book review of any educational book

• Reference Manager
• Simple TEXT file

People also looked at

Book review article, book review: writing about learning and teaching in higher education: creating and contributing to scholarly conversations across a range of genres.

• School of Psychology, College of Liberal Arts, Wenzhou-Kean University, Wenzhou, China

A Book Review on Writing about Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Creating and Contributing to Scholarly Conversations across a Range of Genres Mick Healey, Kelly Matthews, and Alison Cook-Sather (United States: Center for Engaged Learning Open-Access Books, Elon University, ), 2020, 403 pages,ISBN: 978-1-951414-04-7

Summary of the Book

This book is unique and distinct in more than one way when compared to other texts that guide academic writing in a straightforward and mechanical manner.

The book offers a vicarious learning approach for faculty, staff, and students new to and experienced in writing about learning and teaching. It encompasses lived experiences of seasoned and new academics, graduate students, and undergraduates from different parts of the world, which serves as an informational as well as a motivational source for its audiences in forging their identities as authors.

The content of this book develops systematically in a scholarly yet personal way and inspires readers to be reflective and introspective as part of developing as authors. This approach not only adds meaning to the purpose of writing but provides directions to authors to develop their identities by adopting conscious practices towards writing about teaching and learning in multiple genres. The contemplative and systematic approach presented through the book chapters in six parts opens new ways of thinking about teaching and learning by invoking reflection, engaging in existing conversations, and creating your own dialogue. The book proposes that “writing is a subjective and complex human experience through which people bring diverse perspectives to bear on the practice of learning and teaching” (p.330) and forge their professional identities.

Evaluation of the Book’s Content: Content and Style

The book is set against the background of diverse human perspectives and their value and contribution to the dialogue about teaching and learning. Thus, in part one of the book, the authors begin by sharing their positionalities in terms of who they are as “people, scholars, and writers” (p.10). Their personalized introduction sets the stage for readers to pause and locate their own positionalities as scholars and in what ways they would like to embrace thinking and writing about teaching and learning. The most significant section of this part of the text is the authors’ self-reflection on writing this book, which can be instrumental for many readers own writing.

By considering writing about teaching and learning as a tool for self-learning, self-discovery, and transformation to forge their identities, part two of the book stimulates writers in an intellectual as well as emotional sense about their scholarly work and about to whom and how would they like to communicate. A list of questions, for example, How do you see yourself starting or continuing to engage in scholarly conversations about learning and teaching in higher education across a wide range of genres? (p.21) come across as extremely valuable. The introspective approach helps authors clarify their values and forge identities as writers—an important element that guides powerful written communication and sets it apart from the mechanical writing process.

To continue the process of introspection and preparation to engage in the dialogue, part three of the book explains the underlying motivational process for writing about teaching and learning, which essentially emanates from the identity of being a writers and it prepares readers to think about the precursors of writing by seeking answers to questions such as: What is the motivation behind your writing? What are your preferred outlets for publication? Would you work alone or in collaboration? (p.51). Readings from this section lay a solid foundation for the authors and pave a way to move forward. The final section of this part is unique and rare in similar types of publication. It discusses important criteria for choosing an appropriate outlet in alignment with technical, motivational, and personal preferences of authors by providing authentic information about a variety of journals of teaching and learning.

Acknowledging the diversity of conversation in teaching and learning i.e. multiple disciplines and forms and their contribution in developing our professional identities, part four of the book offer insights on writing for eleven different genres. These genres range from conventional writing, such as empirical, theoretical, and conceptual articles, to non-traditional forms of writing comprising stories, social media, and applications for teaching fellowships, and awards to inspires academics to think in unusual and innovative ways about writing and joining in the dialogue about teaching and learning in higher education. The salient elements of the writing genres are discussed in an active and animated fashion, and the inclusion of reflections from a wide range of scholars is not only informative but also motivational.

Part five provides practical and meaningful advice on priming for writing activities. This section also adopts an animated approach to communicate with readers by asking introspective questions to guide their writing. The discussion ranges from simple topics like when and where to write to more complex topics like how to assert your voice and seek critical feedback to enhance output. Finally, the Part six focuses on making writing public and participating in scholarly conversations on learning and teaching. Besides regular advise on choosing an outlet and submitting a manuscript, the section discusses strategies for revising the manuscript and, more importantly, promoting the published work in effective ways.

Discussion of the Book’s Content in Light of the Current Needs of the Community: Merit

The book offers merit in two powerful ways. One, it inspires readers and offers them the courage to expand their scholarly horizons by adopting new and unconventional ways of writing and communicating about teaching and learning in higher education. The traditional ways of studying pedagogy and andragogy are grounded in a unidimensional and highly structured empirical approach. To advance the understanding of teaching and learning, it is imperative to include diverse perspectives by listening to multiple voices as they share their subjective experiences of human learning and its underlying processes.

Two, the reflective and introspective approach offered in this book suggests that writing for teaching and learning that integrates personal values and practical approaches can be a potential tool for practitioners to forge identities for themselves by engaging in dialogue with self and others. Research has established that professional identity of teachers is well developed among those who have gained a greater sense of self-knowledge through exploration of their values and beliefs ( Friesen and Besley, 2013 ).

The book, along with its online resources gets too lenghty which may prompt readers to skip some sections. Nevertheless, it is a valuable resource for anyone interested in teaching and learning about higher education.

Author Contributions

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The author declares that the work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Friesen, M. D., and Besley, S. C. (2013). Teacher identity development in the first year of teacher education: a developmental and social psychological perspective. Teach. Teach. Edu. 36, 23–32. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2013.06.005

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

Healey, M., Matthews, K., and Cook-Sather, A. (2020). Writing about learning and teaching in higher education: creating and contributing to scholarly conversations across a range of genre. United States: Center for Engaged Learning Open-Access Books, Elon University , 403. Available at: https://www.centerforengagedlearning.org/books/writing-about-learning/

Keywords: identity, teaching and learning, higher education, vicarious learning, writing

Citation: Amrita K (2021) Book Review: Writing About Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Creating and Contributing to Scholarly Conversations Across a Range of Genres. Front. Educ. 6:649647. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2021.649647

Received: 05 January 2021; Accepted: 08 February 2021; Published: 22 March 2021.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2021 Amrita. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Kaur Amrita, [email protected]

Book Review

Urban Education

School's out

A critical take on education and schooling

The 50 great books on education

Professor of Education, University of Derby

View all partners

I have often argued that I would not let any teacher into a school unless – as a minimum – they had read, carefully and well, the three great books on education: Plato’s Republic, Rousseau’s Émile and Dewey’s Democracy and Education. There would be no instrumental purpose in this, but the struggle to understand these books and the thinking involved in understanding them would change teachers and ultimately teaching.

These are the three great books because each is sociologically whole. They each present a description and arguments for an education for a particular and better society. You do not have to agree with these authors. Plato’s tripartite education for a just society ruled over by philosopher kings; Rousseau’s education through nature to establish the social contract and Dewey’s relevant, problem-solving democratic education for a democratic society can all be criticised. That is not the point. The point is to understand these great works. They constitute the intellectual background to any informed discussion of education.

What of more modern works? I used to recommend the “blistering indictment” of the flight from traditional liberal education that is Melanie Phillips’s All Must Have Prizes, to be read alongside Tom Bentley’s Learning Beyond the Classroom: Education for a Changing World, which is a defence of a wider view of learning for the “learning age”. These two books defined the debate in the 1990s between traditional education by authoritative teachers and its rejection in favour of a new learning in partnership with students.

Much time and money is spent on teacher training and continuing professional development and much of it is wasted. A cheaper and better way of giving student teachers and in-service teachers an understanding of education would be to get them to read the 50 great works on education.

The books I have identified, with the help of members of the Institute of Ideas’ Education Forum, teachers and colleagues at several universities, constitute an attempt at an education “canon”.

What are “out” of my list are textbooks and guides to classroom practice. What are also “out” are novels and plays. But there are some great literary works that should be read by every teacher: Charles Dicken’s Hard Times – for Gradgrind’s now much-needed celebration of facts; D. H. Lawrence’s The Rainbow – for Ursula Brangwen’s struggle against her early child-centred idealism in the reality of St Philips School; and Alan Bennett’s The History Boys – for Hector’s role as the subversive teacher committed to knowledge.

I hope I have produced a list of books, displayed here in alphabetical order, that are held to be important by today’s teachers. I make no apology for including the book I wrote with Kathryn Ecclestone, The Dangerous Rise of Therapeutic Education because it is an influential critical work that has produced considerable controversy. If you disagree with this, or any other of my choices, please add your alternative “canonical” books on education.

Michael W. Apple – Official Knowledge: Democratic Education in a Conservative Age (1993)

Hannah Arendt – Between Past and Future (1961), for the essay “The Crisis in Education” (1958)

Matthew Arnold – Culture and Anarchy (1867-9)

Robin Barrow – Giving Teaching Back to the Teachers (1984)

Tom Bentley – Learning Beyond The Classroom: Education for a Changing World (1998)

Allan Bloom – The Closing of the American Mind: How Higher Education Has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today’s Students (1987)

Pierre Bourdieu and Jean-Claude Passeron – Reproduction in Education, Society and Culture (1977)

Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis – Schooling in Capitalist America: Educational Reform and the Contradictions of Economic Life (1976)

Jerome Bruner – The Process of Education (1960)

John Dewey – Democracy and Education (1916)

Margaret Donaldson – Children’s Minds (1978)

JWB Douglas – The Home and the School (1964)

Kathryn Ecclestone and Dennis Hayes – The Dangerous Rise of Therapeutic Education (2008)

Harold Entwistle – Antonio Gramsci: Conservative Schooling for Radical Politics (1979).

Paulo Freire – Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1968/1970)

Frank Furedi – Wasted: Why Education Isn’t Educating (2009)

Helene Guldberg – Reclaiming Childhood (2009)

ED Hirsch Jnr. – The Schools We Need And Why We Don’t Have Them (1999)

Paul H Hirst – Knowledge and the Curriculum (1974) For the essay which appears as Chapter 3 ‘Liberal Education and the Nature of Knowledge’ (1965)

John Holt – How Children Fail (1964)

Eric Hoyle – The Role of the Teacher (1969)

James Davison Hunter – The Death of Character: Moral Education in an Age without Good or Evil (2000)

Ivan Illich – Deschooling Society (1971)

Nell Keddie (Ed.) – Tinker, Taylor: The Myth of Cultural Deprivation (1973)

John Locke – Some Thoughts Concerning Education (1692)

John Stuart Mill – Autobiography (1873)

Sybil Marshall – An Experiment in Education (1963)

Alexander Sutherland Neil – Summerhill: A Radical Approach to Child Rearing (1960)

John Henry Newman – The Idea of a University (1873)

Michael Oakeshott – The Voice of Liberal Learning (1989) In particular for the essay “Education: The Engagement and Its Frustration” (1972)

Anthony O’ Hear – Education, Society and Human Nature: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education (1981)

Richard Stanley Peters – Ethics and Education (1966)

Melanie Phillips – All Must Have Prizes (1996)

Plato – The Republic (366BC?)

Plato – Protagoras (390BC?) and Meno (387BC?)

Neil Postman – The End of Education: Redefining the Value of School (1995)

Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner – Teaching as a Subversive Activity (1969)

Herbert Read – Education Through Art (1943)

Carl Rogers – Freedom to Learn: A View of What Education Might Become (1969)

Jean-Jacques Rousseau – Émile or “on education” (1762)

Bertrand Russell – On Education (1926)

Israel Scheffler – The Language of Education (1960)

Brian Simon – Does Education Matter? (1985) Particularly for the paper “Why No Pedagogy in England?” (1981)

JW Tibble (Ed.) – The Study of Education (1966)

Lev Vygotsky – Thought and Language (1934/1962)

Alfred North Whitehead – The Aims of Education and other essays (1929)

Paul E. Willis – Learning to Labour: How Working Class Kids Get Working Class Jobs (1977)

Alison Wolf – Does Education Matter? Myths about Education and Economic Growth (2002)

Michael FD Young (Ed) – Knowledge and Control: New Directions for the Sociology of Education (1971)

Michael FD Young – Bringing Knowledge Back In: From Social Constructivism to Social Realism in the Sociology of Education (2007)

• Teacher training
• Continuing professional development

Biocloud Project Manager - Australian Biocommons

Director, Defence and Security

Opportunities with the new CIEHF

School of Social Sciences – Public Policy and International Relations opportunities

Deputy Editor - Technology

How to Write a Book Review: The Ultimate Guide

WHAT IS A BOOK REVIEW?

Traditionally, book reviews are evaluations of a recently published book in any genre. Usually, around the 500 to 700-word mark, they briefly describe a text’s main elements while appraising the work’s strengths and weaknesses. Published book reviews can appear in newspapers, magazines, and academic journals. They provide the reader with an overview of the book itself and indicate whether or not the reviewer would recommend the book to the reader.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF A BOOK REVIEW?

There was a time when book reviews were a regular appearance in every quality newspaper and many periodicals. They were essential elements in whether or not a book would sell well. A review from a heavyweight critic could often be the deciding factor in whether a book became a bestseller or a damp squib. In the last few decades, however, the book review’s influence has waned considerably, with many potential book buyers preferring to consult customer reviews on Amazon, or sites like Goodreads, before buying. As a result, book review’s appearance in newspapers, journals, and digital media has become less frequent.

WHY BOTHER TEACHING STUDENTS TO WRITE BOOK REVIEWS AT ALL?

Even in the heyday of the book review’s influence, few students who learned the craft of writing a book review became literary critics! The real value of crafting a well-written book review for a student does not lie in their ability to impact book sales. Understanding how to produce a well-written book review helps students to:

●     Engage critically with a text

●     Critically evaluate a text

●     Respond personally to a range of different writing genres

●     Improve their own reading, writing, and thinking skills.

Not to Be Confused with a Book Report!

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A BOOK REVIEW AND A BOOK REPORT?

While the terms are often used interchangeably, there are clear differences in both the purpose and the format of the two genres. Generally speaking, book reports aim to give a more detailed outline of what occurs in a book. A book report on a work of fiction will tend to give a comprehensive account of the characters, major plot lines, and themes in the book. Book reports are usually written around the K-12 age range, while book reviews tend not to be undertaken by those at the younger end of this age range due to the need for the higher-level critical skills required in writing them. At their highest expression, book reviews are written at the college level and by professional critics.

Learn how to write a book review step by step with our complete guide for students and teachers by familiarizing yourself with the structure and features.

BOOK REVIEW STRUCTURE

ANALYZE Evaluate the book with a critical mind.

THOROUGHNESS The whole is greater than the sum of all its parts. Review the book as a WHOLE.

COMPARE Where appropriate compare to similar texts and genres.

THUMBS UP OR DOWN? You are going to have to inevitably recommend or reject this book to potential readers.

BE CONSISTENT Take a stance and stick with it throughout your review.

FEATURES OF A BOOK REVIEW

PAST TENSE You are writing about a book you have already read.

EMOTIVE LANGUAGE Whatever your stance or opinion be passionate about it. Your audience will thank you for it.

VOICE Both active and passive voice are used in recounts.

A COMPLETE UNIT ON REVIEW AND ANALYSIS OF TEXTS

⭐ Make  MOVIES A MEANINGFUL PART OF YOUR CURRICULUM  with this engaging collection of tasks and tools your students will love. ⭐ All the hard work is done for you with  NO PREPARATION REQUIRED.

This collection of  21 INDEPENDENT TASKS  and  GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS  takes students beyond the hype, special effects and trailers to look at visual literacy from several perspectives offering DEEP LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES by watching a  SERIES, DOCUMENTARY, FILM, and even  VIDEO GAMES.

ELEMENTS OF A BOOK REVIEW

As with any of the writing genres we teach our students, a book review can be helpfully explained in terms of criteria. While there is much to the ‘art’ of writing, there is also, thankfully, a lot of the nuts and bolts that can be listed too. Have students consider the following elements before writing:

●     Title: Often, the title of the book review will correspond to the title of the text itself, but there may also be some examination of the title’s relevance. How does it fit into the purpose of the work as a whole? Does it convey a message or reveal larger themes explored within the work?

●     Author: Within the book review, there may be some discussion of who the author is and what they have written before, especially if it relates to the current work being reviewed. There may be some mention of the author’s style and what they are best known for. If the author has received any awards or prizes, this may also be mentioned within the body of the review.

●     Genre: A book review will identify the genre that the book belongs to, whether fiction or nonfiction, poetry, romance, science-fiction, history etc. The genre will likely tie in, too with who the intended audience for the book is and what the overall purpose of the work is.

●     Book Jacket / Cover: Often, a book’s cover will contain artwork that is worthy of comment. It may contain interesting details related to the text that contribute to, or detract from, the work as a whole.

●     Structure: The book’s structure will often be heavily informed by its genre. Have students examine how the book is organized before writing their review. Does it contain a preface from a guest editor, for example? Is it written in sections or chapters? Does it have a table of contents, index, glossary etc.? While all these details may not make it into the review itself, looking at how the book is structured may reveal some interesting aspects.

●     Publisher and Price: A book review will usually contain details of who publishes the book and its cost. A review will often provide details of where the book is available too.

BOOK REVIEW KEY ELEMENTS

As students read and engage with the work they will review, they will develop a sense of the shape their review will take. This will begin with the summary. Encourage students to take notes during the reading of the work that will help them in writing the summary that will form an essential part of their review. Aspects of the book they may wish to take notes on in a work of fiction may include:

●     Characters: Who are the main characters? What are their motivations? Are they convincingly drawn? Or are they empathetic characters?

●     Themes: What are the main themes of the work? Are there recurring motifs in the work? Is the exploration of the themes deep or surface only?

●     Style: What are the key aspects of the writer’s style? How does it fit into the wider literary world?

●     Plot: What is the story’s main catalyst? What happens in the rising action? What are the story’s subplots? 

A book review will generally begin with a short summary of the work itself. However, it is important not to give too much away, remind students – no spoilers, please! For nonfiction works, this may be a summary of the main arguments of the work, again, without giving too much detail away. In a work of fiction, a book review will often summarise up to the rising action of the piece without going beyond to reveal too much!

The summary should also provide some orientation for the reader. Given the nature of the purpose of a review, it is important that students’ consider their intended audience in the writing of their review. Readers will most likely not have read the book in question and will require some orientation. This is often achieved through introductions to the main characters, themes, primary arguments etc. This will help the reader to gauge whether or not the book is of interest to them.

Once your student has summarized the work, it is time to ‘review’ in earnest. At this point, the student should begin to detail their own opinion of the book. To do this well they should:

i. Make It Personal

Often when teaching essay writing we will talk to our students about the importance of climbing up and down the ladder of abstraction. Just as it is helpful to explore large, more abstract concepts in an essay by bringing it down to Earth, in a book review, it is important that students can relate the characters, themes, ideas etc to their own lives.

Book reviews are meant to be subjective. They are opinion pieces, and opinions grow out of our experiences of life. Encourage students to link the work they are writing about to their own personal life within the body of the review. By making this personal connection to the work, students contextualize their opinions for the readers and help them to understand whether the book will be of interest to them or not in the process.

ii. Make It Universal

Just as it is important to climb down the ladder of abstraction to show how the work relates to individual life, it is important to climb upwards on the ladder too. Students should endeavor to show how the ideas explored in the book relate to the wider world. The may be in the form of the universality of the underlying themes in a work of fiction or, for example, the international implications for arguments expressed in a work of nonfiction.

iii. Support Opinions with Evidence

A book review is a subjective piece of writing by its very nature. However, just because it is subjective does not mean that opinions do not need to be justified. Make sure students understand how to back up their opinions with various forms of evidence, for example, quotations, statistics, and the use of primary and secondary sources.

EDIT AND REVISE YOUR BOOK REVIEW

As with any writing genre, encourage students to polish things up with review and revision at the end. Encourage them to proofread and check for accurate spelling throughout, with particular attention to the author’s name, character names, publisher etc. 

It is good practice too for students to double-check their use of evidence. Are statements supported? Are the statistics used correctly? Are the quotations from the text accurate? Mistakes such as these uncorrected can do great damage to the value of a book review as they can undermine the reader’s confidence in the writer’s judgement.

The discipline of writing book reviews offers students opportunities to develop their writing skills and exercise their critical faculties. Book reviews can be valuable standalone activities or serve as a part of a series of activities engaging with a central text. They can also serve as an effective springboard into later discussion work based on the ideas and issues explored in a particular book. Though the book review does not hold the sway it once did in the mind’s of the reading public, it still serves as an effective teaching tool in our classrooms today.

Teaching Resources

Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.

BOOK REVIEW GRAPHIC ORGANIZER (TEMPLATE)

101 DIGITAL & PRINT GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS FOR ALL CURRICULUM AREAS

Introduce your students to 21st-century learning with this GROWING BUNDLE OF 101 EDITABLE & PRINTABLE GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS. ✌ NO PREP REQUIRED!!! ✌ Go paperless, and let your students express their knowledge and creativity through the power of technology and collaboration inside and outside the classroom with ease.

Whilst you don’t have to have a 1:1 or BYOD classroom to benefit from this bundle, it has been purpose-built to deliver through platforms such as ✔ GOOGLE CLASSROOM, ✔ OFFICE 365, ✔ or any CLOUD-BASED LEARNING PLATFORM.

Book and Movie review writing examples (Student Writing Samples)

Below are a collection of student writing samples of book reviews.  Click on the image to enlarge and explore them in greater detail.  Please take a moment to both read the movie or book review in detail but also the teacher and student guides which highlight some of the key elements of writing a text review

Please understand these student writing samples are not intended to be perfect examples for each age or grade level but a piece of writing for students and teachers to explore together to critically analyze to improve student writing skills and deepen their understanding of book review writing.

We would recommend reading the example either a year above and below, as well as the grade you are currently working with to gain a broader appreciation of this text type .

BOOK REVIEW VIDEO TUTORIALS

OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO BOOK REVIEWS

Transactional Writing

How to write a text response

How to Write a Compare and Contrast Essay

How to Write Excellent Expository Essays

Educator Book Reviews

Unique books reviewed by educators who share how each book can be used in a classroom setting..

Gifted to Learn

By Gloria Mehlmann Published by University of Alberta Press Reviewed by Sheila Ryan, Educator Category: Professional Development, General Interest

Excerpt: Author and educator Gloria Mehlmann engages her readers by journeying with them through three separate but interconnected narratives in her memoir Gifted to Learn. She recalls with clarity the stories of individual students and paints colorful anecdotes of their individual struggles and… [Read more]

Healing the Bruises

Written by Lori Morgan Illustrated by Kathy Kaulbach Published by Lorimer Reviewed by Aleksandra Baran, Educator Category: Family Conflict, Graphic Novel, Youth Fiction

Excerpt: A colourful, graphic novel based on an experience of a woman and her daughter who were helped by Alice Housing, a non-profit organization that helps women and children who are leaving domestic violence situations. The novel follows the main characters, 12-year-old Julia and her mother through a journey of recovery from domestic abuse. It is written from the perspective of Julia, who recalls… [Read more]

Helping Boys Learn Six Secrets for Teaching Boys in the Classroom

Written and published by Dr. Edmond J. Dixon Reviewed by David Mount, Vice Principal Category: Professional Development

Excerpt: Much of the talk in and around education nowadays relates to levels of equity and imbalance. However, within the context of this ongoing debate and particularly within the historic precedent ‘affirmative action’, Dr. Edmond Dixon’s new book highlights the fact that there is a rather large elephant in the classroom… [Read more]

I’ve Got Something to Say! How Student Voices Inform Our Teaching

By David Booth Published by Pembroke Publishers Reviewed by Sandra McLeod-Barbeau, Educator Category: Professional Development

Excerpt: The subtitle, “How Student Voices Inform Our Teaching,” is also the premise: “student voices are central to effective classroom learning.” Transcripts of teachers’ and students’ interactions make up the bulk of this book which advocates for the teaching of “oracy,”… [Read more]

Looks Like Daylight: Voices of Indigenous Kids

By Deborah Ellis Published by Groundwood Books Reviewed by Pam Gray, Assistant Principal Category: Teen/Youth Adult, Social Studies, FNMI, History

Excerpt: The author travelled across North America conducting interviews that captured the first hand stories of First Nations, Native American, Metis, and Inuit children aged nine to eighteen. This book is a collection of the unique stories told by the interviewed youth and the struggles they have inherited and the… [Read more]

Mathematical Models for Teaching: Reasoning Without Memorization

By Ann Kajander and Tom Boland Published by Canadian Scholars’ Press Reviewed by Katie Saunders, Educator Category: Math, Professional Development

Excerpt: Mathematical Models for Teaching: Reasoning without Memorization at first glance appears to be similar to a textbook found within university education programs. Progressing though the book however; one will find that the information is relevant to any mathematics teacher regardless of teaching experience… [Read more]

Moment to Moment

By Joey Mandel Published by Pembroke Publishers Reviewed by Rebecca Purcell, Educator Category: Professional Development

Excerpt: As teachers or parents we’ve all been there: a child in the midst of a tantrum, crying and beyond consolable. As the title of this resource, Moment to Moment: A Positive Approach to Managing Classroom Behaviour suggests, it provides effective strategies for helping students struggling with the “hidden curriculum,”… [Read more]

Nonfiction Writing Power By Adrienne Gear Published by Pembroke Publishers Reviewed by Gina Vigna, Educator Category: Professional Development, Writing, ELA

Excerpt: Nonfiction Writing Power is a book I would highly recommend to colleagues and administrators as a valuable resource to support primarily Language Arts programs. This powerful resource models the importance of writing with intent and purpose and truly guides the educator by providing practical guidelines and strategies to allow them to successfully deliver innovative techniques to… [Read more]

Nunami: Poems from the Arctic

By Barbara Landry Published by Quattro Books Reviewed by Tanya Leary, Educator Category: Poetry

Excerpt: Taking your students on a field trip to the Arctic would be nice, wouldn’t it? It will probably never happen of course, however, I’m pleased to report that I have discovered the next best thing to do with your students, of any age. Nunami is a stunning collection of poems, written from a visitor’s perspective on life in the true North strong and free… [Read more]

Peace: The Exhibition

By Amber Lloydlangston and Kathryn Lyons Published by Canadian War Museum Reviewed by Rachel Lengyell, Educator Category: Social Justice, Canadian Studies, General Interest

Excerpt: Peace: The Exhibition by Amber Lloydlangston and Kathryn Lyons, as intended for use in a school setting, is a great resource for learning about Canadian contributions to peace worldwide. This text has many valuable components of instilling a social justice perspective for our students across Canada…. [Read more]

By Lori Weber Published by Lorimer Reviewed by Lorena Duran, Educator Category: Teen/Junior Fiction, Anti-Bullying

Excerpt: Picture Me is told from the points of view of three girls, Krista, the victim, Chelsea, the bully, and Tessa, the bystander. All three girls have suffered traumatic events that led them to become a bully, be bullied, or be a defender. The novel follows the lives on the girls and addresses universal themes of interpersonal relationships, socioeconomic status, gender roles, and bullying… [Read more]

Teachers At Their Best

By Gina Valle Published by Quattro Books Reviewed by Dixie Pallett-Firth, Teacher-Librarian Category: Diversity, Professional Development

Excerpt: Based on two years of research and collecting data from eight Montreal teachers who represent different racial, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds, the author argues that teachers who create pluralistic classrooms, foster environments where our diverse students become inclusive citizens… [Read more]

By Kevin Bird and Kirk Savage Published by Pemrboke Publishers Reviewed by Chris Cocek, Educator Category: Math, Professional Development

Book Review

Book Review Examples

Last updated on: Nov 20, 2023

Good Book Review Examples to Help you Write a Great Review

By: Nova A.

Reviewed By: Chris H.

Published on: Mar 30, 2021

A book review is a common assignment that allows the students to demonstrate the author’s intentions in the book. It also provides them with the chance not only to criticize but also to give constructive criticism on how they can make improvements.

The purpose of writing a book review is to come up with your opinion about the author’s ideas presented in the book. On the other hand, a book analysis is completely based on opinions that are relevant to the book.

Writing a review is something that can be done with any book that you read. However, some genres are harder to write. But with a proper plan, you can easily write a great review on any book.

Read some short book review examples in this guide. They will help you understand the key elements of writing a great review in no time.

On this Page

Academic Book Review Examples

If you are assigned to write a book review, referring to some examples will be of great help. In addition, reading examples before starting the writing process will help you understand what elements are needed for a great book review. There are also many review sites online you can get help from.

Academic book reviews follow a fairly simple structure. It usually includes an introduction, middle paragraphs, and a conclusion that sums up all the ideas.

For a great book review, here are the things you need to focus on during the writing process.

• The main argument presented by the author
• Author’s methodologyAppropriateness for the audience
• Relationship to the real world

Have a look at the following book review examples for kids before beginning the writing process.

Book Review Examples for Middle School Students

Book Review Example For Kids

Book Review Examples for High School Students

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That's our Job!

Book Review Examples for College Students

Book Review Examples for University Students

How to Write a Book Review - Examples

If you don’t know how to write a book review, look at the following steps.

The first step is to plan and create an outline that includes all the points that you will have to cover in the review. Don’t forget to include all the information about the characters, plot information, and some other parts of the chosen book.

The three parts of a book review are:

1. Provide a Summary

What is the book about? Write about the main characters and what is the conflict that is discussed in the book.

2. Provide Your Evaluation

Share your thoughts about the book and what elements work best.

3. Rate the Book

Rate and recommend the book to others who will enjoy reading this book.

If you need to submit a book review soon, we suggest you start reading some book reviews online. Here you can also find some good book review writing examples to understand how to craft each section of a book review.

Book Review Introduction Examples

Thesis Statement Book Review Examples

Tough Essay Due? Hire Tough Writers!

Book Review Conclusion Examples

Critical Book Review Examples

A book review is a critical evaluation of the book, movie, or any other literary work. It has two goals: the first is to inform the readers about the content of the book, and the second is to evaluate your judgment about the book.

A book review is more than a book report. A review is basically a critical essay that evaluates the merits of a literary work. The purpose of writing a book review is not to prove that you have read a book but to show that you think critically about the chosen book.

When you are asked to write a critical book review, you need to identify, summarize and evaluate the ideas of the author. In simpler words, you will be examining and evaluating another person’s work from your point of view.

Science Book Review Examples

A scientific book review will contain the same elements as writing a review for a fiction book; some elements might vary. When you are reviewing a scientific text, you need to pay attention to the writing style and the validity of the content.

Most students turn to non-fictional sources of information. It is important to make sure the information you provide in your review is factual and scientific.

