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As soul-o-preneurs one of the biggest things we seek as business owners, is a powerful connection with our clients or potential clients.

It means theyre more likely to engage in our services, to really get the benefit of the gifts we bring (and who are we not to make sure that we do everything in our power to make sure that they have an opportunity to experience them!) and to create an ongoing relationship which is meaning to us and them, as well as helping us not have to work so hard to keep filling our practice with a revolving door system which we really dont want. So NLP and understanding certain things about our way of learning comes in very useful! How to Write a Three Paragraph Book Review A book review is a description and critical appraisal of a book's content. It is a type of essay. Since book reviews are essentially personal opinions reflecting the views of the reviewer, there is no right or wrong way to compose a book review. A review can be short or long, depending on its purpose. If you are restricted to three paragraphs, structure the review as a short essay consisting of an introduction, a supporting paragraph and a conclusion.
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1 Prepare a brief outline for your book review before you begin writing. Although no standard method exists for writing a review, you will need to think critically about the work under consideration. Develop an argument about the book you are discussing. Did you like the book? Why or why not? Outline the points you will make to support your argument. Constructing an outline will help you write a well-organized and persuasive review. 2 Write an introductory paragraph presenting the basics of the review. Give essential information about the book, such as title, author and date of publication. Briefly discuss the author's intent or purpose. Tell your readers about the genre of the book and identify the intended audience. Set up your argument about the book's quality or significance. By this point, your reader should know whether your review will be positive or negative. 3 Write a supporting paragraph reinforcing your opinion of the book. Provide some details and examples. State the book's theme and the author's thesis. The theme is the general subject matter, whereas the thesis is the author's perspective on the subject. Your argument can focus on how well the author approached the theme or thesis. You also could judge the book's relevance, factual accuracy, objectivity, significance and quality of research. Examine specific points the author makes in the book you agree or disagree with and state reasons why. 4 Write a concluding paragraph summarizing your argument. Briefly sum up, analyze, and remark on the book's content. Present your overall conclusions. You might discuss how the book affected you or changed your thinking. Talk about the author's conclusions and whether they were convincing. Quote material from the book to illustrate your points. You could end the review by telling readers why you would or would not recommend the book. If your argument has been presented well, the conclusion ought to flow naturally. It can be a closing summary or simply a restatement of your opinions. How to Write a Book Review Essay Unlike the traditional book report written for school, the book review essay relies mainly on your own opinions and insights into the book youve read. Whether youre writing the book review essay for class or for publication, you may feel a little wary about the task. Sometimes, for example, its hard to convey your opinions in a clear and concise fashion that helps people decide what youre trying to say. But with some interesting personal opinions and a good sense of organization, you can write a book review essay in no time.

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1 Take notes about the book while you read it. Highlight any interesting lines that you felt were poignant, as well as any quotes that really got under your skin. Ask yourself questions while you read the book, as Writing1

World.com suggests, including what you think the authors purpose is in writing the book; what the themes the author presents; and whether the writing is clear and enjoyable.
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2 Write down your impressions of the book as soon as youve finished reading. To make this easier, write out a simple list of both the pros and cons of the book. Recall your favorite and least favorite scenes, or, if the book is non-fiction, your favorite points the author made. 3 Research the author and the book in general, looking for any relevant information that will provide your reader some context into why the book was written. For instance, uncover the authors purpose in writing the book, when the book was written and under what cultural climate the book takes place. Look up other critiques of the book as you try to gain a well-rounded view on the subject. Write down notes and keep track of your research as you will use it as evidence when you start writing your review. 4 Create an outline that helps to organize your thoughts and research. Each new heading should correspond to a separate paragraph that addresses a point that your reader will find useful. For instance, the first heading should be titled Introduction, with bullet points underneath, listing a new piece of information that introduces the book to your audience, including the date the book was published, the person who wrote the book, and the basic premise of the book. Incorporate the research youve done on the book in your headings and bullet points throughout the outline. Cover a new aspect of the book in every new paragraph, including the books themes, plot, characters and the cultural context from which the book was written. 5 Write the book review using your outline as a reference. Use language thats suitable for your intended audience; if youre writing it as an assignment for a teacher to read, use scholarly prose. If youre writing it for publication, write it with personality and humor, if applicable. Remember that you should never give away any twists of the book that will spoil the book for your audience. Be as honest as possible, but remember to back up your claims with evidence that comes directly from the book; using quotes and paraphrasing whenever applicable. How to Write a Book Review With a Checklist A book review analyzes and evaluates a book in terms of its content and purpose. Sometimes college book review assignments include a checklist of components for the writer to consider. Usually, these lists are exhaustive and serve only as a guide -- you don't have to address every item on the list. However, checklists can help narrow the focus of your book review.

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1 Carefully read the book review checklist your teacher gave you and highlight or circle items relevant to the book you are reviewing. A checklist for a review of a fictional novel, for example, may include a category for analyzing character development, but this approach may be unnecessary for a nonfiction work. 2 Plan where in your review you will address each relevant item in the checklist. Arrange the items in some kind of pattern to avoid presenting a scattered, choppy review that jumps around from topic to topic. 3 Turn your book review checklist into a questionnaire with possible rankings of "yes," "maybe" or "no" for each question. Check off the appropriate ranking for each question. This helps with evaluative items in your checklist, such as assessing the satisfactoriness of a novel's denouement. 4 Check off each item as you address it in your review. Decide if any leftover items are relevant enough to squeeze them in somewhere, or if they would be better left out. 2

5 Read over your review and assess if it satisfactorily addresses every relevant item in the book review. If not, consider what the item in the list is asking exactly, and how you can improve your answer to better respond to it.

