LM_NET: Library Media Networking
Sally Rathbun rathbun@tenet.edu
Ore City I.S.D. Library phone: 903-968-3300
P. O. Box 100 fax: 903-968-3797
Ore City, Texas 75605
I learned to write book reviews in a LS class. Two different instructors
wrote 2 different ways- one as a kind of teaser, not telling the ending.
the other was more like a sumary. None of these used anything but examples.
I have loaned my materials to another student. I do have a book called The
New Booktalker, by Joni Richard Bodart,ed/ The booktalkes are by dif.
people and tend to follow the review form. To me, the best way to learn is
to read others, remember to make the book appealing, and to limit to about
75 words. sorry I am no more help.
Sally Rathbun rathbun@tenet.edu
Ore City I.S.D. Library phone: 903-968-3300
P. O. Box 100 fax: 903-968-3797
Ore City, Texas 75605
I just realized bought this book last month at a conference. I got it
from a texas vendor, Southwest Book Company in Stafford Te. Sorry I dont
have their address. it covers many different kinds of literature--looks
good. sally
Sorry you didn't get any responses on writing book reviews. I
think one of the problems may have been that, if you are writing for a
publication, the guidelines for those reviews vary from publication to
publication. Even within one of our leading library journals, there
is a different set of guidelines for each of the review columns. Part
of the problem may be that there can be so many different ways to
approach a review. I've done reviews for two different publications
and both wanted reviews to be done with varying criteria, length, and
even what to select to review. It gets to be complicated! Good luck,
Barbara Weathers, Duchesne Academy
Tracy Fitzwater, Librarian/Teacher
tfitz@orca.esd114.wednet.edu
Crescent School District
Joyce, WA
I wrote book reviews for a few years for Linworth Publications. When you
start writing for them, they send you guidelines for writing fiction,
nonfiction, and media. Of course, their guidelines are specific for their
publications, but it did help.
Anastasia Suen
Poet
forsuens@flash.net
I would recommend that you look in back issues of Writer's Digest and The
Writer. You might also want to skim the "how-to-write" section (800's).
Good luck! Anastasia
Tammy Dineen, Library Media Specialist
Lomira High School
Lomira, WI
tammyd@lomir.k12.wi.us
I remember seeing a lot of articles on the topic in the past but can't
remember where. I did a quick search on Wilsondisc and came up with a
few remotely possible articles. I've attached them in a text file.
Below are a few books I found on the Wisconsin Union Catalog (WISCAT).
Again I don't know if they would apply to what you need but perhaps it's
something to start with. Some of the copyright dates are a bit
old...there may be newer editions out.
"Writing book reviews" by John Drewry, c1974 Greenwood Press
"Book reviewing: a guide to writing book revies for newspapers,
magazines, radio, and television" edited by Sylvia Kamerman, c1978, The
Writer
"Reading Books for Pay" by Revecca Harris, c1995, Clarendon Books.
"A short guide to writing a critical review" by Eliot Allen, c1978, E
Edwards Press
"From cover to cover: evaluating and reviewing books for children" by
Kathleen Horning, c1997, HarperCollins (this may not be actually on
writing them but may have good info you need to include on writing them)
1 RDG
AUTHOR: Gutin, JoAnn C.
TITLE: Becoming a book reviewer
SOURCE: The Writer (ISSN:0043-9517) v 109 p 18-20 October '96
2 RDG
AUTHOR: McCombie, Brian
TITLE: Breaking into book reviewing
SOURCE: The Writer (ISSN:0043-9517) v 109 p 17-19+ June '96
4 RDG
AUTHOR: Hower, Edward
TITLE: Reviewing books
SOURCE: The Writer (ISSN:0043-9517) v 106 p 24-6+ December '93
13 RDG
AUTHOR: Aubrey, Bryan:1949-
TITLE: Getting started in book reviewing
SOURCE: The Writer (ISSN:0043-9517) v 104 p 18-20+ November '91
14 RDG
AUTHOR: Gastel, Barbara
TITLE: A strategy for reviewing books for journals
SOURCE: BioScience (ISSN:0006-3568) v 41 p 635-7 October '91
CONTAINS: illustration(s)
15 RDG
AUTHOR: Abelson, Philip H.
TITLE: Book reviews in Science
SOURCE: Science (ISSN:0036-8075) v 252 p 897 May 17 '91
18 RDG
AUTHOR: Miles, Jack
TITLE: On reviewing popular books
SOURCE: Publishers Weekly (ISSN:0000-0019) v 237 p 209 July 27 '90
CONTAINS: portrait
19 RDG
AUTHOR: Birkerts, Sven
TITLE: The reviewer's craft
SOURCE: The Writer (ISSN:0043-9517) v 103 p 15-17+ June '90
Tammy Dineen, LMS
Lomira High School
Lomira, WI
tammyd@lomira.k12.wi.uw
Elizabeth Letterly wrote:
> It's called "From Cover to Cover: Evaluating and Reviewing Children's
> Books," 1st ed., Harper Collins, 1997. ISBN 0060245190 or 006446167X (pbk).
This book is available through Follett's Tidal Wave ordering software.
Price is $21.21.
Linda Huskey
Director of the Library
The Hill School
717 E. High Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
lhuskey@thehill.org
(610) 326-1000 ext. 7235
(610) 327-0283 FAX
Okay, you shamed me into actually looking this up! We've done a handout
for our American History students (with the assistance of a teacher who is
no longer at our school) that I have *yet* to get up on my web page, and
althought it's rather specific, it may be of help to you. Here's the
gist:
HISTORICAL BOOK REVIEWS
Why:
Historical book reviews often give information about the author, a summary
of the book's contents, comparisons to other works in the field, and of
course, valuative comments. Surveying a number of reviews can help
identify the major themes, strengths, and limitations of the work, as well
as provide an overview of the critical reception of a book. Reviews
themselves can range from one paragraph to several pages, from popular to
scholarly, or be part of a comparative essay.
{Here we include lots about where to find reviews in our library}
Suggested Outline of the Review: (taken from: Jackson, Harvey, H. and
Bradley R. Rice. _Study Guide to Accompany American History: A Survey_.
8th ed. 2 vols. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1991. 1:149-50.)
I. Introduction
A. Purpose of the book
B. Author's qualifications and viewpoint
II. Critical summary
A. Thesis of the book
B. Summary of contents, indicating how the thesis developed (Use
examples. While this will generally be the longest part of the review,
you should make sure that your paper does not become a mere summary
without critical analysis.)
C. Author's use of evidence to support the thesis and secondary
points
III. Style and presentation
A. Organization of the book
B. Writing style (word choice, paragraph structure, wit,
readability, length, etc.)
C. Use of aids (photographs, charts, tables, figures, etc.)
IV. Conclusion
A. Historical contribution of the book (How does the book fit
into the prevailing interpretation of the topic? Does it break new
ground? Does it answer a troublesome question? Does it revise older
interpretations: You may need to consult other sources or reviews when
considering this point.)
B. Overall worth of the book (Would you recommend it? For what
type of audience would it be best suited? Did the author accomplish the
intended purpose?)
Hope this helps!
------------------
Kay Ellis
Library Media Specialist
Hannibal High School
kellis@hannibal.k12.mo.us
LM_NET
Archive Home