Book review writing can be difficult if you don’t know how to follow the standard protocols. That’s where our reliable book review writing service aims to provide the necessary help.

No matter what your academic level is, we can provide you with the best book review writing help. This type of writing assignment can be tricky and time-consuming. So, if you don’t know how to crack this task, better get professional help.

We at 5StarEssays.com provide exceptional book review writing help. Not only book reviews, but we also provide the best ‘ write an essay for me ’ help to students. Moreover, we also have an AI essay writer to help you with tight deadlines, give it a try now!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you write a book review example.

Here are some steps that will help you to write a book review example.

• Start writing with few sentences and describe what the book is all about
• Focus on your thoughts
• Mention things that you dont like about the book.
• Summarize your thoughts.
• Give rating to the book.

Thesis, Law

As a Digital Content Strategist, Nova Allison has eight years of experience in writing both technical and scientific content. With a focus on developing online content plans that engage audiences, Nova strives to write pieces that are not only informative but captivating as well.

Was This Blog Helpful?

Keep reading.

• Book Review - An Easy Guide To Write A Review

People Also Read

• creative writing
• 500 word essay
• how to start a research paper
• good persuasive essay topics
• how to write a compare and contrast essay

Burdened With Assignments?

Advertisement

• Homework Services: Essay Topics Generator

© 2024 - All rights reserved

• Book Review
• Open access
• Published: 02 April 2021

Book review: Integrity in education for future happiness

• Irene Glendinning 1  

International Journal for Educational Integrity volume  17 , Article number:  10 ( 2021 ) Cite this article

3891 Accesses

2 Citations

3 Altmetric

Metrics details

The joy of doing any review is having a legitimate excuse to spend time learning about what other researchers are working on, then to reflect on what is new. This book review with a rich tapestry of current research and thinking about integrity in education and research, is no exception. This publication is the product of a virtual conference that took place in April 2020, which, had the Covid-19 pandemic not arrived, would have been held face-to-face in Dubai.

Each of the 15 chapters brings to light new ideas for encouraging academic integrity and ethical conduct, or for deterring and managing academic dishonesty. Some chapters place familiar problems and solutions into new contexts and illustrate classroom experiences in different parts of the world. The key topic of education and training of teachers, researchers and students features in several chapters, including a welcome focus on secondary education. There is no shortage of empirical research in the book, including analysis of data on institutional policies an, admissions. Three chapters concern innovations in use of technology and how they are being applied and developed, with useful take-aways for evidencing contract cheating.

Inclusion of the student voice is important in research into academic integrity. We hear from students through formal research, informal feedback and a whole chapter about one student’s journey.

The book has been fittingly dedicated to the memory of Tracey Bretag (19/6/1962–7/10/2020), who managed to continue her support for the series of PAEB conferences by recording her keynote, despite being already very frail. Whether you decide to read the whole book or just select a few chapters, the ideas you will find there largely stem from Tracey’s legacy. We are reminded that there is so much more to do to improve integrity in education and research, locally and globally.

This is no ordinary book. I will try to convey why I believe the book is special during this review, but before I set out my thoughts, it is important that I declare my conflicts of interest. As former vice-president for the European Network for Academic Integrity (ENAI) and a long-standing researcher, supporter and follower of research in this field, most of the authors who have contributed to this book are my colleagues and friends. I am aware of their commitment to academic integrity and all the excellent work they have done already. I have worked and co-authored with many of these researchers in the past. I come to this review as an active participant in the conference from which this book was generated. As a native of Yorkshire, I am renown for my straight-talking, but I do not wish to offend my friends and colleagues, past, present and future. Taking all these factors into account, it is very difficult for me to be frank and objective, but I will do my best to provide a full and fair critique of the book.

Academic integrity is becoming increasingly crucial for maintaining educational standards and quality. It is an ephemeral concept, as Sonja Bjelobaba discusses in the opening chapter focusing on teacher training (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 9–18), academic integrity is too often defined negatively, in terms of what it is not. The material for this book is based on a conference that had been planned for 2 years before the 2020 global pandemic struck. The 6th Plagiarism Across Europe and Beyond conference, organised jointly by ENAI and University of Wollongong in Dubai, should have been held in Dubai in April 2020, but instead, with very little notice, the organisers took the brave decision to move it fully on-line, without rescheduling dates or content. As a keen participant in all six conferences to date, I can report that this was the correct decision. The conference was a triumph, a model for how to conduct a virtual event, technically, socially and academically. For more details about the conference, it is worth visiting the conference web site (PAEB 2020 ).

Each of the 15 chapters in this book illuminates how integrity applies to different aspects of education, what is being achieved in different settings, and the book as a whole underlines what more needs to be done. As with any conference the parallel sessions make it impossible to attend every interesting presentation on offer. This book provides the opportunity to find out about missed sessions, but also to recall what was presented and find more detail on the research behind presentations. The educational scope of topics includes a focus on secondary education, teacher training, discrepancies in admissions, English language teaching, ideas for teaching ethics to both biomedical and business students.

Given that the prevalence and nature of academic misconduct varies in different institutions and countries, responses to cheating must be designed according to the local needs. What works in one context does not always translate to all situations, but it is healthy to share experiences and to hear from others what worked and what was less successful. Accordingly, contributions from UAE, Hungary, Bangladesh, USA, UK, Japan, Slovakia, Sweden, Canada and Montenegro provide excellent geographical diversity, drawn from the global perspectives of all contributions during the conference.

Sadly, the Future Happiness promised in the title of this book does not feature in every chapter, but where it does emerge it is a welcome change from negative sentiments often expressed in writings on this subject. A “triage” system in a UAE university provides counselling for students who have had allegations of academic misconduct upheld, giving students an opportunity to express their emotions, address and correct their failings, then move on with their lives (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 90–102). Another example is a comprehensive study on institutional policies on plagiarism in Hungary (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 112–126), building on part of an earlier research study that I led on this topic (IPPHEAE 2013 ). Although Hungary still has a long way to go, I was delighted to see how much progress has been made in recent years and how seriously most higher education providers in Hungary are now taking this challenge.

Several chapters concern different aspects of the use of technology and software tools. The work by Crockett & Best on innovative application of “stylometrics” has potential for greatly improving the quality of evidence when contract cheating is suspected (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 35–49). A chapter by Johnson & Davies explores how digital forensics can be used to help to detect and evidence contract cheating (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 78–89). This study includes very useful technical details of how to gain access to Open Office XML format (OOXML) used in Microsoft Office documents, with examples of what can be learned from examining this source of evidence. These two chapters, from Crockett & Best and Johnson & Davies, report on very promising early research, which, hopefully they will continue to develop.

Daniel Dusza’s chapter presents a series of four experiments to monitor, analyse and verify the creative writing process, “to improve the integrity of authored material” (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 51). The ultimate component of this research involved using technology for “covertly” monitoring Japanese students, writing in a second language, completing a 1000-word essay and related activities. Putting aside questions about how much the students were aware they were being monitored, also whether there was ethical approval and informed consent for participants involved in this study, there are some interesting observations about what was discovered about student conduct in the course of this study. The four experiments provide useful information about how teachers can improve the way students are prepared for academic writing tasks. The author concludes with suggestions for how background monitoring technology could be used in future to intervene if students appear to be at risk of violating academic integrity while they are writing. Although this chapter is about “big data”, to me the last element also is worryingly reminiscent of “big brother”. In my view, using technology for proctoring students in the way described, risks breaching personal privacy, therefore needs prior consent and buy-in from the students, whether use is experimental or operational.

When we conducted research across the 27 European Union (EU) countries for the IPPHEAE project in 2010–13, on the top of the wish list of many EU countries were the need for affordable “anti-plagiarism” software and a national corpus of academic publications, dissertations and theses, predominantly focusing on one language. At that time Slovakia stood out from the crowd as it already had an effective national system in place (IPPHEAE 2013 ). Julius Kravjar’s chapter describes how SK ANTIPLAG was developed by The Slovak Centre of Scientific and Technical Information (SCTI) and introduced nationally as a central system in April 2010 (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 103–111). It was good to hear that a similar system was introduced in Poland in 2019, in addition to those in place in Czechia and Slovenia. Kravjar describes how the 10 years of data now accumulated in the Slovakian repository provides a rich resource for interesting analysis. The author explains that the key to the data capture is the quality of the metadata stored with each document and provides some examples of analyses and insights that are possible.

It is my view that there are missed opportunities if national systems of this type are just used in isolation, for storing and checking theses and dissertations, rather than checking all student assignments and sharing the data internationally. Clearly sharing data would depend on compatibility between the national systems. The advantage of checking all assignments is the need to nurture students’ study and academic writing skills from the earliest opportunity, developing their expertise throughout their studies, rather than leaving the checking of their skills until the “high stake” final thesis. Although text matching software is not a silver bullet for eliminating plagiarism, it’s more positive use is for teaching academic writing skills, if harnessed as an effective part of the learning process.

There is an increasing awareness that education for academic integrity needs to begin before students enter higher education. Too often students arrive at university lacking understanding of concepts such as intellectual property rights, how to make use of information sources created by other people. The chapter from Bangladeshi authors Shaha, Hossain & Asaduzzman, reminds us how fortunate teachers and students are in many countries, just to have a reliable supply of electricity as well as up-to-date technological equipment and software, that we often take for-granted (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 166–177). It transpires that secondary teachers of English in Bangladesh often resort to using free “plagiarism checking” services to check students’ work. These free services are generally not to be recommended, because they are often ineffective and can be associated with essay-mills. The authors conclude with a checklist of urgent requirements for Bangladesh, including the need for teacher training, particularly on managing and using digital content.

Staying on the subject of teacher training, in the first chapter of the book, Sonja Bjelobaba shares her experience of running workshops for training higher education teachers, in Sweden and elsewhere, on pedagogical approaches to academic integrity (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 9–18). The chapter includes some very helpful ideas for learning outcomes, content and structure relating to academic integrity. I was delighted to note that the author advocates use of Bloom’s taxonomy, an old favourite of mine that I still use in workshops with both teachers and students, for differentiating between different levels of education, in designing learning outcomes and assessment criteria.

Rakhman & Khan from UAE conducted a study focusing on a neglected area of academic integrity research, relating to student admissions to higher education (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 90–102), but I was disappointed in how limited the data collection methods were. The research relied only on published criteria on academic qualifications from four UAE universities for undergraduate admission, leading to discussion of inconsistencies between institutional practices. Although this is a useful start, there is so much more that could be achieved in this area of research, affecting public and private education in all parts of the world. For example, how often are students admitted without the required qualifications, if this happens, under what circumstances, perhaps (positively) accreditation for prior learning and experience (APEL) or (negatively) favouritism, bribery and corruption? There was no mention of about other forms of credentials, such as evidence of language skills, which can be fake or obtained fraudulently. Is there any evidence linking poor performance and academic misconduct with standards and criteria used for higher education admission? Are students who are admitted with weak qualifications more prone to cheating than those with strong credentials? What measures are taken to detect and deal with fraudulent evidence and fake credentials presented by applicants? This topic is crying out for further in-depth research.

There have been many previous discussions and research studies about what makes students plagiarise and cheat, but I found new ideas in the chapter on this topic from a team of researchers in Montenegro, it is well worth reading (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 127–154). The authors took the Extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (ETPB) and extended it still further, not only to show evidence of influences to behaviour, but also under what circumstances behaviours were moderated by, for example, introducing similarity checking software. It would be interesting to repeat this research in other places.

I was very interested to read the study by Sivasubramaniam & Khan (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 186–194) comparing institutional procedures for handling academic misconduct by students at five UK universities. This research reveals the disparity and variety of practices, even in this small study within one country. The authors are rightly looking for evidence of fairness, consistency, proportionality of both process and outcomes and their conclusions are generally in keeping with the evidence presented. One criticism I have is that the specific circumstances, such as size and geography of the universities, which can vary greatly, have not been factored in before judgements are stated or implied by the authors. It makes sense to have a centralised panel for consistency, with a single campus institution of 5000 students, but this is less feasible if, for example, there are multiple campuses, in various locations and a student population of, say, over 25,000 students. The authors point to worrying evidence in this study that in at least one of the universities the Turnitin similarity percentage serves as a discriminator for escalating cases with higher so-called “plagiarism percentages” to a more senior level panel. If, as proposed by the authors, this study is expanded it would be valuable to have direct involvement from the universities concerned to reveal what happens in practice within each institution, rather than relying on documentary sources. This direct contact would provide the opportunity for dialogue between the researchers and the institutions to encourage improvements where warranted.

Providing real examples of ethical dilemmas can help bio-medical students to become inspired and engaged when learning about ethical conduct and decision-making. Sivasubramaniam & Khan based their other co-authored chapter on a workshop they ran for PhD students after the ENAI conference in April 2020 (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 178–194). Moving the workshop online meant that discussions on the six ethical examples presented could not take place face-to-face, but despite this handicap, there were so many questions and interactions from the student participants that the workshop lasted a full hour longer than scheduled. The authors have included very rich feedback in this chapter from the participants, which can provide useful ideas for others involved in delivering this subject.

Caroline Burns provides an alternative approach to teaching ethics by using axiology, based on self-reflection by students to explore their values and motivations in the context of a business ethics module (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 19–34), which should impact on their future professional conduct. The penultimate class of the module focuses on “Determining the relationship between each student’s values and their attitudes toward academic integrity and academic misconduct.” The final class links ethical conduct in education with what the students will need for the workplace. I found the “Anecdotal Observations” about the students particularly enlightening (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 25–26), including views about the inevitability of cheating and the ways that both workplace and educational cheating could be justified by the students.

The innovative approaches described here for teaching ethics, from Sivasubramaniam & Khan and Burns, should be of broader interest, because both could be readily adapted for delivery to students from other disciplines.

The last chapter in the book, a first-hand account of one student’s experience, brings us back to the book’s title and future happiness (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 195–205). It tells the story of how the student gained an understanding of academic integrity, gradually building on her earlier experiences. The authors use a simple table to encapsulate the student journey, summarised in the rows as MAP: Moral System, Attitude and Pressure, with the columns indicating how this played out over time in school, university and the workplace (PAEB Dubai 2020 : 202). For me this chapter contains three important messages: the need for educational policy-makers to listen to the views of students; to have effective delivery of education about academic integrity throughout the student journey and beyond; and that is never too early to talk to young people, or too late to talk to young professionals, about the advantages of behaving with integrity.

My main criticism of the book is inattention to detail in places, in terms of proof-reading. I found some simple errors that perhaps should have been noticed and in a few chapters the lack of fluency in the English was quite distracting, but the editors have agreed to add corrections to the on-line version. In the meantime, hopefully, occasional grammatical mistakes and typos will not detract too much from the experience of reading the book. The positive aspects of the book far outweigh the negatives.

At the start of the book is a fitting dedication from the publishers, editors and authors to Professor Tracey Bretag, who, as many readers will know, sadly died in October 2020. Tracey has been a friend and mentor to many of the people involved in producing this book and an inspiration to those of us throughout the world who are interested in integrity in education. Her keynotes for the five previous conferences were thoughtful and innovative. She did not disappoint in her last contribution. She was too ill even to join us on-line in April 2020, but took the time to record her final message to the conference in advance, which can still be accessed and is well worth watching (Bretag 2020 ). She is already missed very much by the global community of researchers in this field, but her legacy of research and powerful inspirational messages and principles will continue to drive us all forward.

