Student Developed Rubric for

Book Reviews

Remember: A book review is not a book report. Reviews are grounded in the reader’s personal relationship with the text. They are not just summaries.

Gives Complete Bibliographical Information: ______/10

· Title of the book (in italics)

· Author(s) and Editor(s)

· Illustrator or photographer (if there is one)

· Publisher(s)

· Number of pages

· ISBN #

Review: ______/20

• Gives a brief summary of the book
• Gives enough information to entice the reader but does not give away the ending
• Includes names and ages of main characters
• Recommend an age group or type of reader who may enjoy the book
• Evaluate the book’s primary literary strengths

Writing Tone: ______/20

• Attention grabbing writing style
• Persuasive tone
• Effective, concise, and tight writing
• Reviewer’s voice can be “heard”
• Audience specific (written with an audience in mind)
• Comments are honestly stated but they are not disrespectful
• Tone reflects the nature of the book

Total: ______/50

Comments: