Each student must submit one critical book review. The length of the review
should be approximately
1500 words. The review will count 20% of your final grade. The book must be a
scholarly history and the topic of the book must relate to Texas History.
Please get your book approved by me before you begin reading.
It is important that you compose your book review based upon the following
guidelines, as this is not a "book report" in the traditional sense.
This is a critical/analytical paper that should address these concepts:
1) title of the book - author of the book - any available information on the
author - type of book (biography, autobiography, oral history, anthology, etc.)
2) subject area of the book and time frame that it
covers
3) scope of the book (political, social, economic history?) and the
geographical focus of the book
4) organization of the book (by topics, ideas, people, chronological?)
5) author point of view and emphasis (liberal,
conservative, pro, con, other?)
6) author thesis (basic points, assertions, arguments,
perspectives, etc.)
7) critique of the author's success in promoting the thesis
8) your personal evaluation of the book
9) your personal evaluation of the author's style, organization, readability,
and effectiveness
10) specific examples of important/valuable concepts and ideas that you learned
from the book.
THIS BOOK REVIEW IS MANDATORY. IT COUNTS 20% OF YOUR GRADE. GET APPROVAL FROM
ME BEFORE YOU BEGIN!!
Book requirements:
1) The book must be a non-fiction scholarly history.
2) The book must relate to a Texas person, event, or concept.
3) The book cannot be a novel, children’s book, pictorial, or textbook.
Suggestions for finding a book:
1) Browse through the textbook and identify people or events that might interest you, then go to that section in the library and look at books that are similar.
2) Any book by the famous Texas writer J. Frank Dobie is acceptable.
3) Personally, I like biographies – choices can range from Stephen F. Austin to Juan Seguin to Barbara Jordan to Willie Nelson…from cowboys to oil millionaires to politicians to musicians to Native American leaders.