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LESSON 2
WRITING A BOOK
REVIEW OR
ARTICLE
CRITIQUE
PURPOSEFUL WRITING IN THE
DISCIPLINES
What is a Book
Review or Article
Critique?
A book review or article critique is a specialized
form of academic writing in which a reviewer
evaluates the contribution to knowledge of
scholarly works such as academic books and
journal articles. A book review or article critique,
which usually ranges from 250 to 750 words, is not
simply a summary. It is a critical assessment,
analysis, or evaluation of a work. However, take
care not to equatethe word “critique” to cynicism
and pessimism.
Book and article reviewers do not just share mere
opinions; rather, they use both proofs and logical
reasoning to substantiate their opinions. They
process ideas and theories, revisit and extend
ideas in a specific field of study, and present
analytical responses.
Structure of a
Book Review
or Article
Introduction
Critique
Summary
Review/ Conclusion
Critique (in (around 10%
(around 5% of (around 10%
the paper) of the paper) no particular of the paper)
order)
(Around 75%
of the paper)
WHEN WRITING A BOOK
REVIEWOR ARTICLE
CRITIQUE,MAKE SURE TO ASK
THE FOLLOWING:
1. What is the topic of the book or
article?
2. What is its purpose?
3. Who are its intended readers?
4. Does the writerexplicitly state
his/herthesis statement?
5. What theoretical assumptions (i.e.,
a scientific/logical explanation without
evidence) are mentioned in the book
or article? Are they explicitly
discussed?
WHEN WRITING A BOOK
REVIEWOR ARTICLE
CRITIQUE,MAKE SURE TO ASK
THE FOLLOWING:
6. What are the contributions of the book or
article to the field (e.g., language, psychology)
it is situated in?
7. What problems and issues are discussed in
the book or article?
8. What kind of information (e.g., observation,
survey, statistics, and historical accounts) is
presented in the book or article? How they are
used to support the arguments or thesis?
9. Are there other ways of supporting the
arguments or thesis aside from the
information used in the book or article? Is the
author silent about these alternative ways of
explanation?
10. What is your overall reactionto the work?
GUIDELINES IN WRITING A
BOOK REVIEWOR ARTICLE
CRITIQUE
1, Read the articleor book to be reviewedcarefully to
get itsmain concept.
2. Reread it to get the arguments being presented.
3. Relate the content of the article or book to what
you already know about the topic. This will make you
more engaged with the article or book.
4. Focus on discussing how the book treats the topic
and not the topic itself. Start your sentences with
phrases such as “this book presents…’ and “The
author argues…”
5. Situate your review. This means that your analysis
should be anchored on the theories presented by the
book or article writer.
6. Examine whether the findings are adequately
supported or not.
GUIDELINES IN WRITING A
BOOK REVIEWOR ARTICLE
CRITIQUE
7. Analyzed the type of analysisthe writer uses (e.g, quantitative,
qualitative, case study) and how it supports the arguments and
claims.
8. Suggest some ways on how the writer can improve his/her
reasoning or explanation.
9. Discuss how the same topicis explained from another perspective.
Compare the writer’s explanation of thetopic to another expert from
the same fieldof study.
10. Point out other conclusions or interpretations that the writer
missed out. Present other ideas that need to be examined.
11. Examine the connections between ideas and how they affect the
conclusions and findings.
12. Show your reactions to the writer’s idea and present an
explanation. You can either agree or disagree with the ideas, as long
as you can sufficiently support your stand.
13. Suggest some alternative methods and processes of reasoning
Completing a book review or article critique
means that you can pinpoint the strengths
andweaknesses of an article or book and that
you can identifydifferent perspectives. This task
also equips you with more skills to engage in
discussions with an expert and makes you a part
of a community of scholars.
Than
k
You!
