Reforming Catholicism in the England of Mary Tudor

For this assignment, you have the opportunity to review a book about any aspect of late-York/Tudor history that interests you. You must have the book you select approved by me. Your book must also be checked out from one of the campus libraries. The book that you select should be a scholarly one. It should include the customary scholarly apparatus – foot/endnotes and/or a bibliography – that will allow you to evaluate the author’s evidence and arguments. Books published by university presses (the University of California Press, Oxford University Press and Stanford University Press are a few of the many such publishers) usually are scholarly ones. Some other presses without the word “university” in their names that also publish some scholarly work are St. Martin’s Press, Bedford, Brill, Routledge and Longman. In addition, try to select a book that has been published in the last ten years so that you can learn about the most recent research in your field of interest. A critical book review is not simply a summary of a book's contents, although some summary will be involved. The chief purpose of a critical book review is to evaluate the strengths and deficiencies of an author's work in clear, direct, and professional language, and to make an overall recommendation about it to readers of the review. Here are some questions to keep in mind as you read, which will help you write the review when you are finished: 1) Who is the author? Has s/he written work on this topic before? 2) What is the author's major thesis? What is the author trying to prove in writing the book? 3) What are the most important pieces of evidence that the author uses to support his/her conclusions? 4) How convincing do you find the author's evidence? 5) Do the author's conclusions make sense to you? Do you conflict with what you have read elsewhere? If so, why? And how will you resolve these conflicts? 6) Did this book change any ideas about its subject that you previously had? Did it reinforce them? 7) Would you recommend this book to others? Why or why not? Every review must begin with a formal citation of the book. Here is an example: Joseph P. Ward. Metropolitan Communities: Trade Guilds, Identity, and Change in Early Modern London. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997. Pp. xii+ 203. [If you know the price of the book, include it here.] Move on to your review, which should contain four sections. The first will be the introduction. Here, briefly summarize the author's argument and offer your own position on the book. You will, of course, be supporting your position with evidence throughout the rest of the review. The second section of the review should summarize the contents of the book. Here, show how the book’s argument unfolds and discuss the main evidence used. The third section is your critique/evaluation of the book. Here, assess the explanation that the author provides of the historical developments about which s/he is writing. Do you think the author has used his/her sources effectively? Has the author ignored evidence that does not support his/her thesis? What assumptions has the author made in writing this book? Are the author's explanations convincing? The final section of your review should be the conclusion. Here, offer your overall impression of the book and the author's treatment of his/her subject. You might also want to discuss how the book has changed your understanding of the topic, if it indeed has. And finally, do you recommend this book to other readers? Why or why not? This is only a general guide to writing a book review. If you would like further information, please ask me about other resources. History 136A M.C. McClendon Fall 2015 Book Review: A General Guide Your book review for this course is due in class on Tuesday, December 3. Late papers will be penalized 1/3 grade per day (i.e., from a B+ down to a B) unless you ask me for an extension before the paper is due or notify me of an emergency. Papers should be 5-7 double-spaced, typewritten or word-processed pages in length, with standard fonts and margins. No handwritten papers will be accepted. No folders are necessary, but please staple the paper in the upper-left corner. Please be certain to keep a copy of your paper on hand. In this paper, you will write a critical review of a scholarly secondary work (i.e., a work written by a modern author). For this assignment, you have the opportunity to review a book about any aspect of late-York/Tudor history that interests you. You must have the book you select approved by me. Your book must also be checked out from one of the campus libraries. The book that you select should be a scholarly one. It should include the customary scholarly apparatus – foot/endnotes and/or a bibliography – that will allow you to evaluate the author’s evidence and arguments. Books published by university presses (the University of California Press, Oxford University Press and Stanford University Press are a few of the many such publishers) usually are scholarly ones. Some other presses without the word “university” in their names that also publish some scholarly work are St. Martin’s Press, Bedford, Brill, Routledge and Longman. In addition, try to select a book that has been published in the last ten years so that you can learn about the most recent research in your field of interest. A critical book review is not simply a summary of a book's contents, although some summary will be involved. The chief purpose of a critical book review is to evaluate the strengths and deficiencies of an author's work in clear, direct, and professional language, and to make an overall recommendation about it to readers of the review. Here are some questions to keep in mind as you read, which will help you write the review when you are finished: 1) Who is the author? Has s/he written work on this topic before? 2) What is the author's major thesis? What is the author trying to prove in writing the book? 3) What are the most important pieces of evidence that the author uses to support his/her conclusions? 4) How convincing do you find the author's evidence? 5) Do the author's conclusions make sense to you? Do you conflict with what you have read elsewhere? If so, why? And how will you resolve these conflicts? 6) Did this book change any ideas about its subject that you previously had? Did it reinforce them? 7) Would you recommend this book to others? Why or why not? Every review must begin with a formal citation of the book. Here is an example: Joseph P. Ward. Metropolitan Communities: Trade Guilds, Identity, and Change in Early Modern London. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997. Pp. xii+ 203. [If you know the price of the book, include it here.] Move on to your review, which should contain four sections. The first will be the introduction. Here, briefly summarize the author's argument and offer your own position on the book. You will, of course, be supporting your position with evidence throughout the rest of the review. The second section of the review should summarize the contents of the book. Here, show how the book’s argument unfolds and discuss the main evidence used. The third section is your critique/evaluation of the book. Here, assess the explanation that the author provides of the historical developments about which s/he is writing. Do you think the author has used his/her sources effectively? Has the author ignored evidence that does not support his/her thesis? What assumptions has the author made in writing this book? Are the author's explanations convincing? The final section of your review should be the conclusion. Here, offer your overall impression of the book and the author's treatment of his/her subject. You might also want to discuss how the book has changed your understanding of the topic, if it indeed has. And finally, do you recommend this book to other readers? Why or why not? This is only a general guide to writing a book review. If you would like further information, please ask me about other resources.