How to write a book report

Book reports are short texts that describe the content of a book. They are informative, analytical, or critical when they include the reviewer’s critical appraisal. Book reports are usually found in newspapers, scientific publications or general interest journals. Here are some tips on how to write a book report.

1)     When you write a book report: start simple

Book reports usually begin with a heading that includes all the information about the book. If you don’t have specific rules for the header, write a standard one: title, author’s name, place of publication, publishing house, date of publication, number of pages.

2)     Dig a little

In order to put the book in context, it is a good idea to look beyond the book itself and to use other works, such as those on the same topics and those cited by the author as important references. To search for what has been written on the same subject, one can consult the notes and bibliography of the book and use online catalogs.

3)     When you write a book report: be critical

Once you have a good summary, you can now talk about the main themes and aspects of the book. Also discuss your critical analysis. Since this is the heart of the review, you need something clear and concise. Think about how the author develops major areas or points in the book. What areas does he or she cover? Why? It might be helpful to find gaps in the timeline or character development to help you get a more critical perspective. By locating well-developed elements in the book, you will be able to create good points for your review.

4)     Write a conclusion

Finally, write a conclusion to summarize your critical analysis of the book. If you have found good arguments in the book report, you will have no trouble writing the conclusion, as it will come naturally.

When you write a book report, it is ideal to take stock of the analysis of the work; to return to its general scope; to point out an important limitation that the review will have brought to light. All this in order to open new research perspectives.