Although a visit to Dubai in April 2020 would have been wonderful, this book is a fitting record of the on-line event. In case you are not already convinced, I believe the book is exceptional because, apart from the very fine contributions reviewed above, it demonstrates the courage of the conference organisers, regardless of the difficulties they faced, to take the difficult decision, at very short notice, to go ahead with the conference and allow a range of amazing research to be shared. Whether or not you were able to attend this conference, if you are interested in integrity in education, I can recommend this book to you. Congratulations to the editors and authors and all involved in putting together this very rich set of chapters on different aspects of academic integrity.

Availability of data and materials

Abbreviations.

Accreditation for Prior Experiential Learning

European Network for Academic Integrity

European Union

Extended theory of planned behaviour

Impact of Policies for Plagiarism in Higher Education across Europe

Moral system, attitude and pressure

Open Office eXtensible Markup Language

Plagiarism across Europe and Beyond Conference

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

United States of America

eXtensible Markup Language

Bretag T (2020) Keynote presentation, Plagiarism Across Europe and Beyond, Dubai Accessed 8 Feb 2021 at https://youtu.be/yDMCGp7Wf3Q

IPPHEAE (2013), Impact of Policies for Plagiarism in Higher Education across Europe, Accessed 8 Feb 2021 at http://plagiarism.cz/ippheae/

Google Scholar  

PAEB (2020) Plagiarism Across Europe and Beyond Virtual Conference 2020. University of Wollongong in Dubai, UAE 17–19 April 2020, Accessed 8 Feb 2021 at http://academicintegrity.eu/conference/conference-details/

PAEB Dubai (2020) In: Khan ZR, Hill C, Foltýnek T (eds) Integrity in Education for Future Happiness. published by Mendel University, Brno Accessed 8 Feb 2021 at http://academicintegrity.eu/conference/conferenceproceedings/

Download references

Acknowledgements

I thank Sarah Eaton for inviting me to write this review.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Coventry University, Priory Street, Coventry, CV1 5FB, UK

Irene Glendinning

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

The review was written by just one author. The author read and approved the final manuscript.

Author’s information

Irene Glendinning BSc, PhD, FBCS, CITP, CEng.

Academic Integrity Lead, Office of Teaching and Learning, Coventry University, UK.

Irene’s working experience within education spans five decades. She has taught in secondary schools, further education, and at all levels within higher education. She has managed a range of bachelor degrees, taught master’s, international partnership programmes and supervised several PhD students. Starting in 2009, Irene has been involved in a wide range of research relating to academic integrity and has authored and contributed to many publications in this field. An on-going theme of her research, working with many other researchers, has been exploring and comparing institutional and national policies and systems throughout Europe and beyond. Her interests also extend to how to address forms of corruption affecting integrity in higher education, research and society. She is committed to the concept of academic integrity underpinning quality and standards in education. Her most recent role has been to lead the review and revision of the institutional policies and procedures for academic Integrity across Coventry University Group. She currently leads the ENAI working group on Integrity in Dissemination and Publishing (IN-A-DIP), she is a member of QAA’s academic integrity advisory group and remains part of the organising committee of the ICAI’s International Day of Action against Contract Cheating, founded in 2016.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Irene Glendinning .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The author has strong research links to several of the authors of the book chapters under review through membership and involvement with the European Network for Academic Integrity (ENAI). She was a member of the Scientific Board for the 2020 PAEB Dubai conference, and attended the virtual conference at which the research material was presented and on which the book chapters were based.

Additional information

Publisher’s note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ( http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ ) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Glendinning, I. Book review: Integrity in education for future happiness. Int J Educ Integr 17 , 10 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-021-00076-8

Download citation

Published : 02 April 2021

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-021-00076-8

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Conference proceedings
• Academic integrity
• Integrity in ethics and research

International Journal for Educational Integrity

ISSN: 1833-2595

• Submission enquiries: Access here and click Contact Us
• General enquiries: [email protected]

Book Review Writing

Book Review Examples

Book Review Examples to Help You Get Started

People also read

How to Write a Book Review - A Step By Step Guide

A Complete Book Review Format Guide For Students

Are you in desperate need of some assistance to up your book review writing game? 

We know that penning down a review can come off as a tricky challenge, but do not worry!

To help you write book reviews that carry the essence of the book and engage readers, we have collected a handful of book review examples in this blog. 

The included examples will enable you to understand different writing styles and approaches taken toward book review writing . So, you can use your words effectively to craft the perfect book review.

Let’s kickstart things off!

• 1. Good Book Review Examples for Students
• 2. Short Book Review Examples for Fiction Books
• 3. Non-Fiction Book Review Examples

Good Book Review Examples for Students

You might be a professional writer, or you may not have any experience in writing book reviews. Rest assured, we’ll show you how to write perfect book reviews with the help of a sample template and great examples.

See this template to know what you should include in your book review: 

Book Review Template

Here is a good book review example for 4th-grade students:

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That's our Job!

Book Review Examples for Middle School Students

Reading reviews written by others can help you get a feel and flavor of good book reviews. Learning how to write a perfect book review can help students to:

• Critically analyze a text
• Give a personal opinion on the text
• Improve analyzing and critical thinking skills 

Here are some interesting book review examples suitable for middle school students. 

Book Review Example for Middle School Students

Book Review Example for Kids

Book Review of Any Book in 300 Words

Science Book Review Example

Book Review Examples For High School Students

Below, you can also find some good book review examples for high school students. These real-life examples can help you get a clear understanding of the standard book review format that you should follow.

Book Review Example for High School Students

Book Review Examples for Class 9

Book Review Example for Grade 10

Book Review Examples for College Students

As a college student, you are required to demonstrate that you have examined the book from different angles. The points you raise in your book review need to be supported with clear facts and evidence.

The following are some interesting critical book review examples for college students to learn how to write a perfect review. 

Book Review Example for Class 12

Short Book Review for Students

Conclusion of Book Review Example

Short Book Review Examples for Fiction Books

Fiction book reviews follow the same basic formula as writing book reviews of any other genre. For your help, we have compiled exciting examples of fiction book reviews that you can get valuable assistance from. 

Short Book Review Example for Fiction Books

Book Review of Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

“The Hazel Wood” by Melissa Albert is a work of fiction and falls into fantasy and young adult fiction genres. The novel revolves around fantastical fairy tales, and magical realism, blurring the lines between reality and fantasy.

Here is an example of a comprehensive review of the book Hazel Wood:

Tough Essay Due? Hire Tough Writers!

Non-Fiction Book Review Examples

For reviewing a non-fiction book, you are required to describe the book and summarize major points of interest. You should evaluate the author’s contribution to a subject that you may know very little about.

Here is a great non-fiction book review example to help you come up with a critical perspective on a text. 

Non-Fiction Book Review Example

Hopefully, with the help of the above examples, you get a better idea of how to write a perfect book review.

To wrap it up, Writing a great book review is a tricky task, no matter if you are a high school, college, or university student. Book review writing might seem like a simple task, but it requires excellent analyzing and critical thinking skills.

But, not everyone can crack this task easily. They might need additional help from expert book review writers. That’s why our expert essay writing service offers professional book review writing help whenever you need it. 

Professional essay writers at MyPerfectWords.com can help you with all your academic requests within your specified timeline. Just contact our customer service and we’ll handle all your queries promptly.

Keep the words flowing! 

Write Essay Within 60 Seconds!

Cathy has been been working as an author on our platform for over five years now. She has a Masters degree in mass communication and is well-versed in the art of writing. Cathy is a professional who takes her work seriously and is widely appreciated by clients for her excellent writing skills.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That’s our Job!

Keep reading

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Writing a Book Review

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

This resource discusses book reviews and how to write them.

Book reviews typically evaluate recently-written works. They offer a brief description of the text’s key points and often provide a short appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the work.

Readers sometimes confuse book reviews with book reports, but the two are not identical. Book reports commonly describe what happens in a work; their focus is primarily on giving an account of the major plot, characters, and/or main idea of the work. Most often, book reports are a K-12 assignment and range from 250 to 500 words. If you are looking to write a book report, please see the OWL resource, Writing a Book Report.

By contrast, book reviews are most often a college assignment, but they also appear in many professional works: magazines, newspapers, and academic journals. They typically range from 500-750 words, but may be longer or shorter. A book review gives readers a sneak peek at what a book is like, whether or not the reviewer enjoyed it, and details on purchasing the book.

Before You Read

Before you begin to read, consider the elements you will need to included in your review. The following items may help:

• Author: Who is the author? What else has s/he written? Has this author won any awards? What is the author’s typical style?
• Genre: What type of book is this: fiction, nonfiction, romance, poetry, youth fiction, etc.? Who is the intended audience for this work? What is the purpose of the work?
• Title: Where does the title fit in? How is it applied in the work? Does it adequately encapsulate the message of the text? Is it interesting? Uninteresting?
• Preface/Introduction/Table of Contents: Does the author provide any revealing information about the text in the preface/introduction? Does a “guest author” provide the introduction? What judgments or preconceptions do the author and/or “guest author” provide? How is the book arranged: sections, chapters?
• Book Jacket/Cover/Printing: Book jackets are like mini-reviews. Does the book jacket provide any interesting details or spark your interest in some way? Are there pictures, maps, or graphs? Do the binding, page cut, or typescript contribute or take away from the work?

As You Read

As you read, determine how you will structure the summary portion or background structure of your review. Be ready to take notes on the book’s key points, characters, and/or themes.

• Characters: Are there characters in the work? Who are the principal characters? How do they affect the story? Do you empathize with them?
• Themes/Motifs/Style: What themes or motifs stand out? How do they contribute to the work? Are they effective or not? How would you describe this author’s particular style? Is it accessible to all readers or just some?
• Argument: How is the work’s argument set up? What support does the author give for her/findings? Does the work fulfill its purpose/support its argument?
• Key Ideas: What is the main idea of the work? What makes it good, different, or groundbreaking?
• Quotes: What quotes stand out? How can you demonstrate the author’s talent or the feel of the book through a quote?

When You Are Ready to Write

Begin with a short summary or background of the work, but do not give too much away. Many reviews limit themselves only to the first couple of chapters or lead the reader up to the rising action of the work. Reviewers of nonfiction texts will provide the basic idea of the book’s argument without too much detailed.

The final portion of your review will detail your opinion of the work. When you are ready to begin your review, consider the following:

• Establish a Background, Remember your Audience: Remember that your audience has not read the work; with this in mind, be sure to introduce characters and principles carefully and deliberately. What kind of summary can you provide of the main points or main characters that will help your readers gauge their interest? Does the author’s text adequately reach the intended audience? Will some readers be lost or find the text too easy?
• Minor principles/characters: Deal only with the most pressing issues in the book. You will not be able to cover every character or idea. What principles/characters did you agree or disagree with? What other things might the author have researched or considered?
• Organize: The purpose of the review is to critically evaluate the text, not just inform the readers about it. Leave plenty room for your evaluation by ensuring that your summary is brief. Determine what kind of balance to strike between your summary information and your evaluation. If you are writing your review for a class, ask your instructor. Often the ratio is half and half.
• Your Evaluation: Choose one or a few points to discuss about the book. What worked well for you? How does this work compare with others by the same author or other books in the same genre? What major themes, motifs, or terms does the book introduce, and how effective are they? Did the book appeal to you on an emotional or logical way?
• Publisher/Price: Most book reviews include the publisher and price of the book at the end of the article. Some reviews also include the year published and ISBN.

When making the final touches to your review, carefully verify the following:

• Double-check the spelling of the author name(s), character names, special terms, and publisher.
• Try to read from the vantage point of your audience. Is there too much/enough summary? Does your argument about the text make sense?
• Should you include direct quotes from the reading? Do they help support your arguments? Double-check your quotes for accuracy.

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• Publications
• Account settings

Preview improvements coming to the PMC website in October 2024. Learn More or Try it out now .

• Advanced Search
• Journal List
• Front Public Health

Book Review: A Teacher’s Guide to Adapted Physical Education: Including Students with Disabilities in Sports and Recreation, 4th Edition

Jennifer j. taylor.

1 Health and Exercise Science, Western Oregon University, Monmouth, OR, USA

A book review on  A Teacher’s Guide to Adapted Physical Education: Including Students with Disabilities in Sports and Recreation, 4th Edition by  Martin E. Block, editor. Baltimore:  Paul H. Brooks Publishing ( 2016).  430 p. ISBN  978-1-59857-669-6.

The fourth edition of this book is organized into four sections. Section I: Foundations (Chapters  1–3) provides an in-depth description of physical education, inclusion, and taking a team approach to inclusion in physical education. Section II: Inclusive practices and Planning (Chapters 4–7) focus on planning and assessment along with instructional, curricular, game, and sport modifications. Section III: Understanding Specific Needs (Chapters 8–16) provides information related to understanding specific needs including intellectual, learning, and sensory disabilities as well as emotional disturbance. Section IV: Supporting Across Contexts (Chapters 17–21) focus on social acceptance, making physical education safe, behavior management, inclusion in community-based recreation, and multicultural education and issues of diversity. At the end of the book, there are comprehensive reference and index sections.

The fourth addition of this book has changed a number of areas from the previous third edition. First, this edition includes downloadable materials, which includes customizable PowerPoints for individuals who will be teaching a course using this book. Instructions on how to retrieve the material are also provided. Second, there is a notable difference in the number of collaborators for different chapters of the book. Block identifies in his acknowledgments how “thrilled he was to get some of the leaders in physical education for students with specific disabilities” to contribute to the new chapters. Third and perhaps the most notable change is the addition of nine chapters focusing on understanding the needs for specific disabilities (section III). Finally, block has changed some of the organization of the chapters. Most notably, (a) the book is now organized into four themed sections, (b) chapters 4 and 5 from the third edition (Planning for inclusion in physical education, assessment to facilitate successful inclusion) have been combined to create chapter 4 in the fourth edition (Program Planning and Assessment), (c) the aquatics chapter from the third edition has not been included in the newest edition, and (d) the new chapters on Understanding specific needs (chapters 9–16) have been inserted after the game and sport modifications chapter moving chapters on facilitating social acceptance, making inclusive physical education safe, positive behavior supports, community-based recreation, and multicultural education and diversity issues to comprise the last section of the book (Supporting Across Context). The organization of this book has an intuitive flow progressing from basic to more complex content regarding adapted physical education.

Section I: Foundations (Chapters 1–3)

This section does an excellent job of describing quality physical education along with developmentally appropriate programing and curricular models. This section spends ample time on answering the question “what is inclusion?” and includes current research on inclusion in physical education as well as strategies for supporting inclusion in physical education. This section also spends an entire chapter on using a team approach to inclusion, discussing who is a part of the collaborative team (Physical Education Integration Team), and offers practical strategies for productive communication and managing conflict.

Section II: Inclusive Practices and Planning (Chapters 4–7)

This section is filled with concrete ways to plan and modify curriculum, instruction, assessments, and games and sport. I especially liked the chapter on instructional modifications. This chapter (chapter 5) identifies different models related to modifications, selecting appropriate modifications, accommodations related to class organization, how information is presented, and providing structure and routine. This chapter also includes a well-designed sample peer tutoring training manual and training evaluation in the appendix.

