Professor Gary D. McElhany, Ph.D.
Book Reviews
Reading and writing book reviews and review essays are skills that historians and history students need to develop. As in any other writing, review writing requires attention to specific detail of a work identification of broader issues related to the work.
As you are reading and taking notes, the following sequence should help you identify, synthesize, and evaluate the book's or article's contents so that you write an effective review:
- Begin by identifying the author's point of view. What is his frame of reference and how does he view his subject? These may be implied rather than plainly states. (Hint: Often, in a book, the author will describe context and point of view in the introduction; in an article, in the opening two paragraphs.)
- Identify the author's major hypothesis. (Again, the major idea will probably appear in an introduction or early in the article.) A book-length study may have a complex of interrelated hypotheses creating its focus.
- What are the most important pieces of evidence (documents, invention, photographs, first-hand observation, maps, etc.) the author has used to substantiate the hypothesis?
- Examine the whole structure of the book or article: Have you identified the major hypotheses and the supporting evidence? Are there too many hypotheses for adequate or convincing treatment? Are some hypotheses asserted rather than supported? Is there coherence in the sequence of hypotheses and in their support?
- Analyze the quality of the evidence offered in support of the author's hypotheses: Are you satisfied that the evidence is used convincingly? Are the sources of information important and extensive?
- In the author's point of view toward the topic appropriate? Be sure you are reviewing the work the author wrote, not he one you would have liked him or her to write or the one you would have written.
- Do you think you will be able to find other works on a similar or related topic? Are there indications the work may be unique?
- Based on your earlier considerations, evaluate the work in terms of the number and appropriates of the hypotheses and in terms of the author's use of supporting evidence. Does the author present a convincing argument?
- If possible, compare the work to other works you have read or that you are familiar with. It is reasonable to expect that you will be able to read two or three additional books in the field or that you have read other works by the same author. You can, however, think about other courses you have taken and other historical and personal background to make an evaluation.
- Do you recommend this book or article to you reader (there, think classmates and professor)? Why? Why not? Is the work readable and intellectually satisfying? Memorable?
Organization
The actual structure of you written review will vary according to the length you are allowed. Many professional reviews of historical works must not exceed certain lengths, often 500 to 1500 words or less, because editors and readers want to get the picture quickly, accurately, and concisely.
Use the following in order to organize information clearly and efficiently.
- A brief summary of the work, including the author's point of view and major hypothesis.
- An assessment of the quality and nature of the evidence the author uses to support the hypotheses.
- A comparison, if possible, to similar works.
- A presentation of comments, if appropriate, about the author's presentation; readability, useful index, bibliography.
- A conclusion or closure which provides a final assessment and recommendation to scholars, students, and/or others who may want or need to read this work.
<1> Steffens, Henry J. and Mary Jane Dickerson, Writer's Guide: History, (Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Company, 1987), 61-63.
The following samples are available as Word documents.
Click on the link to download the sample.