On the first page of your review, include your name as well as a full citation of the book, which includes the
author, title, publisher, and publication date. When referring to specific quotes or sections of the
book/dissertation, give the page numbers in parentheses. Please be careful about your grammar, spelling,
punctuation, and paragraph organization.
Points to consider while reading and thinking about the book:
What is the author’s historical thesis?
What are the author’s key supporting historical arguments for the thesis?
What are the main sources used by the author to support the thesis and main arguments?
Are these key arguments and the thesis logical?
Do they reflect sound historical critical thinking and sufficient use and synthesis of an adequate number of
sources in terms of supporting evidence?
Does the use of primary and secondary source evidence reflect careful research and sound historical
methodology?
For whom does the author write the book?
Is the book well-written, well-organized, and carefully researched?
Main issues and information to address in your written review:
Identify for your readers the most important historical developments, arguments, themes, and sources of
evidence in the book.
Identify where the book fits into the historiographical framework/context of both the definitive/seminal studies
and the recent scholarly, peer-reviewed literature on the book’s main historical theme.
Inform the reader of the book’s merit as scholarly historical literature.
Highlight [with quotes, paraphrases and summaries] the sections of the book that you determine are the most
original and significant to the ongoing production of historical knowledge in terms of interpretation of source
evidence, methodology, narrative, and the support of historical arguments.
Highlight [with quotes, paraphrases and summaries] the sections of the book that you determine are the most
interesting and important to your specific research interests and project for this course.
Other topical and paper organizational things to remember to do in the paper:
State your overall evaluation of the book in the first paragraph/introduction (i.e., briefly state whether the book’s
strengths overcome its weaknesses or vice versa). Identify the historical thesis and key set of historical
arguments.
In the second paragraph, provide some commentary on the manner in which the author’s background affects
her/ his arguments and credibility. What are her/his qualifications? Does her/his background bias her/his
historical interpretations? Has the author studied this field of history over a long period of time?
In the following paragraph, provide a brief summary of the main ideas of the book. Try to connect this with your
evaluation of the book’s thesis and main arguments in your first paragraph.
In the rest of the review (two to three pages), address the following issues/answer the following questions:
Evaluate and explain the author’s purpose in writing the book.
Does this purpose affect the book’s usefulness and accuracy?
Does the author provide a good treatment of the book’s subject matter?
Sample Solution
