Police Practices & Procedures Book Review Step 1: Pick a Book • See the syllabus for the book list • See the next slide for the front covers of the books • Read the reviews on Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, etc. to help you select which book you want to read • No need to let the professor know which book you end up choosing • Then – order the book Step 2: Read the Book Step 3: Finish the Book • It will be best to read it over the semester • The latest you should finish reading it would be over the Thanksgiving Break Step 4: Gather some Information • A good book review will have information about the book, the author’s name, ISBN number, how much it costs, biographies of the authors, etc. Step 5: Write the Book Review • Okay, now you have to write the book review • The following steps will help you do that Step 6: The Top of the Paper Book Review: Name of author, name of book in italics. Name of publisher, year published; # of pages; ISBN # Reviewed by: your name Example: Book Review Willard M. Oliver, Homeland Security for Policing. Prentice Hall, 2007; 249 pp.; ISBN: 0131534661 Reviewed by: Tom Jones Step 7: The First Paragraph • There are multiple ways to open the first paragraph (your introduction) – One possibility is start with a short anecdote, paraphrased by you, from the book, that gives a good overview of the entire book – A second possibility is to stick to facts – the who, what, where, when why and how of the book. E.g., The book [fill in title] is by [author’s name] who served as a [fill in occupation] . . . – A third possibility, albeit this will be more rare, is a personal anecdote for why you picked the book. E.g., it may have some special relevance to you. Step 8: The 2nd Paragraph • This paragraph should give an overview of the book – What was the book about? – What did it cover? – Think big picture for this paragraph Step 9: Review Boook • For the next 1 to 2 pages, you should review the book – This can be done chapter by chapter – This can be done by grouping the chapters, perhaps before joining the police, during training, during field training, and released on own. Or it could be rookie years, mid-career years, and retirement – The goal is to tell the reader, in your own words, what the book was about. Condense the 200-300 page book to 1-2 pages. – Stick to what was in the book and paraphrase. Maybe one or two short quotes at best Step 10: Analysis • Over the next 1-2 pages you will be doing an analysis. The following questions may help you think about how to analyze the book: – The book was good/bad and why – The book highlights key aspects of policing such as – The book emphasized something you did not know about policing – The book explained something learned in the textbook for the class – The book dealt with something not in the textbook for the class – The book was an informative/not informative read and why Step 11: Conclusion • Restate what the book was about • This was a good/bad book and quickly, why? • This book helped/did not help with understanding the police in America • I would recommend/not recommend this book and why? Step 12: Did I Make the Page Length? • The paper should be 4-5 pages, typed, double-spaced, 12 pt. Font, 1” margins – If it is too long, edit it down – If it is too short, add to review or analysis or both Step 13: Edit • Edit your paper for: – Spelling – Grammar – Sentence construction – Paragraph construction (at least 3 sentences each) – Formatting of top of page one (see Step 6) – Did I include page numbers? Step 14: Have someone else edit your paper • Swap with a friend and have them read and edit your paper Step 15: Consider taking it to the Writing Center Step 16: Check it over one last time Step 17: Submit in Through BB Step 18: Celebrate!