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eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_8308735_write-book-review-checklist.html#ixzz2STWTspz7 How to Write an Opening Paragraph for Book Reviews 1 Write a statement that grabs your reader's attention in the first sentence. This can be a general statement related to the book or your opinion on the content. For example, "Celebrities sell music and DVDs around the world because fans just can't get enough of their favorite artists." 2 Follow up the statement with support from the book that relates to the statement. Include the name of the book as well as the author. For example, "Nick Hornby explores this idea in 'Juliet, Naked' as he enters the psyche of Tucker Crowe's biggest fan." 3 Explain the main story line briefly, leading into a further explanation in the second paragraph. For example, "Duncan spends his entire life living as a 'Crowologist,' trying to figure out why Crowe disappeared, tracing his every footstep during his final days on stage. He often put Crowe before everything in his life, even before his girlfriend. Little did Duncan know her opposing position on a new Crowe album would be the first of a slew of unlikely events in his life." 4 Continue the second paragraph showing how events in the book depict themes and symbolism throughout the piece of work. How to write a good book review 1.
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1 Write down the main ideas of your review. What stood out to you about the plot? Was the writing style good? Did you like or enjoy the main characters? These questions and others can help you figure out what you want to include in the review. 2 Begin with an introduction. This should include the author, title and a brief section on what the book was about, including the major themes or ideas of the novel. When considering the theme, ask yourself "What does the author want me to take away from the book?" For the end of the introduction, include a brief thesis statement about your view of the novel. 3 Write the body of the review using a few major points about the novel. The points, or arguments, can focus on anything pertaining to the book, depending on what stood out to you as a reader. Include quotations from the text and the page number where they can be found; this will help support your arguments and provide the reader of the review with context. 4 Conclude your review with a general summary of your arguments, restating them in a slightly different way. For the end of the conclusion, give your final judgment of the book. If writing a negative review, try not to end on a positive note, as this might confuse the reader of the review. 3

Writing A Book Report Three different types of book reports are: 1. Plot Summaries 2. Character Analysis 3. Theme Analysis *See descriptions at the end Introductory Paragraph The first sentence of your book report should give the title of the book (underlined), the authors name and a general statement. Some examples are 1. Dear Mr. Henshaw, by Beverly Cleary, was an interesting book to read because it was trueto-life, believable and a story of growth 2. Beverly Clearlys Dear Mr. Henshaw was an enjoyable book to read because the story was clear and my English grew along with the boys 3. I enjoyed reading Wanda Gags Missions of Cats because the illustrations were charming and the story was funny. It should also contain the type of book report you are writing and a brief but detailed description of the setting. As well the introduction should include a brief description or summary of the books main ideas or what the story is about (thesis). Body of the Report

Why or how did you select this book? What did you think was the best part of the book? What are your favorite new words from the piece? Do you have any quotations you saved? What new facts did you learn that you hadnt known before? What was the main idea of the book? Would you like to read other books by the same author? Why? If you could talk to the author, what would you say? Ask? Would you recommend this book to other students? Why? (What would you tell them to interest them in the book?)

Concluding Paragraph Your book report should end with a personal evaluation of the book. You can identify its strengths and weaknesses here, in your own opinion. Be sure to use examples here to back up your evaluation. Plot Summary When you are writing a plot summary for your book report you dont want to simply retell the story. You need to explain what you opinion is of the story and why you feel the plot is so compelling, or unrealistic, or sappy. It is the way you analyze the plot that will make this a good report. Make sure that you use plenty of examples from the book to support your opinions. 4

Character Analysis If you choose to write a character analysis, you can explore the physical and personality traits of different characters and the way their actions affect the plot of the book. Themes Exploring the themes in a book can be a great way to write a book report because picking a theme that you care about cam make the report easier to write. Try bringing some of your thoughts and feelings as a reader into the report as a way to show the power of a theme. Before you discuss your own thoughts, however, be sure to establish what the theme is and how it appears in the book.

Explain exactly what theme you will be exploring in your report Use as many examples and quotations from the book as possible to prove that the theme is important to the story. Make sure that you talk about each example or quotation youve included. Make a direct connection between the theme and the example from the book. After you have established the theme and thoroughly examined the way it affects the book, include a few sentences about the impact the theme had upon you and why it make the book more or less enjoyable to read.

Book reports tend to focus on summarizing the work that you read; your goal is to explain what it says and show that you read the book with care. In contrast, a book review asks you to analyze a book; your goal is to identify the key arguments of the book and how the author supports these arguments as well as to evaluate the books strengths and weaknesses. This evaluation of strengths and weaknesses is central to another key difference between book reviews and book reports. Book reports often ask you to provide a personal opinion as to whether or not you liked a book. A book review asks you to move beyond your personal likes or dislikes and provide a reasoned argument as to the merits or problems contained in the book. In a book review, it is not enough to say that a particular book was bad or excellent. You need to provide detailed analysis as to what factors, such as scope, theoretical perspective, or use of evidence made it so.

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