Since 2013, book authors publish more than 2.2 million books with new titles each year. The number keeps increasing every year, making it hard for readers to choose which ones to read. Just like the viewers reading the film reviews before watching a movie, to determine which books are worth their time and money, readers go over the book reviews first before they purchase.

What Is a Book Review?

A book review is a way for readers to form criticism by analyzing a book by its style, content, and worth. In school, professors let their students in college-level or any levels to write a book review or analytical essay after reading a book as their assignment. It is quite common with professionals and businesses as well. Many book authors and publishing companies provide free books in exchange for reviews. Others even hire people or organizations to create this type of review, since a book review may serve as a great marketing tool, making it an essential item to add in a smart marketing plan.

What are the Common Features of a Book Review?

A productive book review should have characteristics, such as the following.

  • It gives the reader a brief overview of a book: Through a book a review, the audience will get an idea of what to expect. However, it does not necessarily have to include spoilers, but rather it consists of a relevant description, which will give the reader a lead.
  • It gives an analytical evaluation of a book: By reviewing the book you read, you can provide its effect on you. Does it affect the way you see particular things?
  • It advises the audience whether or not the book is worth the read: Based on your evaluation, the audience will get an idea of whether or not he would appreciate the book. More importantly, it helps the person decide whether or not he should read the book.

Did you know that 74% of adult Americans buy a book at least once a year? It’s not really surprising. Statista even reported that in 2018, the sales of books in hardcopy reached 675 million. Additionally, ebooks and audiobooks have made billions of US dollars, making the book industry remains a significant industry. As a book reviewer, what’s in it for you? Well, it just leaves you more opportunities in book reviewing career.

FREE 11+ Book Review Samples in PDF | MS Word

Level up your career as a book reviewer by choosing the best printable book review template that you can use from below. You can also use these downloadable documents as a reference if you are planning to create a customized book review template for your organization.

1. Book Review Template

book review template 3nsrc

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2. Sample Book Review

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3. Book Review Format

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4. Economics Book Review

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5. Academic Book Review in PDF

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6. Book Review Assignment Template

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7. Book Review Example

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8. Book Review Outline

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9. Book Review Format

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10. Critical Book Review Template

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11. Do’s and Don’ts of Writing Book Reviews Template

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12. Basic Indian Book Review

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13. Book Review in DOC

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How to Write a Book Review

Writing a book review can be tough, especially if you don’t know what you need to include. Still, that should not worry you because we have included a set of steps in this section, which you can use as a guide in writing your very first critical book review.

1. Start by Describing the Book

At times, you may have no idea what to write first due to the unorganized thoughts that you have in mind and telling yourself to organize it without even knowing where really to start just make things worse. Thus, we recommend that you start by describing the book. However, it is not a good idea to include spoilers either, especially the plot twists, unless it is vital to make an idea sensible. You can also mention if it is part of a book series, especially if you think that it would make more sense if the reader reads the other parts of the series first before reading this particular book.

2. Talk About the Things that You Like

At this point, the first step must have loosened up your mind a bit. In this step, focus on your thoughts and feelings about the contents of the book. For example, you are analyzing a fiction storybook. You may want to mention which character you like the most and why. Did the characters are relatable? You can include your favorite parts of the book or mention the ones that you think the author wrote or expressed very well. Lastly, you can include how the book makes you feel. For example, did it make you feel like guessing what will happen next, or did it make you cry or laugh to the point that you just kept on turning the pages?

3. Include the Things that You Didn’t Like

Not everyone prefers to read nonfiction books or dystopian themed novels. You can be subjective and talk about what you disliked about the book. For example, you can include that you don’t like the way the author writes about the main character. Maybe the plot twists are not interesting enough, or the cliffhanger is just so forced.

4. Summarize Your Review

With the things that you have included based on the previous steps, you will get an idea of the type of readers does the book fits. Would you recommend it to children who age 12? You can emphasize the subgenre that the story should belong by mentioning other related books. You can also rate the book. For example, you would like to rate it eight on a scale of 10.

FAQs

What is a review?

A review, in general, is a way for the audience to evaluate an event, object, or text in the form of literature review, academic book review, service review, web content review, performance review, film review, etc.

What is the difference between a book review and a book report?

A book review is an analysis that covers the book’s aspects, such as style, content, and merit critically and deeply. Meanwhile, a book report is a summary of the author’s background and the plot of the story.

Book reviews indeed play a vital role in maintaining the balance in the ever-growing book industry. In this article, we have discussed what you need to know about it. Apply what you have learned here by writing your first book review.

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