How to Write a Book Review Essay for College

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Writing a Book Review

Summary:

This resource discusses book reviews and how to write them.

Book reviews typically evaluate recently-written works. They offer a brief description of the text's cardinal points and frequently provide a short appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the piece of work.

Readers sometimes confuse book reviews with book reports, just the two are not identical. Volume reports unremarkably describe what happens in a piece of work; their focus is primarily on giving an account of the major plot, characters, and/or primary idea of the work. Most oft, volume reports are a K-12 assignment and range from 250 to 500 words. If you are looking to write a book study, please run into the OWL resources, Writing a Volume Report.

By contrast, book reviews are near oftentimes a higher assignment, simply they as well appear in many professional works: magazines, newspapers, and academic journals. They typically range from 500-750 words, but may exist longer or shorter. A book review gives readers a sneak peek at what a book is like, whether or not the reviewer enjoyed it, and details on purchasing the volume.

Before You Read

Before you lot brainstorm to read, consider the elements y'all volition demand to included in your review. The following items may help:

• Author: Who is the author? What else has s/he written? Has this author won any awards? What is the author's typical style?
• Genre: What blazon of book is this: fiction, nonfiction, romance, poesy, youth fiction, etc.? Who is the intended audience for this work? What is the purpose of the work?
• Title: Where does the title fit in? How is it applied in the work? Does it adequately encapsulate the message of the text? Is it interesting? Uninteresting?
• Preface/Introduction/Table of Contents: Does the writer provide any revealing data about the text in the preface/introduction? Does a "guest author" provide the introduction? What judgments or preconceptions do the author and/or "guest author" provide? How is the book arranged: sections, chapters?
• Book Jacket/Embrace/Printing: Volume jackets are like mini-reviews. Does the book jacket provide any interesting details or spark your interest in some style? Are there pictures, maps, or graphs? Do the binding, folio cut, or typescript contribute or take away from the work?

Every bit Yous Read

As you read, determine how you volition structure the summary portion or groundwork construction of your review. Be ready to take notes on the book'due south key points, characters, and/or themes.

• Characters: Are at that place characters in the piece of work? Who are the principal characters? How do they bear upon the story? Do y'all empathize with them?
• Themes/Motifs/Style: What themes or motifs stand out? How practice they contribute to the work? Are they effective or not? How would you depict this writer'due south item style? Is it accessible to all readers or simply some?
• Argument: How is the work's argument set upwardly? What support does the author give for her/findings? Does the work fulfill its purpose/support its argument?
• Key Ideas: What is the main thought of the work? What makes information technology skilful, different, or groundbreaking?
• Quotes: What quotes stand up out? How tin can you demonstrate the author'south talent or the experience of the book through a quote?

When Y'all Are Ready to Write

Begin with a short summary or background of the work, merely exercise not requite too much away. Many reviews limit themselves merely to the showtime couple of capacity or pb the reader up to the rising activity of the work. Reviewers of nonfiction texts will provide the bones thought of the book's argument without also much detailed.

The final portion of your review will detail your stance of the work. When you lot are ready to brainstorm your review, consider the following:

• Establish a Background, Remember your Audience: Recall that your audition has not read the work; with this in listen, exist certain to introduce characters and principles carefully and deliberately. What kind of summary tin yous provide of the master points or main characters that volition aid your readers approximate their interest? Does the author's text adequately achieve the intended audience? Will some readers be lost or find the text likewise easy?
• Pocket-sized principles/characters: Bargain only with the most pressing issues in the book. You volition not be able to embrace every character or thought. What principles/characters did yous concur or disagree with? What other things might the author have researched or considered?
• Organize: The purpose of the review is to critically evaluate the text, not just inform the readers about information technology. Go out enough room for your evaluation by ensuring that your summary is cursory. Determine what kind of balance to strike between your summary information and your evaluation. If y'all are writing your review for a grade, ask your instructor. Frequently the ratio is one-half and half.
• Your Evaluation: Cull one or a few points to hash out virtually the book. What worked well for you? How does this work compare with others by the same author or other books in the same genre? What major themes, motifs, or terms does the book innovate, and how constructive are they? Did the book entreatment to you on an emotional or logical manner?
• Publisher/Price: Most book reviews include the publisher and price of the book at the end of the article. Some reviews also include the year published and ISBN.

Revising

When making the final touches to your review, carefully verify the following:

• Double-check the spelling of the author name(s), grapheme names, special terms, and publisher.
• Effort to read from the vantage point of your audience. Is there likewise much/enough summary? Does your argument about the text make sense?
• Should yous include direct quotes from the reading? Do they help support your arguments? Double-check your quotes for accurateness.

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Source: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/book_reviews.html