ANTH0003: Introduction to Social Anthropology
Book Review Guidelines
1. You are required to write a 1,500-word book review essay on an ethnographic monograph in the field of social anthropology. We have provided a list of titles which can be found under the Assessment tab on Moodle.
N.b. A monograph is simply an ethnographic study of a particular society, culture, or related subject matter (although some may be more progressive and experimental in terms of focus), in the form. of a single book, and usually (but not always) by one author. Theoretical books, textbooks, or edited volumes by multiple authors do not qualify for the task.
2. This may seem obvious, but choose a book that you find interesting! Perhaps it relates to your own intellectual interests or life experience, or maybe just appeals to you in a more general sense. This does not mean you need to agree with it on all fronts. On the contrary, if you have some disagreements with the author or their arguments, it will make it easier for you to engage critically with the book.
3. Read the whole book, from cover to cover! Spend ample time with it, reading it, thinking about it, and ruminating on it …
4. In essence, an academic book review should be a quality piece of writing that engages thoughtfully and critically with a selected monograph. A good book review will do a number of related things:
- Provide a critically-engaged synopsis of the main subject matter, key arguments, structure, and order of exposition of the book;
- Situate the material presented in the book (e.g., ethnography, theory, methods) relative to some of the existing literature on these subjects, themes, or people;
- Critically evaluate the methodology, ethnography, and analyses presented therein;
- Critically evaluate the contributions made by the author to broader anthropological themes and debates – e.g., what gaps does it fill; how does it advance anthropological understandings; does it succeed in its aims?
5. Be creative! There is no one rigid template for how to write a review. The book review exercise provides you with an excellent opportunity to be original and imaginative in how you present your reading of and engagement with your chosen text. For instance, you could bring in some personal reflections or experiences which have framed your appraisal of the book. Alternatively, you could link the book to the news or current affairs, to emphasise the text’s relevance or impact outside of academia.
6. I would advise you to read some academic book reviews to get an idea of the style and form. expected from the task. For a guide as to how professional anthropologists write book reviews, you could consult the review section of any major journal such as Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Current Anthropology, or American Ethnologist. For further reading, some of the most readable and stylised book reviews can be found in the London Review of Books and the New York Review of Books.
7. You are expected to follow the writing, referencing, and formatting guidelines provided by the UCL Anthropology Department, which can be found in the UG Student Handbook (p.36-37) and on the ANTH: Academic Skills and Anthropology Student Hub Moodle pages.
8. General guidance for academic writing and style can be found in the ‘Writing Resources ’ document in the Assessment tab on the course Moodle site.
9. The deadline is 1pm on 15 February (Thursday of the mid-term Reading Week). Make sure to submit your book review in good time before the deadline. Good luck!
Finally, here are some examples of reviews of relevant books by prominent scholars which you might use as a guide to how professional anthropologists tend to approach reviewing books. Bear in mind, we don’t expect you to write like Bruno Latour (please don’t!) – but these are all interesting reviews nonetheless:
1. Bruno Latour’s review of Anna Tsing’s The Mushroom at the End of the World (2015).
2. Thom van Dooren’s review of Donna Haraway’s Staying With the Trouble (2016).
3. Chris Tilley’s review of Tim Ingold’s Lines: A Brief History (2007).