On Writing a Book Review
by Kimberley Jordan
The only difficult task in preparing a technical book review is reading the book to be reviewed.
Once you have achieved that, writing the review will seem simple by comparison. In writing your review you need only keep three things in mind: be honest, write for your readers (in this instance your fellow LUG/IP members), and keep to a length with which you are comfortable.
Begin your review by listing the book's title, author, publisher, number of pages, price, and publisher's URL (the catalog URL in the case of O'Reilly). If you are reviewing a book donated by O'Reilly, O'Reilly asks that you include in your review information from their catalog page, such as a link to a sample chapter or an author article.
The goal of your introductory paragraph is to capture the reader's interest and hint at the review's contents. Without belaboring the matter, be sure to state whether or not you like the book. You might discuss whether the book's title conveys its purpose as well as the book's success in achieving that purpose.
Next, evaluate the book's readability. Is the language natural and are the examples clear? Is it technically accurate? Is it free of typos? Does it have an attractive layout?
Your third, and possibly fourth, paragraph should introduce the book's topic. Be sure to do it at a level a newbie can understand, carefully explaining jargon and buzzwords. A canonical book that covers the same ground merits mention at this point. Explain why you are reviewing this book. Are you trying to implement something new at work?
Do you want to add depth to your existing knowledge? Or are you simply curious about the material? Of interest, as well, are your expectations of the book prior to reading it. In addition, you should explain your background in the field. A newbie's perspective is quite different from an expert's, and knowing which you are will help your readers determine how your review applies to them.
The main body of your review should discuss the book's subject and its success in covering that material. Begin with the basics. Is this a reference book, an introduction, an advanced treatment, or a thorough explanation? What level of expertise does a reader need to understand and use the book's material? Keep in mind that there is no need to enumerate and explain every topic covered in the book. A relatively brief discussion of the important information to be learned from this book is sufficient. Concentrate on the subjects about which your readers will want to know. If relevant, you might want to include answers to the following questions in this section. What hardware and software does the author assume readers will be using? If the topic is a particular piece of software, under what type of license is the software released? Do any extras come with the book, such as a CD ROM of additional information or code samples? Does the author or publisher maintain a web site or online errata page?
Next, a short discussion of the book's strengths and weaknesses is in order. Its success in painlessly educating the reader about its topic is the main issue. A paragraph in this section might address the following questions. If this is an updated or revised book, in what ways do the revisions add to, or detract from, earlier versions of the book? Where else might people look for information on this book's topic? How does this book compare to other sources on this subject?
You might conclude this section by suggesting how the book could be improved.
In your last paragraph summarize your opinion of the book. The key question is, Is it worth its price? In answering this question, you might consider the following factors. Does it offer more than the free documentation available on-line? Will it quickly become outdated? Would you recommend it to others? If so, to whom, specifically, and why?
In writing this essay I borrowed shamelessly from the tips offered to book reviewers at Slashdot and O'Reilly's web site as well as the essay. How to Write a Product Review. at The Association of Personal Computer Users web site. Please go to these web sites to find further advice for reviewers, as well as excellent examples of reader reviews.
http://ug.oreilly.com/bookreviews.html
http://slashdot.org/book.review.guidelines.shtml
http://www.apcug.org/reports/apr01/r010428.htm
