C h a p t e r 3 6
Review
R
eviews of novels, films, concerts, scientific work, art exhibits, or plays often
serve as an audience’s introduction. The reader buys a book on the basis of an
interesting review; the moviegoer takes in a Sunday afternoon matinee on the basis
of a good review; the music lover saves the price of admission on the basis of a poor
concert review.
But there is really very little we can say that will hold true for all reviews. They
are free-form and highly personal, reflecting the opinions and experiences of the
reviewer. As a result, then, in order to write good reviews, you must have broad expe-
rience in your chosen field. And you must have sound criteria with which to judge
the work.
In spite of the minimal formal direction we can provide here, we will look at the gen-
eral characteristics of reviews, examine the process by which they are written, and
analyze a sample review.
cHaracteristics
As you might guess, reviews have few strict characteristics, but good reviews almost
always include certain elements and use certain techniques for development. A good
review
-^ begins with an explanation that gives the work a frame of reference—including
information about the author, background, genre, or general issues pertinent to
the work,
-^ explains a work by indicating generally what it is about,
-^ includes material pertinent to the reader, aimed toward his or her interests,
-^ selects the most interesting, important, or thought-provoking ideas for
discussion or examination,
-^ generates interest in the work, either positive or negative,
-^ describes strengths and weaknesses,
-^ concludes with an evaluation based on the points discussed,
-^ uses good style, sound sentence structure, and other techniques of excellent
writing.