You may have heard of the CAWPILE system – a rating system created by Book Roast, where you can break down different aspects of a book and rate them accordingly, to then have a total score which is divided and allocated to a star rating. The original system only breaks down the scores into full stars (1-5), and there are others online who have then broken it down further to include half-star ratings, however I have taken it a step further to also include quarter stars (Since I use StoryGraph, and have the ability to rate with quarters).

Although the original CAWPILE system was slightly more restrictive, it has flowed and been adapted over the years, and I’m choosing to rate them following the below letters;

C – Character/Credibility

A – Atmosphere/Authenticity

W – Writing

P – Plot/Personal Impact

I – Intrigue

L – Logic/Relationships

E – Enjoyment

You would rate each letter out of 10, add the total out of 70, and then divide by 7. This will leave you with your final score that is then linked up to a star rating. See my table below for how I allocate them;

Star RatingCAWPILE Score
0.25 ★0.382
0.5 ★0.764
0.75 ★1.146
1.0 ★1.529
1.25 ★2.059
1.5 ★2.588
1.75 ★ 3.118
2.0 ★3.647
2.25 ★4.176
2.5 ★4.706
2.75 ★5.235
3.0 ★5.765
3.25 ★6.294
3.5 ★6.824
3.75 ★7.353
4.0 ★7.882
4.25 ★8.412
4.5 ★8.941
4.75 ★9.471
5 ★10

This has honestly made scoring books so much easier. I’m no longer just rating books based on my vibes/general feelings, and now can focus on different aspects of the book to give it a more accurate score. I feel like my ratings (Since beginning to use it in July) have been a lot better, and feel more worthy.