend some mindless relaxation if you aren’t picky about a predictable plot or mysteries that produce evidence from nowhere.

4 Bees:
Worth reading. Has an engaging plot, humor, good information, or all three!

5 Membracids:
Buy this book and read it ASAP.

Some Books that have been reviewed at the Bug Blog:

• A Perfect Red (4 bees)
• American Pests (3 cicadas)
• My favorite 10 books
• Population 485 and Truck (5 membracids)
• Hive of Suspects (3 cicadas)
• Cicada Summer (The Plan 9 of Insect science fiction. Seriously.)
• Silver may Tarnish (2 flies. Even if a Goddess blesses your bees, they’re still a sucky plot device.)
• Books I read and liked in 2006

You can find other things I’ve written about books and literature in the Category pages.