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Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
Paper instructions:
Book Review Paper
Book Review Paper Due: May 18
For the first paper in this course you will be required to complete a 1000-1250 word (approximately 4-5 pages) book review. You must choose a book that focuses on some aspect of American history from 1900 up until the present. While you may choose any non-fiction work of history focusing on this period,
I highly recommend that you send me the title and author of the book to me to have it approved before you write your essay. I will approve only college-level works of history. The easiest way to ensure that the book you choose meets this standard is to check it out from the library at Foothill College. The vast majority of books students choose are approved; I am simply trying to make sure that you do not accidently choose a collection of primary sources or a book geared to a high school audience. If, however, you do not send me your book information ahead of time and review an inappropriate book your paper grade will be penalized.
If you are having trouble choosing a book I am happy to offer a suggestion. Just send me a private message saying what topics you are interested in (for example, women’s history or military history or Native American history) and I’ll come up with a couple of possible titles. Another good way to find a book is to look at the end of the chapters in the textbook. You will find a list of suggested “further reading” at the end of each chapter. All of these books would be good choices.
Once you have chosen a book to review, you will write a 1000-1250 word essay analyzing the text. Because many students may think of a “book report” as little more than a summary of a book’s contents, I have used the term “book review” to emphasize that something more is expected. Perhaps this book review can best be thought of as a cross between a book report and a term paper because the student is expected to go beyond merely outlining the contents.
Although it is, of course, important to summarize the contents of the book as part of the review, the student should analyze it in some depth. In reading the book, the student should pay attention to the footnotes and bibliography, seek out information about the author, and consult the text and other books to gain a wider perspective on the book’s subject.
The most important aspect of the essays is to determine the thesis or main argument of the book and describe how this is presented and supported. Is the case convincing? Does the author seem to have approached the topic from a relatively objective point of view, or is a clear bias apparent? What sources did the author use? Is the author clearly arguing against another historian’s interpretation of the subject? What is your opinion about the argument the author is making?
All books of history have some argument in the material they are presenting. Try to identify what this argument is and give your opinion about the validity of this approach.
The main body of your review should be at 1000-1250 words in length (this is equivalent to at least 4 full pages in length, typed and double spaced, with margins no larger than 1 inch in width, using a standard word processing program). Every paper must have a full citation of the book being reviewed and a proper bibliography in the MLA style at the end if you have consulted any additional works.
