Book Review Notes

WRITING A BOOK REVIEW
I. DEFINITION
A book review is a piece of writing meant to appraise fiction or non-fiction books.

Several factors such as content, style, quality, meaning and purpose of the book come
into play when doing this.
II. PURPOSE
The purpose of a book review is to accord the audience a chance to determine whether
or not to read the book. Therefore, a writer critically analyses the book and gives his or
her opinion on the quality of the work
II. LAYOUT
1. Introduction
 Biographical information ( author, title, date of publication, publisher, number of
pages, type of book)
2. Main Body
 Outline the main and minor characters which take part in the story
 Give a summary of the plot ( a brief summary of what the book is
about/story line)
 State where and when the story is set
 State the point of view the narrator uses to tell the story
 Give a brief overview of the theme(s)
3. Evaluation and conclusion
 Give your opinion about the book
 Is the book easy or confusing to read?
 Is the book interesting or boring?
 What are the strengths and weaknesses of the book
4. Recommendations
 Who would you recommend the book to?( for which audience is the book
best suited and why)
SAMPLE OF A BOOK REVIEW
Book Review
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Animal Farm is a fairy story written by George Orwell. It was published on 17 th

August, 1945 by Secker and Warburg, London, England. It is not a very bulky
novel as it comprises two hundred and ten pages.
Characters
Being a fairy tale, Animal Farm uses animals as characters to a large extent.
Consequently, there are very few human characters. The following are the major
characters that take part in the story: Napoleon, Snowball, Squealer, Boxer and
Benjamin. The minor characters include: Mr. Jones, Mr. Whymper, Old Major,
Moses, Muriel, Mr. Pilkins, Mr. Fredrick and Mollie.
Plot Summary
Animal Farm is a novel that tells the story of farm animals who rebel against their
human farmer, hoping to create a society where the animals can be equal, free
and happy. Ultimately, the rebellion is betrayed and the farm ends up in a state
as bad as it was before under the dictatorship of a pig named Napoleon.
Setting
Animal Farm is set in England on a farm in England on a farm during an
undisclosed time. However, the time, location and events of the novel are
satirical of Russia during a major period of Russia political upheaval(1917 to
1945).
Point of View
George Orwell uses third person omniscient point of view in his novel Animal
Farm meaning that the reader can be privy to the thoughts of characters more
than one character. This allows the reader to make his or her own judgments
because the narrator is impartial.
Themes
Animal Farm’s main theme is the corrupting effect of power. When the animals
take over from the humans, they mean well; that is, they want all animals to be
equal. However, when they get hold of power, power ends up corrupting them
and eventually become as evil as the humans or even worse.
Conclusion
All in all, it can be said that Animal Farm is entertaining. This can be seen from
the way Orwell communicates his message. Although his aim was to criticize the
Russian government, he does not do it in black and white but in a very satirical
manner which is very entertaining. For example, when the pigs begin to live in
the house and begin to walk on two feet, we find this very hilarious. Another
interesting part in the satire is the way the hens worship Napoleon- we see them
attribute every success to the goodwill of Napoleon and every evil thing to
Snowball. It is very hilarious when we hear the hens say “with the goodwill of
Napoleon, we have laid a lot of eggs”.
In addition to the above, Animal Farm isa very interesting book in that it has the
strength to entice readers with its characters, setting, plot and the use of
language. The animals are what makes the story as intriguing as it is.
Recommendations
Animal Farm is a book that is best suited for people of all age groups. Children,
as well as adults, can find Animal Farm very interesting to read. The use of
animal characters is particularly key to grabbing this type of audience’s attention.
Hence, it can be recommended children as well as adults should grab this book
and be entertained.
It is also recommended that politicians and academicians, too, should make it a

priority to read this satire as they will not only find it very entertaining but also
informative in that it is an eye opener on governance issues.

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WRITING A BOOK REVIEW

A book review is a piece of writing meant to appraise fiction or non-fiction books.

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Animal Farm is a fairy story written by George Orwell. It was published on 17 th

It is also recommended that politicians and academicians, too, should make it a

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