Book Critique Essay

Book Critiques
During the semester, students will read books on a weekly basis, and for each week’s reading assignment, students will compose a critique. These critiques should be two to three (2-3) typed pages, double spaced, with one (1) inch margins, and the students should use twelve (12) point Times New Roman Font. Students should not consult any outside sources for these critiques, but instead only base their critiques on that week’s assigned reading. As students read the books, they may want to take notes, and these notes will help with completing the critique and discussion posts. All critiques’ due dates are listed on the course schedule in the syllabus.
Rubric for Book Critiques=15 points each
Introduce clearly the author’s or authors’ thesis=4 points
Evaluate the author’s or authors’ thesis, themes, and supporting examples=4 points
Incorporate original appraisals regarding perceived major
strengths and weaknesses=4 points

Written clearly with correct grammar and punctuation
and be free generally of typographical errors and misspellings=3 points
In these critiques, no lengthy quotations will be accepted. Students may include only two (2) quotations per critique, and each quotation should be ten (10) words or less. The use of more than two (2) quotations or quotations of more than ten (10) words will reduce significantly students’ grades by five (5) points. The emphasis is that students paraphrase the material. When students paraphrase the material, they have to engage critically with the material, which leads to a more thorough understanding of the text. Also, students should keep their papers to the two to three (2-3) page limit. Papers that exceed the length limit will reduce students’ grades by five (5) points. One of the objectives in graduate school is to be very specific and precise when expressing written ideas. Students should proofread their papers before the due date, and papers should be free generally of typographical errors and misspellings. Students will use correct grammar; will avoid slang terms; and will write in third person. For each critique, students should have a title page, which does not count toward the required number of pages. Also, should students quote material, then they need an endnotes page. Endnotes come on a separate sheet of paper at the end of the book critique. The endnotes page does not count toward the required number of pages. If a student is only paraphrasing the material, endnotes are not needed. Links are posted on Canvas which provide examples of a correct title page and endnote formatting according to the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition.