Book Review Question.

by ProfPatriarch

Hey guys, I'm writing a book review for one of my grad classes and I was wondering if it's kosher to cite other book reviews in your own? We have a 1.500 word requirement so it's pretty long and I was hoping to flesh it out with some info I found through other book reviews. Anyways though, I'm just not sure if this is acceptable or anything like that.

sunagainstgold

1500 words for a book review is a beautiful number!

Honestly, your question is one I'd ask the professor. It's a matter, I think, of whether you're supposed to engage in the broader scholarly discussion of the book's topic, or more narrowly with this particular entry.

When I write capsule summaries (basically book reviews) based on my notes from a book, for my own benefit, I fill up about that many words with:

  • thesis
  • position in historiography
  • VIP source material
  • methodology
  • brief summary of each chapter
  • one or two anecdotes I found particularly compelling and want to remember
  • whether I think the argument works or not; maybe a place with room for more research if it's a topic that interests me