Section III: Understanding Specific Needs (Chapters 8–16)

Section III focuses on understanding specific disabilities (Intellectual Disabilities, Learning Disabilities, ADD/ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emotional Disturbance, Deafness or Hard of Hearing, Visual Impairments and Deafblindness, Physical Disabilities, and Other Health Impairments). Each chapter describing the causes, incidence, and characteristics of various disabilities. Each chapter also provides instructional strategies, and modifications to help include students with these disabilities in physical education. Each chapter has some slight variation based on the specific needs for the disability that is being discussed. For example, chapter 11 (Autism Spectrum Disorder) spends time introducing behavior management strategies where as chapter 15 (Physical Disabilities) spends time discussing secondary health conditions, such as pressure sores and contractures. This section is very informative and well put together. At the end of each chapter is a list of current resources (more information on sport, camps, and support).

Section IV: Supporting Across Contexts (Chapters 17–21)

This section has various topics including facilitating social acceptance, making inclusive physical education safe, positive behavior support, such as students with disabilities in recreation, and multicultural education and diversity issues. This section really rounds out this text book. It covers many of the topics that some may feel were not addressed in other areas and again provides current information and resources. The chapter on multicultural education and diversity issues explores issues related to disability and diversity like ableism, and individuals with disabilities as a minority group. The chapter also spends time discussing awareness of individuals with disabilities coming from a culturally diverse background and understanding the views of individuals with a disability and how they are represented in the media.

Overall, this book is an excellent choice for any adapted physical activity course that is preparing educators. The layout of the book is very easy to navigate. One of my favorite things as an instructor is that each chapter has clear objectives stated at the beginning of the chapter. While there are not very many pictures in this textbook, each chapter has tables and figures that help explain the content and the topic headings help break things up, so it is easy to read. This is the perfect book for physical educators (adapted or not) to have as a resource for understanding how they can best prepare and teach their students. While this book is focused on adapted physical education many of the topics, strategies and models that are provided could also benefit students without disabilities in physical education.

Author Contributions

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Book Reviews

CONNECT WITH US

• Book Reviews / Writing Craft

Learn How to Write an Education Book

by MiddleWeb · Published 02/11/2016 · Updated 11/30/2019

The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book: Practical Advice for Teachers and Leaders By Cathie E. West (Routledge/Eye on Education, 2016 – Learn more )

Who knew this slim, 140-page book would read more like a summer beach thriller than a didactic, pedantic education tome? With a title like The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book , I thought the content would be interesting but dry, useful but not necessarily entertaining. However, once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down.

But after reading The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book , I feel well equipped to do just that. Cathie West takes readers through all the steps of getting a book published: from developing an idea to marketing the finished product. The comprehensive information in this book will give you the confidence to take that idea you have and see it through to completion.

The first chapter is called “Why Write ?” and it hooked me on the second page by describing various reasons people write education books…and reasons why they shouldn’t. It then describes characteristics of successful authors and reminds educators that they already possess them: confidence, commitment, conscientiousness, and courage.

Other sections of the chapter include a discussion of goals for writing, how to create an optimum environment for writing, and an interview with a teacher who is in the process of writing a book. The chapter ends, as all the chapters in this book do, with “Take-Away Tips,” “Reflections—Connections,” “Best Practice” ideas, and a list of references.

The second chapter is about the different types of education books and what readers want from such books. A very helpful table on page 24 lists eight features of what West calls a “best-practice book” and describes each of them, cross-referencing each feature with the chapter in this book that discusses them in greater detail. Since every chapter includes an interview, in Chapter 2 the author talks with an administrator about what makes a book a must-read.

From Prospectus to Publication

The remaining chapters in The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book cover the process involved in getting a book published. Chapter 3: Book Mechanics and Safeguards, was fascinating. The terms “front matter” and “back matter” are defined, and all the parts of a book are explained. Publishers’ guidelines are also addressed. Chapter 4: Titles, Topics, and Themes, is all about how to find the central idea for your book and how to write a book proposal for a publisher which, I discovered, is called a “prospectus” in the publishing industry.

In Chapter 5: Writing Style and Steps, the importance of finding your own writing style is discussed and tips for writing are provided. West herself writes in an engaging style that is clear and enjoyable to read. This chapter also includes the steps an author goes through when writing a book and the steps a book goes through as it is being readied for publication.

The roles and responsibilities of various people from the publishing company are described in Chapter 6: Publishing People and Processes. Information about contracts is also included. Chapter 7 is the conclusion and reiterates why educators can be successful authors.

Beyond the Text: Plentiful Appendices

Ten appendices offer readers worksheets to help them develop their ideas and writing schedules along with examples of a query letter, a prospectus, and a submission letter. The sample prospectus is for this very book, which is an inspired idea and very useful as readers can see how it was pitched to a publisher. All ten of these appendix resources are helpfully available as free downloads by accessing a URL provided at the beginning of the book.

In addition to the interviews, which also showcase a copy editor, an editor, a principal, and an associate marketing manager and consequently give readers insight into various aspects of the book publishing process, West includes excerpts from email exchanges she had with people from her publishing company to illustrate the points she makes. These are very helpful, too, as are the little tips presented in boxes that are scattered throughout the book.

The only quibble I have, and it is a very small one, is about the design of the boxes that surround the interviews and the three sections at the end of each chapter. The boxes are not enclosed on all four sides, and at first it was a little confusing because I thought the information continued on a following page. Once I realized it didn’t and that was the style for those sections, I got used to it.

The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book makes the whole process of writing a book much less daunting, much more doable, and much less mysterious. As West writes on page 97, “The level of excitement that comes from signing a contract for a book will be exceeded only when you see your name on the front cover.”

This is an essential resource for any educator who has ever dreamed of seeing their name on the cover of a book they wrote themselves.

________________

Susan Schwartz taught EFL/ESL at universities in Asia and a public school in Massachusetts for 25 years and now creates digital education resources. She has written for TESOL International Administration’s New Ways series of books, English Teaching Forum , The Journal of the Imagination in Language Learning , and Pelangi: An Education Magazine about Indonesia , among other journals. Someday, she hopes to publish a book combining her interests in ESL, travel photography and social studies.

Share this:

Tags: Cathie E. West education book eye on education prospectus publisher contacts Routledge Susan Schwartz theme writing writing for publication

MiddleWeb is all about the middle grades, with great 4-8 resources, book reviews, and guest posts by educators who support the success of young adolescents. And be sure to subscribe to MiddleWeb SmartBrief for the latest middle grades news & commentary from around the USA.

2 Responses

• Pingbacks 0

Your affirmative and well developed critique of The Educator’s Guide to Writing a Book is much appreciated. Every educator has stories to tell that will help others—teachers, school level leaders, and district administrators—perfect their performances. I hope that my book helps educators share their hard-won wisdom and experiences. — Cathie E. West, Author

I’m a true fan of great writing, however, I would like to know more about writing an educational book for a large university class etc. Thanks.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

• Popular Posts
• Recent Posts
• Recent Comments

Book Reviews / Literacy

The Democratic Roots Essential to Literacy

Articles / Literacy

How Teacher Notebooks Can Help Students Learn

Articles / Mathematics

How to Differentiate the Teaching, Not the Task

Research / Wide Open Learning

Taking Small Steps to Build Research Skills

Book Reviews / Mindsets

How to Reclaim Your Energy, Passion, & Time

Defiance / I Will Screw This Up

Why I’m Keeping My Classroom Door Open

Articles / Leadership

You Can Make Meetings More Productive

Articles / Body Image

Books to Help Students Explore Body Image

Equations / Meaningful Math

My Students Struggle to Solve Basic Equations

Articles / Extra Credit

Providing Extra Credit: Positive or Negative?

Articles / Deeper Learning

Complex Tasks Every Student Can Accomplish

Articles / Classroom Culture

A UDL Strategy to Help Students Communicate

Number Sense Builds a Strong Math Foundation

Book Reviews / Teaching Insights

A How-to Guide to Better Engage Your Students

Articles / Engagement

Consistency: the Invisible Backbone of Teaching

• MiddleWeb says: Mona Iehl points readers to a discussion of the research behind...
• Melvin Rountree says: What is the data showing student improvement? Has it been replicated...
• Angela Foster says: I think that dialogue journals are a wonderful way to engage...
• Donna Norton says: As a parent, I frequently think about my kids' talents and...
• Donna Norton says: I love how it encourages personal connections and discussions about the...

Sign Up & Receive the Latest News about Our Content…

Email address:

First Name:

Read our Privacy Policy

BOOK REVIEWS

A Leadership Blueprint for Growth and Success

10 Tools to Help Kids Develop Their Talents

The Reading Strategies Book Gets an Update

Opportunities for Swift Achievement Gains

Teaching for Retention, Application and Transfer

Strategies to Adjust ‘Up’ What Students Know

Assuring Just, Inclusive Learning for Newcomers

Building Bridges That Cultivate Teacher Growth

SEL, Civic Engagement, & a Healthy Democracy

An Enhanced Edition of ‘When Kids Can’t Read’

Shifting to Asset-Based Literacy Assessments

Bringing the Science of Reading into Grades 3-5

Class Libraries to Inspire and Challenge Readers

Strategies to Integrate AI into Every Classroom

Preparing Our Students to Engage the World

A Playbook for Student and Teacher Well-Being

Culturally & Historically Responsive Classrooms

Education Review

About the Journal

Welcome! Education Review (ISSN: 1094-5296) publishes reviews of recent books in English, Spanish, and Portuguese spanning a wide range of education scholarship and practice across the globe. We also publish autobiographical essays highlighting the acquired wisdom and pedagogical legacies of esteemed educational researchers.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The journal will be selective regarding new requests to review English titles for the next few months as we restructure our journal offerings.

Announcements

Nova legados pedagógicos / new pedagogical legacies, current issue, pequenos grandes livros, resenha do livro a ilusão fecunda: a luta por educação nos movimentos populares.

• PDF (Português (Brasil))

Review of Teach truth to power: How to engage in education policy

Review of black male success in higher education: how the mathematical brotherhood empowers a collegiate community to thrive, review of culturally and socially responsible assessment: theory, research, and practice.

ISSN: 1094-5296   

• Español (España)
• Português (Brasil)

Make a Submission

Anped books for review.

Uma história de doutorados-sanduíche: A importância de estágios no exterior para a formação da internacionalização das pesquisas em educação

Autor/Org:   Nilda Alves (Org.)

Mais informações e livros

Solicitar para revisão

Mais informações para  chamada

Additional Information

Disclaimer:  The views or opinions presented in book reviews are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of Education Review .

Education Review/Reseñas Educativas/Resenhas Educativas  is supported by the Scholarly Communications Group at the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University. 

Join Discovery, the new community for book lovers

Trust book recommendations from real people, not robots 🤓

Blog – Posted on Wednesday, Apr 03

How to write a book review in 3 steps.

If the idea of reading for free — or even getting paid to read — sounds like a dream come true, remember that it isn’t a pipe dream. There are many places aspiring book reviewers can read books for free, such as Reedsy Discovery — a new platform for reviewing indie books. Of course, if you’re giving serious thought to becoming a book reviewer, your first step should be learning how to write a book review. To that end, this post covers all the basics of literary criticism. Let’s get started!

The three main steps of writing a book review are simple:

• Provide a summary: What is story about? Who are the main characters and what is the main conflict? 
• Present your evaluation: What did you think of the book? What elements worked well, and which ones didn’t? 
• Give your recommendation: Would you recommend this book to others? If so, what kinds of readers will enjoy it?

You can also download our free book review templates and use it as a guide! Otherwise, let’s take a closer look at each element.

Pro-tip : But wait! How are you sure if you should become a book reviewer in the first place? If you're on the fence, or curious about your match with a book reviewing career, take our quick quiz:

Should you become a book reviewer?

Find out the answer. Takes 30 seconds!

How to write a review of a book

Step 1. provide a summary.

Have you ever watched a movie only to realize that all the good bits were already in the trailer? Well, you don’t want the review to do that. What you do want the summary to do is reveal the genre, theme, main conflict, and main characters in the story — without giving away spoilers or revealing how the story ends.

A good rule of thumb is not to mention anything that happens beyond the midpoint. Set the stage and give readers a sense of the book without explaining how the central issue is resolved.

Emily W. Thompson's review of The Crossing :

In [Michael] Doane’s debut novel, a young man embarks on a journey of self-discovery with surprising results.

An unnamed protagonist (The Narrator) is dealing with heartbreak. His love, determined to see the world, sets out for Portland, Oregon. But he’s a small-town boy who hasn’t traveled much. So, the Narrator mourns her loss and hides from life, throwing himself into rehabbing an old motorcycle. Until one day, he takes a leap; he packs his bike and a few belongings and heads out to find the Girl. Read more...

Here are a few more reviews with well-written summaries for you to check out. The summary tend to be the longest part of the book review, so we won’t turn this post into a novel itself by pasting them all here: Le Cirque Navire reviewed by Anna Brill, The Heart of Stone reviewed by Kevin R. Dickinson, Fitting Out: The Friendship Experiment reviewed by Lianna Albrizio.

Non-fiction summary tip: The primary goal of a non-fiction summary is to provide context: what problems or issues has the book spotted, and how does it go about addressing them? Be sure to mention the authors of the title and what experience or expertise they bring to the title. Check Stefan Kløvning’s review of Creativity Cycling for an example of a summary that establishes the framework of the book within the context of its field.

Step 2. Present your evaluation

While you should absolutely weave your own personal take of a book into the review, your evaluation shouldn’t only be based on your subjective opinion. Along with presenting how you reacted to the story and how it affected you, you should also try to objectively critique the stronger and weaker elements of the story, and provide examples from the text to back up your points.

To help you write your evaluation, you should record your reactions and thoughts as you work your way through a novel you’re planning on reviewing. Here are some aspects of the book to keep in mind as you do.

Your evaluation might focus heartily on the book’s prose:

Donald Barker's review of Mercenary : 

Such are the bones of the story. But, of course, it is the manner in which Mr Gaughran puts the bones back together and fills them with life that makes “Mercenary” such a great read. The author’s style seems plain; it seems straightforward and even simple. But an attempt at imitation or emulation quickly proves that simple it is not. He employs short, punchy sentences that generate excellent dialogue dripping with irony, deadpan humour and wit. This, mixed with good descriptive prose, draws the characters – and what characters they are – along with the tumultuous events in which they participated amidst the stinking, steaming heat of the South American jungle, out from the past to the present; alive, scheming, drinking, womanising and fighting, onto the written page.

You can give readers a sense of the book by drawing comparisons to other well-known titles or authors:

Laura Hartman's review of The Mystery of Ruby's Mistletoe :

Reading Ms. Donovan’s book is reminiscent to one of my favorite authors, Dame Agatha Christie. Setting up the suspects in a snowbound house, asking them to meet in the drawing room and the cleverly satisfying conclusion was extremely gratifying. I can picture Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot nodding at Ms. Donovan saying “Well done!”

Not everyone’s tastes are the same, and you can always acknowledge this by calling out specific story elements in your evaluation: 

Kevin R. Dickinson's review of The Heart of Stone :

Whether you enjoy Galley’s worldbuilding will depend heavily on preference. Galley delivers information piecemeal, letting the characters, not the author, navigate the reader through Hartlund. A notable example is the magic system, an enigmatic force that lacks the ridge structures of, say, a Brandon Sanderson novel. While the world’s magical workings are explained, you only learn what the characters know and many mysteries remain by the end. Similar choices throughout make the world feel expansive and authentic.

Non-fiction evaluation tip: A book’s topic is only as compelling as its supporting arguments. Your evaluation of a nonfiction book should address that: how clearly and effectively are the points communicated? Turn back to Stefan’s critique for an example of a non-fiction critique that covers key takeaways and readability, without giving away any “big reveals.”

