reading and writing _composing academic writing_BOOK REVIEW

book review

1. COMPOSING ACADEMIC WRITING Reading and Writing

2. LEARNING COMPETENCY Identify the unique features of and requirements in composing texts that are useful across disciplines: a. Position Paper b. Book Review or Article Critique

3. BOOK REVIEW Composing Academic Writing

4. A book review describes and evaluates a work of fiction or nonfiction and offers the book’s overall purpose, structure, and style of narration to the unknown readers. It tells not only what a book is about, but also how successful it is at what it is trying to do. It is a sneak peek at a book, not a summary. WHAT IS BOOK REVIEW?

5. As a reviewer, you bring together the two strands of accurate, analytical reading and strong, personal response when you indicate what the book is about and what it meant to readers.

6. Hence, in writing a book review, you combine your skills of describing the content of the pages, analyzing how the book achieved its purpose, and expressing your most personal comments, reactions, and suggestions.

7. But before you start writing a book review, you have to read the book first and ask yourself these questions: What are the author’s viewpoint and purpose? What are the author’s main points? What kind of evidence does the author use to prove his or her points? How does this book relate to other books on the same topic?

8. How does this book relate to other books on the same topic? Does the author have the necessary expertise to write the book? What are the most appropriate criteria by which to judge the book? How successful do you think the author was in carrying out the overall purposes of the book?

9. A BOOK REVIEW Style A book review title should be based on your total impression of a book. Like creating passwords, strong titles might be “Drew girl power to new height”, “A night owl that seldom sleeps even during daytime,” “Beautiful illustrations with a story to match,” “Perfect for a weekend getaway” while weak titles are: “State of the art book,” “Five stars,” “A breath of fresh air,” “Fast and furious.”

10. COMPOSITION OF BOOK REVIEW How do you START writing a book review? Style 1. Identify the book by author, title, and sometimes publishing information. 2. Specify the type of book (for example: fiction, nonfiction, biography, and autobiography). Help your readers to review with perspective. 3. Mention the book’s theme. 4. Include background, if necessary, to enable reader/s to place the book into a specific context. 5. You may also use an interesting quote, an interesting fact, or an explanation of a concept or term.

11. COMPOSITION OF BOOK REVIEW What do you DO with the content? Style 1. For nonfiction books like biography, history, and the like: pay primary attention to the major points ( the argument ) the author is putting forth and to the sources the author has drawn upon to back up his/her point of view. 2. For fictional works such as novels, chick lit, graphic novels, manga: Pay attention primarily to the novel or book’s setting, plot, style, characters, theme/s, use of language and voice . Caution: Do not give away the story for no one appreciates a spoiler! 3. Provide your reactions to the book. 4. Describe the book. 5. Respond to the author’s opinions and analyze it. 6. Explore issues the book raises.

12. COMPOSITION OF BOOK REVIEW How do you CONCLUDE? Style 1. Relate your argument to other books or authors. 2. Relate the book to larger issues. 3. Tie together issues raised in the review. 4. Briefly restate your main points and your thesis statement. 5. Indicate how well the book has achieved its goal, what possibilities are suggested by the book, what the book has left out, how the book compares to others on the subject, what specific points are not convincing, and what personal experiences you’ve had related to the subject.

13. COMPOSITION OF BOOK REVIEW How do you REVISE the draft? Style 1. Allow time to elapse, at least a day, before starting your revision. 2. Correct grammatical mistakes and punctuation as you find them. 3. Read your paper through again looking for unity, organization, and logical development. 4. If necessary, do not hesitate to make major revisions in your draft. 5. Verify quotations for accuracy and check the format and content of references.

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16. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! Reading and Writing