-Book Report should be around 1000-2500 words
-Choose one of the books below.
Veblen and Modern America: Revolutionary Iconoclast. Spindler, Michael. Pluto Press, c2002.
The Age of Empathy: Nature’s Lessons for a Kinder Society. De Waal, Frans. Three Rivers Press, 2009.
How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them. Stanley, Jason. Random House, 2018.
Just Girls: Hidden Literacies and Life in Junior High. Margaret J. Finders. Teachers College Press, 1997
Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think. by George Lakoff. University of Chicago Press, 2002.
Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World WarII. By Douglas A. Blackmon. Anchor Books, 2008.
The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure. By Juliet B. Schor. Basic Books, 1991.
Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy. by Kevin Bales. University of California Press, 2004.
The Radicalism of the American Revolution. by Gordon S. Wood. Vintage Books, 1993.
-Book reports are informative reports that discuss a book from an objective stance. The focus of the book report is to both summarize the book and to provide an evaluation of it. Your book reports should focus primarily on giving an account of the thesis, and/or main idea of the work.
It should offer a brief description of the text’s key points and provide a short appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the work. The purpose of the report is to critically evaluate the text, not just inform the readers about it.
Determine what kind of balance to strike between your summary information and your evaluation. Deal with the most important or interesting issues in the book. You will not be able to cover every idea. What ideas did you agree or disagree with? What other things might the author have considered?
-Things to look for as you read
Main Ideas: What is the main idea of the work? What did you learn that you did not know before? What makes it good, different, or interesting for you?
Arguments: What support does the author give for her findings? Does the work fulfill its purpose? Does it support its arguments?
Quotes: What quotes stand out? What parts did you like best?
Your Evaluation: Choose a few points to discuss about the book. What worked well for you? What important ideas does the book introduce, and how effective are they?
