While reading a particular book, you may agree or disagree with the author’s opinion. Sometimes, you may need clarification on the reliability of the information and want to express your opinion to the story or argument. Writing an effective book review is essential. You can consider the following tips to write a compelling book review for your learning.

How to write an effective book review?

Tip#1: do provide some basic information about the book

No matter how popular the book is, it is important to start with a few sentences telling your readers some basic information about the book. Belows are some questions for you to consider when you intend to write a book review.

who is the author? ( you can mention the name of the book editor if you are reading an edited version).
when was the book published/ edited?
what genre is the book?
what is the book about?
what are the message the author tries to convey the readers?
what is the story about?
who are the main actors/ actresses?
what is the ending?
what lessons can readers learn from the book?

Tip#2: be honest and neutral when you mention the pros and cons of the book

There may be specific author you like more than the others. It is common that we are prone to bianess to some extent when review a book. Thus, it is crucial to remember that a good book review writing presents both good points and bad point of the book. Not only the content inside the book can you provide your opinion, but you also can give a complement or critique the cover of the book, the author’s organizational skill, word choice and so on. You can consider the following questions when reviewing the pros and cons of a book.

What do you like the most about the book?
What do you like the least about the book?
How do you feel about the content inside the book? Is it helpful? Does it meet/ exceed your expectation?
Does the book grip so much of your attention that you cannot put it down? why?
Do you feel sad/ convinced/ loved/ bored/ touched/ relaxed/ angry/ joyful/ hopeful/disappointed while reading the book? what makes you feel so?
Do you agree or disagree with the author’s ideas? why?
Does the content support or fight against the previous work written by other authors? what do you think about that?
What are the three/ five best key takeaways you can learn from the book?
What needs to be improved?
Is the book comprehensive? Why?
Is the book well-written? Why?
Is the content well-organized and connected or relevant? Why?

Tip#3: do a summary of your key points before rating the book

After providing your honest feedback and perspectives about the book, you should conclude your key points in one short paragraph. Then, you can rate the book and provide some rationals whether or not you generally recommend the book to others. Alternatively, you can also state what types of readers might like the book and who may not find the book helpful.