Step 3. Give your recommendation 

At the end of the day, your critique needs to answer this question: is this a book you would (or wouldn’t) recommend to other readers? You might wrap up by comparing it to other books in the same genre, or authors with similar styles, such as: “Fans of so-and-so will enjoy this book.” 

Let’s take a look at a few more tips:

You don’t need to write, “I recommend this book” — you can make it clear by highlighting your favorable opinion:

Following in the footsteps of Jack Kerouac and William Least Heat-Moon, Doane offers a coming of age story about a man finding himself on the backroads of America. Doane’s a gifted writer with fluid prose and insightful observations, using The Narrator’s personal interactions to illuminate the diversity of the United States.

Despite his flaws, it’s a pleasure to accompany The Narrator on his physical and emotional journey. The unexpected ending is a fitting denouement to an epic and memorable road trip.

Add more punch to your rating by mentioning what kind of audience will or won’t enjoy the book:

Charleigh Aleyna Reid's review of The King of FU :

I would recommend this book to anyone who grew up in the 90’s and would like to reminisce about the time, someone who is interested to see what it was like to be a 90’s kid, or perhaps anyone who is looking for a unique, funny story about someone’s life.

Unless you found the title absolutely abhorrent, a good way to balance out a less favorable book review it to share what you did like about the book — before ultimately stating why you wouldn’t recommend the novel:

Nicola O's review of Secrets of the Sea Lord :

Overall, there are plenty of enjoyable elements in this story and fans of Atlantis and mer mythology should give it a try. Despite this, it does not rise above a three-star rating, and while I had some difficulty pinning down why this is, I concluded that it comes from a surprisingly unsophisticated vocabulary. There are a couple of graphic sex scenes, which is absolutely fine in a paranormal romance, but if they were removed, I could easily imagine this as an appealing story for middle-schoolers.

Non-fiction recommendation tip: As with fiction book reviews, share why you did or didn’t enjoy the title. However, in one of the starkest divergences from fiction book reviews it’s more important than ever that you mention your expectations coming into the non-fiction book. For instance, if you’re a cow farmer who’s reading a book on the benefits of becoming a vegetarian, you’re coming in with a large and inherent bias that the book will struggle to alter. So your recommendation should cover your thoughts about the book, while clearly taking account your perspective before you started reading. Let’s look once more at Stefan’s review for an example of a rating that includes an explanation of the reviewer’s own bias.

Bonus tips for writing a book review

Let’s wrap up with a few final tips for writing a compelling review.

• Remember, this isn’t a book report. If someone wants the summary of a book, they can read the synopsis. People turn to book reviews for a fellow reader’s take on the book. And for that reason...
• Have an opinion. Even if your opinion is totally middle-of-the-line — you didn’t hate the book but you didn’t love it either — state that clearly, and explain why.
• Make your stance clear from the outset. Don’t save your opinion just for the evaluation/recommendation. Weave your thoughts about the book into your summary as well, so that readers have an idea of your opinion from the outset.
• Back up your points. Instead of just saying, “the prose was evocative” — show readers by providing an actual passage that displays this. Same goes for negative points — don’t simply tell readers you found a character unbelievable, reference a certain (non-spoiler) scene that backs this up.
• Provide the details. Don’t forget to weave the book’s information into the review: is this a debut author? Is this one installment of a series? What types of books has the author written before? What is their background? How many pages does the book have? Who published the book? What is the book’s price?
• Follow guidelines. Is the review you’re writing for Goodreads? For The New York Times ? The content and tone of your review will vary a good deal from publication to publication.
• Learn from others. One of the best ways to learn how to write a great review is to read other reviews! To help you out with that, we’ve published a post all about book review examples .

Writing book reviews can be a rewarding experience! As a book-lover yourself, it’s a great opportunity to help guide readers to their next favorite title. If you’re just getting started as a reviewer and could use a couple more tips and nudges in the right direction, check out our comprehensive blog post on how to become a book reviewer . And if you want to find out which review community is the right fit for you, we recommend taking this quick quiz:

Which review community should you join?

Find out which review community is best for your style. Takes 30 seconds!

Finally, if you feel you've nailed the basics of how to write a book review, we recommend you check out Reedsy Discovery , where you can review books for free and are guaranteed people will read them. To register as a book reviewer, simply go here !

Continue reading

More posts from across the blog.

Launching Your Book on Reedsy Discovery

Whether you’re self-publishing a book for the first time or you’re a veteran indie author, the idea of launching a book is always going to be a little daunting. After all, there are a lot of moving pieces and you only ...

11 Best Ernest Hemingway Books in Chronological Order

When puzzling over what the best Ernest Hemingway books are, a reader might not be burdened by a mountain of publications — as with trying to determine the best Stephen King no...

60 Best Inspirational Books For Women

Our list of the most inspirational books for women that will leave you feeling motivated, uplifted, and ready to prove all women can do.

Heard about Reedsy Discovery?

Trust real people, not robots, to give you book recommendations.

Or sign up with an

Or sign up with your social account

• Submit your book
• Reviewer directory

Want to be a book reviewer?

Review new books and start building your portfolio.

Advertisement

Supported by

editors’ choice

8 New Books We Recommend This Week

Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times.

• Share full article

Our recommended books this week include three very different memoirs. In “Grief Is for People,” Sloane Crosley pays tribute to a lost friend and mentor; in “Replay,” the video-game designer Jordan Mechner presents a graphic family memoir of three generations; and in “What Have We Here?” the actor Billy Dee Williams looks back at his life in Hollywood and beyond.

Also up this week: a history of the shipping companies that helped Jewish refugees flee Europe before World War I and a humane portrait of people who ended up more or less alone at death, their bodies unclaimed in a Los Angeles morgue. In fiction we recommend a posthumous story collection by a writer who died on the cusp of success, along with a ripped-from-the-headlines thriller and a big supernatural novel from a writer previously celebrated for her short fiction. Happy reading. — Gregory Cowles

WHAT HAPPENED TO NINA? Dervla McTiernan

Despite its title, this disturbing, enthralling thriller is less concerned with what happened to 20-year-old Nina, who vanished while spending the weekend with her controlling boyfriend, than it is with how the couple’s parents — all broken, terrified and desperate in their own ways — respond to the exigencies of the moment.

“Almost painfully gripping. … The last scene will make your blood run cold.”

From Sarah Lyall’s thrillers column

Morrow | $27

THE UNCLAIMED: Abandonment and Hope in the City of Angels Pamela Prickett and Stefan Timmermans

The sociologists Pamela Prickett and Stefan Timmermans spent some 10 years studying the phenomenon of the unclaimed dead in America — and, specifically, Los Angeles. What sounds like a grim undertaking has resulted in this moving project, in which they focus on not just the deaths but the lives of four people. The end result is sobering, certainly, but important, readable and deeply humane.

“A work of grace. … Both cleareyed and disturbing, yet pulsing with empathy.”

From Dan Barry’s review

Crown | $30

THE BOOK OF LOVE Kelly Link

Three teenagers are brought back from the dead in Link’s first novel, which is set in a coastal New England town full of secrets and supernatural entities. The magic-wielding band teacher who revived them gives the kids a series of tasks to stay alive, but powerful forces conspire to thwart them.

“It’s profoundly beautiful, provokes intense emotion, offers up what feel like rooted, incontrovertible truths.”

From Amal El-Mohtar’s review

Random House | $31

GRIEF IS FOR PEOPLE Sloane Crosley

Crosley is known for her humor, but her new memoir tackles grief. The book follows the author as she works to process the loss of her friend, mentor and former boss, Russell Perreault, who died by suicide.

“The book is less than 200 pages, but the weight of suicide as a subject, paired with Crosley’s exceptional ability to write juicy conversation, prevents it from being the kind of slim volume one flies through and forgets.”

From Ashley C. Ford’s review

MCDxFSG | $27

NEIGHBORS AND OTHER STORIES Diane Oliver

This deceptively powerful posthumous collection by a writer who died at 22 follows the everyday routines of Black families as they negotiate separate but equal Jim Crow strictures, only to discover uglier truths.

“Like finding hunks of gold bullion buried in your backyard. … Belatedly bids a full-throated hello.”

From Alexandra Jacobs’s review

Grove | $27

WHAT HAVE WE HERE? Portraits of a Life Billy Dee Williams

In this effortlessly charming memoir, the 86-year-old actor traces his path from a Harlem childhood to the “Star Wars” universe, while lamenting the roles that never came his way.

“He writes with clarity and intimacy, revealing the person behind the persona. And he doesn’t scrimp on the dirty details.”

From Maya S. Cade’s review

Knopf | $32

THE LAST SHIPS FROM HAMBURG: Business, Rivalry, and the Race to Save Russia’s Jews on the Eve of World War I Steven Ujifusa

Ujifusa’s history describes the early-20th-century shipping interests that made a profit helping millions of impoverished Jews flee violence in Eastern Europe for safe harbor in America before the U.S. Congress passed laws restricting immigration.

“Thoroughly researched and beautifully written. … Truth as old as the Republic itself.”

From David Nasaw’s review

Dutton | $35

REPLAY: Memoir of an Uprooted Family Jordan Mechner

The famed video-game designer (“Prince of Persia”) pivots to personal history in this ambitious but intimate graphic novel. In it, he elegantly interweaves themes of memory and exile with family lore from three generations: a grandfather who fought in World War I; a father who fled Nazi persecution; and his own path as a globe-trotting, game-creating polymath.

“The binding theme is statelessness — imposed by chance, antisemitism and personal ambition — but memoirs are about memory, and so it is also a book about the subtleties and biases of recollection.”

From Sam Thielman’s graphics column

First Second | $29.99

Explore More in Books

Want to know about the best books to read and the latest news start here..

James McBride’s novel sold a million copies, and he isn’t sure how he feels about that, as he considers the critical and commercial success  of “The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store.”

How did gender become a scary word? Judith Butler, the theorist who got us talking about the subject , has answers.

You never know what’s going to go wrong in these graphic novels, where Circus tigers, giant spiders, shifting borders and motherhood all threaten to end life as we know it .

When the author Tommy Orange received an impassioned email from a teacher in the Bronx, he dropped everything to visit the students  who inspired it.

Do you want to be a better reader?   Here’s some helpful advice to show you how to get the most out of your literary endeavor .

Each week, top authors and critics join the Book Review’s podcast to talk about the latest news in the literary world. Listen here .

Utah officials unsure how to enforce new statewide book ban retroactively — but it may mean more work for public schools

The state school board is “still in the process of mapping out implementation.”.

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) A woman walks past dozens of banned books displayed on a table in Weller Book Works in Trolley Square for Banned Book Week in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023.

Six Utah school districts have banned Jessie Ann Foley’s young adult novel “ The Carnival at Bray ” — but each for a different reason.

Davis School District cited violations of Utah’s criminal code regarding “ indecent public displays, ” while Nebo School District said it removed the title due to low circulation. Washington School District noted “illicit” descriptions of sex.

The three others — Alpine, Canyons and Granite school districts — cited no reason at all.

At least 35 other titles have been banned by three or more Utah school districts for various reasons, according to an analysis by The Salt Lake Lake Tribune — but none for the specific criteria that would lead to a statewide ban under a brand new Utah law.

That new law, starting July 1, will prompt all public schools across the state to remove a book from shelves if at least three school districts (or at least two school districts and five charter schools) specifically determine it amounts to “objective sensitive material” — pornographic or otherwise indecent material, as defined by Utah code .

The law, which Gov. Spencer Cox signed this month , is also supposed to apply retroactively, potentially putting those at least 36 books already banned by three or more school districts in limbo statewide.

The problem is, officials are unsure how to retroactively enforce the law. That’s because a statewide “objective” sensitive material standard has never existed. Until now, districts weren’t required to use that terminology when making removal determinations.

Will districts and charters need to re-review banned books to determine which ones amount to “objective” sensitive material? Or will titles that have already been removed by three or more districts under the former law be banned statewide automatically?

Those questions and more remain unanswered.

“[The Utah State Board of Education] is still in the process of mapping out implementation,” said Sharon Turner, director of public affairs for the USBE.

The state school board has been charged with overseeing and creating the process for a book’s statewide removal.

“We need to consider all options as to best support our districts,” Turner said.

New removal standards trump local process

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) A "read-in" put on by Let Utah Read to protest the book ban bill at the Utah Capitol in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024.

Once that process is determined, it could mean major policy changes for all Utah school districts.

“We are just beginning to unpack the new ‘sensitive materials review’ amendments along with many other education-related bills that were passed this year,” said Kirsten Stewart, spokesperson for the Canyons School District. “We also await guidance from the Utah State Board of Education, which will factor into our policy reviews.”

Before the new law, schools evaluated sensitive materials according to a 2022 law , which required them to remove titles from student access if they contained “pornographic or indecent content.” Its teeth lay in a section of Utah criminal code that prohibits access to such materials on school property.

Renée Pinkney, president of the state’s largest teacher’s union, called the new law “anti-democratic,” arguing that it stands to burden school districts while eroding local control.

“Our districts were required to create a process to go through any book that was challenged at the local school board level, and they have done that,” she said. “They’ve created those processes, and they’re working. And now, to say that only three districts or two districts and five charters can make the decision for the entire state, you are taking away the power of the local school board members that were duly elected by their community members.”

The new law includes the previous definition of “sensitive” materials but also asks schools to evaluate a key difference — whether the material is objectively or subjectively sensitive, under the newly introduced removal standards. That distinction is important because “subjective” sensitive material determinations will not lead to a statewide ban, according to the law.

Both standards pertain to material that is considered pornographic or indecent, but “objective” sensitive material specifically involves content that violates a section of Utah criminal code regarding “indecent public displays” — any descriptions or depictions of sex or sexual stimulation.

In simpler terms, lawmakers have described “objective” sensitive material as “inherently” pornographic .

“Subjective” sensitive material may not meet the state’s definition of pornography or “indecent public displays,” but would otherwise be considered “harmful” to youth .

Can the state school board intervene in retroactive cases?

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) A shelf labeling banned books at Ken Sanders' Children's Reading Room at the Leonardo in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022.

There’s another looming uncertainty about the new law applying retroactively: If books previously banned by enough districts or charters do trigger the statewide ban, would the state school board still have the option to intervene?

According to the new law, state board members can reverse a ban triggered by that statewide removal threshold if they convene a hearing within 60 days to consider reinstating it.

If no hearing is held, the statewide removal stands. But if board leaders vote to reinstate a book, the statewide ban is overturned.

USBE officials did not say whether they plan to exercise that option come July, or whether the 60-day time limit would apply for any retroactive cases.

Gretchen Zaitzeff, president of the Utah Educational Library Media Association , said the new law will likely lead to “self-censorship,” with school librarians buying fewer books that address difficult topics out of fear they might not comply with state law.

UELMA was one of several literary and education organizations — as well as the Utah chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union — that penned an open letter to Cox urging him to veto the bill. Cox didn’t respond to the letter, Zaitzeff said.

“It’s a slippery slope of censorship,” Zaitzeff said. “[Students] will have less access to books about difficult topics that they may actually want to read.”

Supporters of the law have argued it’s about protecting children from accessing porn , but Zaitzeff, who is also the Canyons School District library specialist, argued “we have a semantics problem.”

“The foundational definition used to describe ‘sensitive materials’ is different than the legal definition used to describe pornography,” she said. “... If these works that are under reconsideration were actually pornographic, they would have been out of school long before today.”

