BOOK REPORT GUIDELINES

BASIC INFO: Books Must: Have been read for the first time during the current nine week period (it was new for you!) Have accompanying AR quizzes Come from the required reading list (English I only!) Book Reports Must: Be at least one, full page – shorter book reports will have points deducted. Be typed – make arrangements if you need to type at school. Following the appropriate fiction or non-fiction format

BASIC FORMATTING INFO: FONT: Times New Roman SIZE: 12 MARGINS: 1” on all sides SPACING: Double

HELPFUL HINTS  Your report should sound more like a book review than a summary – I do not want you to simply re-tell the story.  If you are writing your report effectively, you will most likely go over your one-page minimum.  If you are reading a non-fiction book that is a memoir or personal narrative, you may find yourself including some of the elements for a fiction book in your report in addition to the required non-fiction elements.

FICTION FORMAT: ELEMENTS YOU MUST INCLUDE 1.THEME: moral or lesson presented in the story – what the author wants you to learn about a certain aspect of life. 2.SETTING: time and location in which a story occurs 3.PLOT: the events that occur in a story 4. CONFLICT: the problem in the story – what keeps the protagonist from achieving a positive end to the story. 5. POINT OF VIEW: the perspective from which the story is told – THE NARRATOR – WHO is telling the story? HOW MUCH do they know? 6. CHARACTERIZATION: how the author develops characters – direct vs. indirect

NON-FICTION FORMAT: ELEMENTS YOU MUST INCLUDE 1.AUTHOR’S BACKGROUND: who are they? What qualifies them to speak on the topic at hand? 2.AUTHOR’S PURPOSE: why did they write this? Was the purpose achieved? 3.AUTHOR’S THESIS: what is their main idea? 4. TEXT STRUCTURE: how is the text organized? 5. TEXT FEATURES: are there pictures, graphs, maps, etc? Talk about them. 6. SUMMARY OF MAIN IDEAS: the author’s key points and how they’re supported.