Reviewing books can be a daunting task because it requires critical evaluation of the text and making a logical argument to support your point of view.
When assigned to write a book review, some students may feel unqualified to evaluate and criticize someone’s piece of writing because they have never written anything like that themselves and try to get help from professional writers from a good custom essay writing service.
Learning to write strong reviews requires time and effort, but although many people think that writing book reviews are more art than science, there are several steps you should follow when writing one. Read on our guide that suggests some effective strategies for writing book reviews.
What to Include in a Book Review
First of all, you should keep in mind that any review makes an argument so you should clearly state your opinion. Book reviews shouldn’t belong – they rarely exceed 1,000 words in academic journals and newspapers. Actually, they resemble other types of academic papers in their structure and have a specific thesis statement, introduction, main body, and conclusion.
Book reviews may differ in tone and style, and their content may vary based on the genre and the audience. However, there are some basic elements that should be included in all book reviews:
- General information about a book that is important for readers to know – the author, title, publisher, etc.
- A concise summary of the content – you need to describe the topic, its overall perspective, and if it’s a fiction book, you should briefly summarize the plot.
- Analysis and critical assessment of the book’s content – you should provide your opinion of the writer’s work and determine its strengths and weaknesses.
- Recommendations – speak about the overall value of the text and provide suggestions about whether the audience would appreciate it.
Before You Write
First, you should read the entire book. As you read it, you should take notes of the most interesting ideas and passages that you may quote in your review to support your point of view.
You should focus your thinking on specific aspects that may help you analyze the text – the main argument or thesis, the subject or topic of the book, key themes and ideas, the structure of the argument, etc.
You may need to find additional information about the author and the historical context to get a better understanding of the author’s point of view. Pay attention to the writer’s style and the use of the language in developing the main ideas. You also have to decide whether you agree or disagree with the author’s point of view.
Steps in Writing the Review
When you finish reading the book and making observations, you need to review the notes you have made and try to unify your impressions into a thesis statement of your future paper.
Then you have to outline the argument supporting your thesis statement. It’s critical to build your argument in a logical manner. There is no set formula for writing a book review so you may use different
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