There are so many books written in the world! You can always find anything you need regardless whether you enjoy the history of aviation or international affairs, like reading romance novels, fairytales, history works on the Creole society or Central America, or want to follow the steps of the wise men around the globe. The choice is great! It would be easy for students to read whatever they want without being asked specific questions about this or that literary work. But, an average school curriculum always contains book review assignments. That is done because of several reasons:
Here, we are going to discuss how to compose a book review properly. After reading this article, you will know what the primary purpose of this assignment is. Also, we've prepared some tips on how the content of your review writing may vary depending on the type and genre of the literature.
In contrast to a book report, review implies not just information about the work itself, its author, or historical background but also a detailed analysis and examination of the text. Book review writing is more precise and thoughtful. Here, you have to:
A good review requires profound preparation and competence in the plot. Let's take a closer look at what are the main requirements and rules you should follow to come up with a refined assignment.
Firstly, set the main topic of your review. Write down the title of work and some general facts about it. Don't stop at the author's name - tell about the genre, date of publication, and any special features that are worth paying attention to. You can refer to the back matter, mention that this work is a magnum opus of the author (as it is with "The Scarlet Letter" for Nathaniel Hawthorne) or a winner of the British Book Awards 2018 ("Reservoir 13" by Jon McGregor). Smoothly transit to the description of the historical background. Be attentive on this stage since usually, this information affects the major theme and ideas of the work you are reviewing.
Then, knowing the plot and historical context, you can easily define the main intention of the author and the target audience. In what way is the author trying to influence the reader? Is it a story, a statement of facts, or a set of well-written pieces of advice? In this section, analyze the author's tone and features of their narration - what words are used? Are they precise enough? You can back your point by citing a book in APA format structure (if other isn't required).
Afterwards, proceed to the main topic and make your book review profound. Present the main idea of the literary piece and expound on what makes you think so. Describe the setting, main characters and their roles, analyze the major symbols and whether they are presented appropriately. Your task here is to emphasize the main elements and how they affect the reader's perception. If characters are representing different images or, for example, societies, write about whether they are developed well. Devote several sentences to the overall scenario. Do the described events go one by one, or there is just a set of different episodes? To make your ideas and assumptions reasonable, back them with quotations from the original text.
What differs a critical book review from the report is that here, you have to analyze the work from your own perspective. That means that after considering all the author's intentions and ideas, you, as a reader, can accept or challenge them. In the conclusion of your writing, avoid adding new information or turning your assignment into the movie review based on the screening of a certain literary piece. Mention your own impression from the work you studied and come up with a reasonable evaluation.
This is only a sample of a book review structure, and there is a lot of others available from the Web. To get your own paper that will be original or gain some inspiration, you can always surf the Internet. This way, you can use interesting ideas retrieved from the online articles in your own review.
Here are some tips for several genres: non-fiction, bibliography, and fiction.
To write a good review of a work in such a genre, consider the following points:
While working on a bibliography review, try to answer the following questions:
If you deal with a fiction creation, turn your concentration to the next aspects:
Approach your book review writing thoroughly, and get the paper you need easily!
