What is a book review?

Have you ever read a book, or had a book read to you, that you had a burning desire to tell others about? Think about that book. What was the title? The author? What was it about this particular book that really stood out for you? Would you recommend this book to others?

There are many books that you may absolutely love and there are others that you may not have enjoyed. Writing a book review allows a reader to share their thoughts about a particular book with others.

Characteristics of a book review

A good book review includes information about the book such as the title and the author’s name. It also includes a brief summary of the book with the reader’s opinion along with reasons to support that opinion. Notice the characteristics of a book review in the following example.

Book Review Destiny's Gift (Title of book) by Tarpley (Author and Illustrator name) 5 Stars (rating) (Summary.) Do you have a friend that is helpful to you? In Destiny's Gift by Tarpley, I guarantee you will find characters that you love to read about. In the first place the characters are helpful. Destiny and the neigbhours brought out signs to help save the store. The second reason is tht the characters are caring. Mrs. Wade showed that she cared by spending time with Destiny every Saturday. Most importantly, the characters are happy. Mrs. Wade stayed positive even through the store may close. To sum it all up, you will love the characters in Destinys Gift. They are helpful, caring and happy. This illustration (drawing of a woman and girl) shows the favourite part of the book. Review written by Emily F.

Brainstorming and planning for your book review

Brainstorming

Now that we have identified the main characteristics of a book review, let’s brainstorm some possible book choices for one you would love to write about.

Planning

Once you have selected the book you would like to do your review on, you are ready to move onto planning all the details!

Complete the Book Review Planning Template in your notebook or use the following fillable and printable document.

Drafting, revising, and publishing your book report

Drafting

Once you have made a plan, you are ready to begin drafting your book review. The summary portion of your book review will be written using this structure.

As you write, you may come up with other ideas to make your book review even better. The drafting stage is a great time to add in all those extra details!

Make sure to add transition words to help your writing flow.

Revising

Writers read their writing over and over to find ways of making their writing even more interesting for their audience. If you are all done your draft, it is time for peer editing to make your book review even better. Once you have completed your self-edit, if possible find a partner to peer-edit your book review with you.

Complete the Self-Editing and Peer-Editing Checklist  in your notebook or use the following fillable and printable document to help your revision process.

Publishing

Once you are all done editing your draft, you are ready to write your good copy that includes all of your revisions. Do you prefer using a computer? Have fun sharing your book review and getting someone else hooked on reading!

Reflection

How do you feel about what you have learned in this activity?  Which of the next four sentences best matches how you are feeling about your learning? Press the button that is beside this sentence.

Now, record your ideas about your feelings using a voice recorder, speech-to-text, or writing tool.