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Writing Book Reviews for Professionalism and (Some) Profit
by Larry CoopermanLibrarians unfortunately often overlook the importance of professional development. Many plead lack of time, or lack of classes or professional organizations in their area. Many, though, can enhance their professional development through writing book reviews for professional journals (such as Library Journal). This can heighten a librarian's professional profile, with minimal effort.
Time Is On Your Side
One common complaint of librarians (or probably of any busy professional) is lack of time, a common refrain being: "I have to read ANOTHER book?!" Yes, that is true. A librarian (like this author), though, can also review books on tape or on CD, listening in the car, at home, or on your lunch break. It can be easy to find time to listen to a book.
Realize too that a person may be able to read a synopsis of the book on a site like Amazon.com, or read the book's Cliff's Notes, but it is important for a reviewer to read as much of the book as possible to learn about the book's characters, plot, and atmosphere. Learning those does not come from quickly skimming a book; the ensuing book review won't be of much use.
Tips for Reviewers
What other advice can I give that makes reviewing books less painful than it sounds? Definitely volunteer to review books on subjects you enjoy reading about - there is nothing more boring or tedious than reading a book whose subject you do not enjoy. Set aside time during the day to read, and create a regular reading schedule, if reading becomes a chore.
When reading a fiction book for review, learn and remember the main characters' names and understand how these characters are important to the plot and to the story. Write a rough draft (or drafts), pace your writing, and don't lose heart if your first draft goes slowly. It may take several drafts to write a good book review; but, with time and effort, writing a good book review will come more easily to you. Write your own opinions of the book; don't be afraid to criticize a book if you believe it to have problems. In this case (as is true in most of life), honesty is the best policy.
Be sure to write for your audience; the audience for a professional journal (such as ALA's Reference and User Services Quarterly) is a bit different than that for a trade journal (such as Library Journal). It is a good idea to visit a publication's web site (such as Library Journal's libraryjournal.com or School Library Journal's slj.com). Also check the various divisions at the ALA web site for professional book review journals, such as those published by AASL or ACRL, to find out what each requires in a book review. What types of books can reviewers review? How much time does a publisher allow for a book review to be written? What length do they require? This information can be very helpful in determining which publisher best fits your needs and writing style, so that you can write successful book reviews.
What are the elements of a good book review? According to an article by Mark Franek, the four elements are the introduction, the narration, the confirmation, and the conclusion. In the introduction, the reviewer announces his topic, the introduction to the review; in the narration, the author presents relevant background information about the book. In the confirmation, the author presents the principal reasons in support of his opinion of the book; in the conclusion, the author restates his opinion and explains why this book is worthy or reading or not reading.(1) These elements are the scaffold on which to build a successful book review.
Why Review?
What are the benefits to reviewing books? The first is that many publishers allow reviewers to keep the materials that they review. These are usually new books, so they make a welcome addition to any library collection (especially if you review materials that can be utilized by your library, such as young adult books or books on tape or CD-ROM). In addition, writing reviews is an excellent way to get noticed professionally in print and in writing for peer-reviewed publications (which is another area in itself).
Overall, writing book reviews may time-consuming, but the rewards of enhanced professionalism and collection development are worth the effort to any librarian.
Notes:
1 Mark Franek, "The Business of Controversial Topics," Teaching Tolerance (Spring 2006), p. 14.
Larry Cooperman is a media specialist at Seminole High School in Sanford, FL. He has previously worked as a librarian at Fidelity Investments and at ITT Technical Institute, and reviews multimedia for School Library Journal and reference books for Reference and User Services Quarterly (RUSQ).