Donate to the newsroom now. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax deductible

RELATED STORIES

Gov. cox signs bill making it easier to ban books from utah schools statewide, here’s how utah public schools could change after a whirlwind of new education bills, ‘does that not make the point’: utah lawmaker cut off while reading from sarah j. maas book during book ban debate, a salt lake city man died less than an hour after police restrained him. officers won’t face charges in his death., no charges for officers who shot a man as he pulled out a gun and shot himself, salt lake county d.a. says, lds church steps up this message: wear your temple garments every day, salt lake city police officers will not face charges after a man died days after they shot at him, d.a. rules, bagley cartoon: climate emergency, utah point guard rollie worster enters transfer portal, featured local savings.

Greeley-Evans District 6 Board of Education…

Share this:.

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
• Things to Do
• Marketplace

Greeley-Evans District 6 Board of Education votes 5-1 to keep book on shelves after review

A library book that’s only been checked out twice since its purchase in 2018 will remain available at Greeley Central High School after undergoing Greeley-Evans School District 6’s book review process.

Though “The God of Small Things” by Arundhati Roy has received little attention from students, more than 150 people signed forms in 2022 saying they wanted it banned or restricted from local school libraries.

Despite an appeal from one community member, the majority of the Greeley-Evans Board of Education voted at Monday’s board meeting to uphold the District 6 Book Review Committee and the superintendent’s recommendation to keep “The God of Small Things” without any restrictions.

Rob Norwood, absent from the meeting due to an illness, was not included in the motion.

The book initially received 165 complaints in December 2022, according to Wes Tuttle, assistant superintendent of school leadership. In January, those who challenged books received notice for complainants to speak up, talk with committee members or submit additional written complaints, but the committee received none.

Meetings for “The God of Small Things” review started in November.  To participate on the committee, the district required people to be objective and in the middle to consider all options, Tuttle said.

The committee consists of 19 members, including a pastor, employees from North Range dealing with youth trauma, six parents, two recent graduates from the past four years, four teachers, a certified librarian, four district administrators and two facilitators.

After several meetings, the committee landed on the recommendation for the book to continue to remain openly available in high school libraries without any restrictions. Superintendent Deidre Pilch backed the recommendation after her review.

In the three-page decision, guided by 12 criteria, the committee said the book allows readers to challenge world views such as generational poverty and trauma, according to Tuttle. The book, which was described as “poetic, well-written and deeply insightful,” empowers readers to become more emphatic with their peers and broadens their perspectives, the committee ruled.

As part of the process, people with initial objections can appeal the decision. Stacey Casteel, who previously ran for school board in November, was the only one out of 165 people to do so.

Casteel’s appeal from Feb. 27 disagreed with the finding to allow the book to stay in the school. However, she said on Monday that her request doesn’t mean pulling the book from the shelves.

Instead of the district allowing parents to opt their child out of a book, which is currently the case for the school district, Casteel said the librarian should call the parent to tell them their child wants to check out a book on the “banned book list.”

Casteel thinks parents don’t know the current restriction opportunity is available to them or they aren’t aware of the challenged books’ content, which is why communication between the librarian and the parent would be beneficial. But board members argued this approach would create an extra burden on the librarian and that the banned book list could potentially become too long, complicating the process.

Although District 6 received public backlash for having certain books in its schools, which resulted in hundreds of people in the community challenging books , only two parents have requested to restrict access to books since implementing parental choice, according to Tuttle. A majority of the 211 people who filed nearly 4,500 paper complaints on 11 books in December 2022 also indicated they had not read the books nor had students in District 6 schools, according to a previous Tribune article .

As for “The God of Small Things,” Casteel and other initial challengers had major issues with the book’s content, particularly the sexual nature of the book. At Monday’s meeting, Casteel indicated the sexual acts that took place in the book can stunt educational growth. However, Natalie Mash, vice president of the school board, said the act is portrayed as abuse and nothing positive comes out of it.

Mash cited the book committee’s take on sexual assault from the book, stating the topic could help students openly discuss trauma’s impact. She then cited that 1 in 4 women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime, and District 6 has 22,00 students.

“This is the experience of some of our students,” she said.

During public participation, Brian Sullivan, the husband of board member Taylor Sullivan, also called for the elimination of “The God of Small Things” but didn’t make an appeal. He then inquired which board members voted to keep this book in schools.

Only one board member, Taylor Sullivan, expressed a desire to remove the book from the high school, going against the recommendation from the committee. She believed the book encouraged and promoted infidelity, sexual assault, spousal abuse and incest.

Sullivan argued the book is a “depressing read” that doesn’t make children feel safe or protected, going against the district’s values.

Unlike the Sullivans, board member Brenda Campos-Spitze called the book one of the best reads of her life and “proudly” voted yes to keep the book on shelves. She argued it doesn’t promote or glorify the topics of concern in its depiction of them.

Campos-Spitze said high school students should not be shielded from “difficult conversations in the real world.”

A few board members went on to address Casteel’s appeal, which stated the committee’s recommendation lacked reason and literacy value. Board member Doran Azari, who participated in his first book review after being elected to the board in November, cited at least five reasons directly from the committee’s documents.

The board members, minus Sullivan, further sided with upholding the book committee’s and superintendent’s recommendation based on the approach to book challenges.

Board member Kyle Bentley added that District 6 has a “good process” for reviewing book complaints through the committee and the parental choice component. In fact, Bentley said, other school districts across the state are following District 6’s model for book challenges.

Before “The God of Small Things,” the last appeal to the board occurred in June with the books “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” by Jonathan Safran Foer and “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini. The board upheld the committee recommendation and Pilch’s evaluations of the rulings with both books, which remain available to students in schools where the books were located at the time of the review.

The book committee’s next reviews will be “Me, Earl and the Dying Girl” by Jesse Andrews and “Real Live Boyfriends” by E. Lockhart, according to the District 6 website.

More in Local News

Platteville mayor makes June ballot for Weld’s District 3 commissioner

‘I felt proud of myself’: Early College Academy student wins Daniels Fund scholarship

SUBSCRIBER ONLY

Unc to host viewings of partial solar eclipse in early april.

Multiple law enforcement agencies involved in hour-long pursuit of Windsor drive-by shooting suspect

AquafyIV stands at the forefront of health and wellness in Longmont, offering a sophisticated blend of IV therapy treatments designed...

Seeking expert physical therapists in Longmont, CO? Look no further than Alpine Physical Therapy. With over 40 years of experience,...

Realities for Children, a beacon of hope in Larimer County, Colorado, is dedicated to preventing child abuse through a unique...

In an age where technology defines the pace of life, High Plains Bank of Bennett proudly introduces a new era...

In today’s fast-paced world, digital banking has become a cornerstone of modern financial management. High Plains Bank of Keenesburg is...

Best Reading Tablets: Get the Right Tablet for Your Books and Comics

Get reading done, but without a book.

Reading your favorite books on the go can be a difficult thing to do, especially if you’re already carrying about a million things with you, so turning to e-books may end up saving you from a backache. Whether you prefer an actual e-reader, like one of the best kindles or if you'd rather just read on one of the best tablets , that’s up to you – there are advantages to either.

TL;DR - These are the best tablets to read on:

• Kindle Paperwhite 2021
• Kindle Fire HD 8
• Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite
• Boox Note Air3

To have a great experience when reading an e-book, you need a tablet with a good screen that's easy to handle. While dedicated e-readers are fantastic, you can simply install apps to read your e-books on a regular tablet as well.

1. Kindle Paperwhite

The best kindle and best reading tablet.

• Great illuminated display and battery life
• Water-resistant
• No wireless charging

The Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is king among e-book readers. It's small enough that you can carry it anywhere, with battery that'll last for days. The Kindle Paperwhite features a 6.8-inch e-Ink screen with a 300 ppi resolution, which is ideal for reading since there’s no glare to speak of and little to no blue light. Even better, the Paperwhite has 17 LEDs to light up the display from the sides, making it super comfortable to read in any condition.

The Kindle Paperwhite is one of the best ways to read books, allowing us to focus on the book and eliminating all outside distractions such as app notifications, emails, calls, and so on. It’s just you and your book. If necessary, the Kindle’s browser gives you access to anything you need to research.

2. iPad Mini

Best ipad for reading.

• Fantastic display
• Compact and portable
• Screen glare due to glossy screen

If you’re caught in the Apple universe, then you’re going to want an iPad mini to read your books. It’s a smaller tablet, measuring just 8.3 inches, but it’s still an iPad. It has a Liquid Retina display, which is gorgeous and you can adjust the screen brightness to match whatever you need when reading. Thanks to the True Tone technology, the iPad will automatically adjust the display’s color temperature based on the ambient light conditions, which is always great.

At the same time, the iPad mini features Apple’s A15 chipset, which means it’s quite a powerful device, being able to run any app you want, from social media to streaming to games. This is also a super light tablet so you can easily carry it with you anywhere you go while also holding it in a single hand when lying in bed and trying to get through another chapter. The only downside is battery life – at least when compared to an e-reader – because you’ll need to charge the iPad mini pretty frequently. Apple boasts that it has battery life of about 10 hours, but if you watch videos and so on, you’ll get much less than that.

3. Kindle Fire HD 8

Best tablet for reading comics.

• Long battery life
• Lower resolution

If you’re looking for a budget-friendly tablet that will also serve as a great platform to read comics on, then the Fire HD 8 may be a solid option. Not only is this Amazon tablet compact enough to carry anywhere you want to go or to hold in one hand when you’re trying to finish another issue, but it’s also super affordable. Since you can get this one for as low as $65 during sale events, you can’t expect it to be a speed devil with a fantastic screen and fabulous battery.

So, while it may not be the best tablet out there, you can launch the Kindle app to read your books or comics, use Alexa to control various smart home devices or scroll through TikTok while still reeling from that one scene you just finished reading. The Fire HD 8 even has a decent battery life, so you’ll do just fine using this tablet for reading.

4. Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite

Best Android Tablet for Reading

• Large and bright display
• Comes with an S-Pen for note-taking
• LCD screens could tire your eyes easily

If you want an Android tablet, then the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is a great option. While it’s slightly larger than other tablets on our list, we picked it over other models for its screen quality. With a resolution of 2000 x 1200 pixels, you’ll get crisp and clear letters even if you do go for a smaller font size.

The Tab S6 Lite also comes with an S Pen, so you can easily take notes based on what you read. What’s more, since this is an Android tablet, you can do everything you do on your phone – watch movies, doomscroll through social media, play games, and so on. You also get a wide range of e-book and audiobook apps to choose from.

5. Boox Note Air3

Best Reading and Writing Tablet

• Large E-Ink display
• Allows note-taking

The Boox Note Air3 is a bit more expensive than other tablets for reading, but it will easily cover all your reading and writing needs. This is an Android tablet with an E-Ink screen, meaning you get the same fantastic reading experience as a Kindle. There’s no glare and your eyes will be less tired than when reading on an LCD screen since there’s no blue light to speak of.

The Boox Note Air 3 will also replace your notebooks because you can use the stylus to write down your thoughts, make lists, and so on. You can install whatever Android apps you want to, but keep in mind that the E-Ink screen has loads of limitations when it comes to watching videos or playing games. So, while the tablet does have the power to do everything else an Android tablet can do, not even setting the maximum refresh rate available will help this screen deliver a decent video.

How to Choose the Best Reading Tablet

Choosing the best reading tablet requires careful consideration of several factors to ensure that the device meets your specific needs. Whether you're an avid reader delving into novels, a student reviewing textbooks, or a professional keeping up with all the files your boss keeps sending, selecting the right tablet can significantly enhance your reading experience.

One of the main things you have to look into is the display's quality. The screen is where your eyes will spend most of their time, making display quality paramount. Eye comfort is also crucial, especially for extended reading sessions. Tablets with blue light reduction features or e-ink technology, which mimics the appearance of paper, can help reduce eye strain. E-Ink screens are easier on the eyes, but LCDs are more versatile if you want to use the same tablet for multiple purposes.

Long battery life is essential for uninterrupted reading, especially when on the move. Looking into tablets with a solid battery life will ensure that you can enjoy your books, magazines, or documents without constantly worrying about finding the next power outlet.

Lastly, size and weight affect how comfortably you can hold the tablet for long periods. While larger screens provide more immersive reading experiences, they should not compromise the device's portability. A lightweight, slim design makes it easier to carry your tablet in a bag or even hold it with one hand.

Best Tablets for Reading FAQ

What is the best tablet for reading?

If you want a device that’s fantastic for reading, then the Kindle Paperwhite is the one to choose. It has a great screen, it’s comfortable to use for long hours, has a great battery life and it’s even IPX8 waterproof. If you’re looking for a device that can help you multitask, then you’re going to want to get the iPad Mini or the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite, depending if you prefer iOS or Android.

Are tablets good for reading books?

Sure they are, but you’re going to be well aware that regular LCD screens will tire your eyes much faster than an e-Ink model. Battery life is also something you’ll want to keep in mind because tablets don’t last as long as a Kindle, for instance, since their hardware is more demanding.

IGN Recommends

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Book of Donald: Trump hawks special ‘God Bless the USA’ Bibles for $60

Former president sells Trump-endorsed Bible in concert with Lee Greenwood, country singer whose music is played at his rallies

Patriotic, prayerful and rightwing Americans are being offered the chance to purchase – for a mere $59.99 – a Bible endorsed by Donald Trump , in the latest example of the former US president touting wares to the American public.

In a post to his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, the current presumptive Republican nominee and 88-times charged criminal defendant said : “Happy Holy Week! Let’s Make America Pray Again. As we lead into Good Friday and Easter, I encourage you to get a copy of the God Bless the USA Bible.”

In an accompanying video message, Trump said : “I’m proud to be partnering with my very good friend Lee Greenwood – who doesn’t love his song God Bless the USA? – in connection with promoting the God Bless the USA Bible.”

Greenwood, a country singer whose signature tune is played at Trump rallies, is offering the Bibles for sale through a website, GodBlessTheUSABible.com.

The site features a picture of Trump smiling broadly and holding a Bible in front of his red-and-white-striped club tie. The cover of the Bible is embossed with the words “Holy Bible” and “God Bless the USA” and a design based on the US flag.

Greenwood’s website says the Bible is the only one endorsed by Trump, counsels buyers on what to do if their Bible has “sticky pages”, and answers the important question on many peoples’ minds: “Is any of the money from this Bible going to the Donald J Trump campaign for president?”

“No,” the site says. “GodBlessTheUSABible.com is not political and has nothing to do with any political campaign. GodBlessTheUSABible.com is not owned, managed or controlled by Donald J Trump, the Trump Organization, CIC Ventures LLC or any of their respective principals or affiliates.

“GodBlessTheUSABible.com uses Donald J Trump’s name, likeness and image under paid license from CIC Ventures LLC, which license may be terminated or revoked according to its terms.”

CIC Ventures was established in 2021 by a former Trump aide and a Trump-linked lawyer in Palm Beach, Florida, where Trump has lived since leaving power. Its principal address is that of Trump International Golf Club. The company has also been involved in Trump-themed money making schemes including digital training cards and gold sneakers.

Given Trump’s status as a thrice-married legally adjudicated rapist and billionaire New York property magnate nonetheless dependent on evangelical Christian support , his true relationship with and knowledge of the Bible has long been a subject of speculation.

In June 2020, towards the end of his presidency, he memorably marched out of the White House, across a square violently cleared of protesters for racial justice, and posed outside the historic St John’s church while holding a Bible in the air.

A reporter asked: “Is that your Bible?”

Trump said: “It’s a Bible.”

after newsletter promotion

In his video on Tuesday, Trump said: “Religion and Christianity are the biggest things missing from this country and I truly believe that we need to bring them back and we have to bring them back fast. I think it’s one of the biggest problems we have. That’s why our country is going haywire. We’ve lost religion in our country. All Americans need a Bible in their home, and I have many.”

In response, Gregory Minchak, of the anti-Trump Lincoln Project, commented : “There’s not a cross nor a picture of Jesus on the page, but plenty of photos of Trump. Who do you think this $60 Bible is for? It sure isn’t for Jesus.”

Sarafina Chitika, a senior Biden campaign spokesperson, issued a stinging statement.

“The last time the American people saw Donald Trump hold up a Bible,” she said, “it was for a photo op after he teargassed American citizens demonstrating against white supremacy.

“He can’t be bothered to leave Mar-a-Lago to meet with actual voters, but found the time to hawk bootleg sneakers, sell cheap perfume and promote his ‘new’ product to line his own pockets.

“It’s classic Donald Trump – a fraud who has spent his life scamming people and his presidency screwing over the middle class and cutting taxes for his rich friends.”

• Donald Trump
• Republicans
• Politics books
• Christianity

Most viewed

Trump promotes Lee Greenwood's 'God Bless The USA Bible': What to know about the book and its long journey

• Former president Donald Trump encourages supporters to buy Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA Bible," a project inspired by Nashville country musician's hit song.
• Resurgent version of Greenwood's Bible project a modified version from original concept, a change that likely followed 2021 shake-up in publishers.

After years with few updates about Lee Greenwood’s controversial Bible, the project is again resurgent with a recent promotion by former President Donald Trump.

“All Americans need to have a Bible in their home and I have many. It’s my favorite book,” Trump said in a video posted to social media Tuesday, encouraging supporters to purchase the “God Bless The USA Bible.” “Religion is so important and so missing, but it’s going to come back.”

Greenwood — the Nashville area country musician whose hit song “God Bless the USA” inspired the Bible with a similar namesake — has long been allies with Trump and other prominent Republicans, many of whom are featured in promotional material for the “God Bless The USA Bible.” But that reputational clout in conservative circles hasn’t necessarily translated to business success in the past, largely due to a major change in the book’s publishing plan.

Here's what to know about the Bible project’s journey so far and why it’s significant it’s back in the conservative limelight.

An unordinary Bible, a fiery debate

The “God Bless The USA Bible” received heightened attention since the outset due to its overt political features.

The text includes the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence, Pledge of Allegiance, and the lyrics to the chorus to Greenwood’s “God Bless The USA.” Critics saw it as a symbol of Christian nationalism, a right-wing movement that believes the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation.

A petition emerged in 2021 calling Greenwood’s Bible “a toxic mix that will exacerbate the challenges to American evangelicalism.” From there, a broader conversation ensued about the standards by which publishers print Bibles.

Gatekeeping in Bible publishing

Greenwood’s early business partner on the project, a Hermitage-based marketing firm called Elite Source Pro, initially reached a manufacturing agreement with the Nashville-based HarperCollins Christian Publishing to print the “God Bless The USA Bible.”  

As part of that agreement, HarperCollins would publish the book but not sell or endorse it. But then HarperCollins reversed course , a major setback for Greenwood’s Bible.

The reversal by HarperCollins followed a decision by Zondervan — a publishing group under HarperCollins Christian Publishing and an official North American licensor for Bibles printed in the New International Version translation — to pass on the project. HarperCollins said the decision was unrelated to the petition or other public denunciations against Greenwood’s Bible.

The full backstory: Lee Greenwood's 'God Bless the USA Bible' finds new printer after HarperCollins Christian passes

A new translation and mystery publisher

The resurgent “God Bless The USA Bible” featured in Trump’s recent ad is an altered version of the original concept, a modification that likely followed the publishing shake-up.

Greenwood’s Bible is now printed in the King James Version, a different translation from the original pitch to HarperCollins.

Perhaps the biggest mystery is the new publisher. That manufacturer is producing a limited quantity of copies, leading to a delayed four-to-six weeks for a copy to ship.  

It’s also unclear which business partners are still involved in the project. Hugh Kirkman, who led Elite Service Pro, the firm that originally partnered with Greenwood for the project, responded to a request for comment by referring media inquiries to Greenwood’s publicist.

The publicist said Elite Source Pro is not a partner on the project and the Bible has always been printed in the King James Version.

"Several years ago, the Bible was going to be printed with the NIV translation, but something happened with the then licensor and the then potential publisher. As a result, this God Bless The USA Bible has always been printed with the King James Version translation," publicist Jeremy Westby said in a statement.

Westby did not have the name of the new licensee who is manufacturing the Bible.

Trump’s plug for the “God Bless The USA Bible” recycled language the former president is using to appeal to a conservative Christian base.

“Our founding fathers did a tremendous thing when they built America on Judeo-Christian values,” Trump said in his video on social media. “Now that foundation is under attack perhaps as never before.”

'Bring back our religion’: Trump vows to support Christians during Nashville speech

Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean. Reach him at [email protected] or on social media @liamsadams.

Introducing Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business

• Nancie Gaskill, General Manager, Surface

AI-powered PCs built for a new era of work

We are excited to announce the first Surface AI PCs built exclusively for business: Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business. These new PCs represent a major step forward in customer-focused design and are packed with features that business customers have been requesting – from amazing performance and battery life to more ports, better security and custom, durable anti-reflective displays. These are the first Surface PCs optimized for AI, with the new Copilot key being added to Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro keyboards that accelerate access to the best Windows AI experiences 1 . In addition to the new Surface for Business products, we are pleased to announce the Microsoft Adaptive Accessories will now be available to commercial customers.

These new PCs are powered by the latest Intel® Core™ Ultra processors. We partnered with Intel to deliver the power and reliable performance our customers depend on, along with compelling AI experiences for Surface and the Windows ecosystem. Surface has also been leading in Neural Processing Unit (NPU) integration to drive AI experiences on the PC since 2019, and the benefits of these connected efforts are evident. From a performance perspective, Surface Laptop 6 is 2x faster than Laptop 5 2 , and Surface Pro 10 is up to 53% faster than Pro 9. The benefits of the NPU integration include AI features like Windows Studio Effects and Live Captions 3 and the opportunity for businesses and developers to build their own AI apps and experiences.

Meet Surface Pro 10 for Business

Surface Pro 10 for Business is designed for teams that need a no-compromise device. It is our most powerful Surface Pro ever powered by Intel Core Ultra processors, and the first time we’re bringing 5G 4 to the Intel platform. It brings a new level of productivity and versatility – whether used as a powerful tablet for frontline workers out in the field, a versatile laptop in the conference room, or anywhere in between – Surface Pro 10 adapts to our customers’ needs and to how they use technology.

With the power of AI assistance from Microsoft Copilot and the innovation in Windows 11 Pro, Surface Pro 10 unlocks the ability to be more productive than ever before. We’ve added the Copilot key to all of our new Surface Pro keyboards, including a new version with a bold keyset 5 with a larger font, high contrast and backlighting that make the keys more visible and easier for everyone to type.

But our customers don’t choose Surface Pro to interact with it using only the keyboard. They’re choosing Surface Pro to use with touch gestures, voice commands and even with handwritten prompts with Surface Slim Pen. With Surface Pro, they are able to use all these natural input methods to make it even easier to use Copilot. And in Microsoft 365 apps like OneNote, Copilot will be able to use AI to analyze handwritten notes, saving time and keeping them in their flow.

This device comes with the best display we’ve ever shipped on a Surface Pro. Whether working under fluorescent office lighting or outside in the field, the display looks incredible in almost any lighting condition. We’ve made it 33% brighter and with a higher contrast ratio and have added a custom designed durable anti-reflective coating, all without making any sacrifices to the experience when using it with touch, and pen.

We focused a lot of attention on making the video calling experience on Microsoft Teams and other apps even better. With Surface Pro 10, we’ve put in a new Ultrawide Studio Camera that is the best front-facing camera that has ever been put into a Windows 2-in-1 or laptop. It’s the first Windows PC with a 114° field of view, captures video in 1440p, and uses AI-powered Windows Studio Effects to ensure that the speaker is in frame and looking their best during video calls.

Surface Pro 10 is a Secured-Core PC that delivers the industry-leading security that our business customers need. We’ve added additional layers of security to keep customer and company data safe and secure with Enhanced Sign-in Security on by default and a brand-new NFC reader designed to make secure password-less authentication even easier with NFC security keys like YubiKey 5C NFC .

Meet Surface Laptop 6 for Business

Surface Laptop 6 for Business is the ultimate laptop that’s built for business. It is powered by the latest Intel® Core™ Ultra H-Series processors and designed with improved thermal capacity to deliver incredible performance. This allows your team to be their most productive with the least amount of downtime when crunching huge data sets in Excel, creating marketing assets in Adobe Photoshop, or building critical applications in Visual Studio.

Consistent with the legacy of Surface, Surface Laptop 6 has an industry-leading typing experience that is designed for quality, and confidence. Every element of the keyboard has been considered to ensure productivity when typing, with nothing to get in the way of self-expression. Also, the new Copilot key on Surface Laptop 6 makes accessing the power of AI even easier, with a quick button press to invoke Copilot in Windows 1 to help customers to plan their day, find a document using natural text, analyze a website and more with commercial data protection built in.

Choose between 13.5” and 15” PixelSense touchscreen displays that are built for touch to help browse and navigate with ease. These vibrant displays also all come with anti-reflective and adaptive color technology that helps to clearly see the content on the screen in almost any lighting environment and reduces reflections by up to 50%.

We’ve designed a new Surface Studio Camera for Surface Laptop 6. The new camera captures 1080p video and uses AI-driven Windows Studio Effects to help everyone look their best on video calls. Windows Studio Effects are enabled by machine learning algorithms that run efficiently on the NPU leaving plenty of power to run other critical apps like Microsoft Teams on the CPU and GPU.

In the U.S. and Canada, customers will also be able to choose options on the 15” Surface Laptop 6 that include an integrated smart card reader. This helps customers in highly secure industries like government agencies and financial services login without a password simply by inserting their smart card.

Advances in accessibility, sustainability, security and modern tools for IT

In addition to the new products, there are advances in accessibility, sustainability, security and IT tools that will help our customers to empower all of their employees, advance their sustainability efforts, further secure their critical data and manage their devices over their life cycle.

Our Designed for Surface accessory partners are proud to offer a range of accessories specifically created to enhance the Surface experience in various commercial and industry scenarios. Our collection spans the Surface portfolio and includes everything from protective cases to mobile-kiosking retail solutions. One  example is  the ViewSonic ColorPro 4K Monitor , which offers Pantone Validation, stunning 4K Ultra HD resolution and calibrated color accuracy – making it a great option for Surface Laptop 6 customers. ​ Our commitment is to ensure that your team can deploy Surface in any way and place you need.

Accessibility

Accessibility is core to Surface design and to Microsoft’s mission to enable every person and every organization to achieve more. Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10 for Business bring the power of AI to accessibility, bringing together the latest hardware innovations from Surface with the software experiences designed to make it possible to use your device in the ways most natural to you.

We’ve made it even easier to turn on accessibility features through Copilot in Windows 1 . Ask Copilot to “turn on live captions” or “turn on the magnifier” without having to navigate to settings in Windows. Live captions 3 are now even better on these new products as the processing for this feature is offloaded to the NPU so the system operates with greater efficiency, freeing up the CPU and GPU to run other demanding applications.

We’re also launching the first ever Surface Pro Keyboard with bold keyset 5 , featuring a bold font change and brighter backlighting, making it easier to read and reducing eye strain for everyone. And finally, we’re very excited to launch our Microsoft Adaptive Accessories to commercial customers, empowering anyone with difficulty using a traditional mouse and keyboard to create their ideal setup, increase productivity, and use their favorite apps more effectively.

All of these innovations in accessibility have been created to match the elegant design of our products and empower more people to be productive and efficient in the way that works best for them.

Sustainability

In 2020, Microsoft committed to becoming carbon negative, water positive and zero waste by 2030. This commitment means that we are constantly working to advance the sustainability of our products, and we know that many of our customers are also pursuing their own ambitious sustainability goals. Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10 contain the most recycled content that we’ve ever put into our PCs with the Surface Laptop 6 enclosure being made with a minimum of 25.8% recycled content and the enclosure on Surface Pro 10 being made with a minimum of 72% recycled content 6 . Both devices are even easier to service and repair with built-in QR codes that provide convenient access to service guides. In Surface Pro 10 we’ve also included internal markings that identify the number of screws and driver types needed for key components. This increased device repairability can offer significant carbon emissions and waste reduction benefits 7 . We are also making trade-in more convenient and secure for our commercial customers in the U.S. to help limit device waste.

Security is of critical importance to our customers, and we design devices with Zero Trust security principles to help keep their most sensitive data safe and protect all the way down to the firmware level. Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10 for Business have the highest-level security features and protections available in the ecosystem, are certified Secured-Core PCs, and have Enhanced Sign-In Security (ESS) on by default. We’ve made updates to the hardware itself with an optional smart card reader on Surface Laptop 6 and new NFC reader on Surface Pro 10. These new features combined with chip-to-cloud security deliver the ultimate in authentication and protection.

Modern tools for IT

At Surface we think about the entire lifecycle of the device, and how we can make customers’ lives easier. Today we are excited to introduce innovation from Surface and Intune to create the most modern and comprehensive solution for IT. The Surface Management Portal delivers insights-based monitoring to bring value and efficiency to device management. Customers can also track the estimated sustainability improvements of their devices right in the management portal. We’ve also created the Surface IT Toolkit with features to help modernize deployment, security and data compliance. Read more on the Surface IT Pro Blog .

Our team works relentlessly to create and tune every detail of our products to help our customers be more productive and engaged in the work they do today and in AI workstreams to enhance creativity and collaboration going forward. Our new Surface for Business portfolio is a key part of a holistic offering that includes Copilot, AI enhancements across key applications, and innovation in Windows 11 to bring our customers into a new era of work.

Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business are available for pre-order starting today, with product shipping to customers starting April 9. To learn more and pre-order your devices today, visit Surface.com/Business to find an authorized reseller or the Microsoft Store.

Disclaimers

• Copilot in Windows (in preview) is available in select global markets and will be rolled out to additional markets over time. Learn more . Copilot with commercial data protection is available at no additional cost for users with an Entra ID with an enabled, eligible Microsoft 365 license .  When Copilot for Windows is not enabled on the device, pressing the Copilot key will launch Windows Search.
• Based on 3DMark TimeSpy benchmark measuring graphic performance.
• Live Captions supports English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish and Danish.
• Surface Pro 10 with 5G will be available later in 2024 and not available in all areas. eSIM and 5G support are also not available in all areas; compatibility and performance depend on carrier network, plan and other factors. See carrier for details and pricing.
• Surface Pro Keyboard with bold keyset available only in U.S. English and is available only in the U.S. and CA.
• Based on validation performed by Underwriter Laboratories, Inc. using Environmental Claim Validation Procedure, UL 2809-2, Second Edition, November 7, 2023.
• Based on Microsoft-commissioned assessment of greenhouse gas emissions and waste impacts prepared by Oakdene Hollins in April 2022 comparing device replacement to factory repair and Microsoft ASP repair.​