HIS-379: HISTORICAL METHODS

Final Project

OVERVIEW

The Purpose of a Historical Book Review (excerpted from Mark Helstern’s The History Student Writer’s Manual, Prentice Hall, 1998):

The essential task of a historical book review is to answer three questions:

• What did the writer try to do?
• How well did she or he do it?
• Was it worth doing in the first place?

People who read a book review want to know if a particular book is worth reading, for their own purposes, before expending their time reading it. These potential readers/researchers want to know the book’s subject and its strengths and weaknesses, and they want to obtain this information as easily and quickly as possible. Your goal in writing a book review is to help people decided efficiently whether to read a book.

In the process of writing a book review that reaches this primary goal, you will also:

• Learn about the book you are reviewing
• Learn about professional standards for book reviews in history
• Learn the essential steps of book reviewing that apply to most academic disciplines

Learning to review a historical book properly teaches you to focus quickly on the essential elements of the book, to draw from a book its informational value not just for other readers but for yourself. Writing historical book reviews helps you to become proficient in quickly sorting valuable information from material that is not valuable to you at that time. The ability to make such quick and effective judgments is a fundamental ingredient in academic success.

Finally, reading a historical book for review can provide you with practical models of what you should and should not do as a writer. You have a chance to become more conscious of stylistic and organizational strategies than you would if you were reading only for a book’s contents. Writing a book review gives you practice in assimilating and condensing ideas in order to express them with clarity in as few words as possible.

FINAL PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

Your final project will consist of four parts, as outlined below. Be sure to check the Course Calendar for the due dates for each part. You will submit each of the items below using the appropriate assignment submission link within the Final Project area of the course. Grading rubrics for each part of the final project can be found within the assignment submission links.

Part I: Final Project Proposal

• Write a 1-page proposal for a historically-oriented book you plan to critically review. Provide a synopsis of the book and why you think it would be an important book to review. You should include the following: title, author, place and name of publisher, date, and the number of pages. See the sample below for an example of formatting. Note that the title of the book should be in italics or underlined, but not both.

Ties of Common Blood

By Geraldine Tidd Scott

Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, Inc.

1992. 442 pages.

Part II: Final Paper Outline

• Develop an outline based on the Formal Outline section in Chapter 6 of the textbook (Methods and Skills, Chapter 6 (p. 89, “The Formal Outline”).

Part III: Historical Book Review

• Write a historical book review of 1250 words (approximately 5 pages) in length, in addition to the title page and a separate bibliography. In the bibliography, include the citation for the book you are reviewing along with any other sources you use to support your points. Your book review should be double spaced.
• List on the review title page the data on the book being reviewed: title, author, place and name of publisher, date, and the number of pages. In the sample that follows, note that the title of the book should be in italics or underlined, but not both.

A Review of Ties of Common Blood

By Geraldine Tidd Scott

Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, Inc.

1992. 442 pages.

Reviewed by: [Your Name Here]

History 350

[Mentor’s Name Here]

Thomas Edison State University

[Date, ex: September 28, 2016]

• Refer to Chapter 8 in the textbook, “Reading History,” for guidance on what to look for when reading a historical book. Your book review should include a summary of the book along with a discussion of the author’s thesis and main points, use of evidence, and presentation.

Part IV: Video Presentation

• Create a 2- to 3-minute oral presentation of your historical book review using Kaltura (Read How to Initiate a Kaltura Video Assignment: For Other Video Assignments in Moodle).
• Your presentation should cover the same aspects as your paper, but you will need to condense the information to fit within the allotted time.

The study of history is always a matter of judgment, commitment, and values. While acquiring information and making informed opinions is extremely important, the final aim in the study of history is for you to create and present some formal type of historical communication, such as a book review or an oral report. The most reliable test of a person’s knowledge of history is found in his or her ability to communicate that knowledge to another person.

In many respects, the oral presentation of a book review is only a vocal form of the written review. Although your oral presentation may be shorter in length than your written book review, the approach to the organization of the materials of an oral presentation is very similar to that required for the organization of the written book review.

You must display the book you will be reviewing. Maps, pictures, websites, and so on, that complement your presentation are acceptable as well.

The profession of history is such that you will have to give presentations based on your work at historical conferences, to department colleagues, and to students in lecture classes and seminars. Not only is it important to be able to coherently present your information, but it is valuable to learn to accept other people’s questions and critiques of your work.

Elements of a Good Oral Presentation

Structure: Take the time to plan your presentation and learn it well enough to effectively deliver it in front of an audience, albeit “virtual” in this case. If you rehearse your presentation beforehand, you will minimize the risk of appearing disorganized and unsure of your materials and your points.

Communication: Speak loudly and clearly, making a concerted effort to speak slowly, with pauses between ideas. Although it is uncomfortable for many of us to do so, try to make eye contact with the virtual audience.

WRITING AND RESEARCH RESOURCES

The following links provide online writing and research aids to help you with your paper assignments.

• OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue University
• Writer’s Handbook, the Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
• APA Guidelines
• Information Literacy for TESU Students (an online guide from the New Jersey State Library to assist you in starting your research, searching databases for articles, citing sources, using ILLiad to request books or articles, etc.)