It's not new that, from a very young age, schoolchildren are encouraged to develop the good habit of reading, discovering children's stories in books whose themes evolve with their age. Upon reaching secondary school, or even a year earlier, the task also includes summarizing the book, expressing the feelings experienced, and developing critical thinking and a discerning eye. It is precisely in this aspect that knowing how to summarize a book becomes essential , and this is where things get a little complicated. While immersing oneself in the narrated adventure seems simple, summarizing an entire story proves quite difficult.
Today we're going to give you some tips and resources so you can learn how to make a summary and so this task isn't too complicated for you.
How to comment on a book
Next, we'll learn how to write a book review step by step. To begin, your teacher should tell you the length you should use, that is, how many words the summary should be . An average of 400 words is usually used, so if they don't specify a word count, you'll know what number to work with.
You should start by detailing the basic information about the book: author, publisher, year of publication, number of pages and type of creative writing (whether it is a novel, short story, tale, poetry, play, memoirs, autobiography, etc.)
A good book summary begins by describing the place and time (date) in which the story unfolds, naming the main character(s) and all those relevant to understanding the narrative. It should follow the same order in which the story progresses, explaining the events that drive the central plot, as well as its resolution. This point is often left unfinished. When asked to write a summary , you must include everything, leaving nothing out, not even the ending, unless specifically instructed to do so.
Once the story has been made aware, and understood in its proper measure, it is necessary to move on to a personal assessment, giving an opinion on the author's narrative style, type of language used, ability to excite or involve the reader, etc. . If it belongs to a saga, it is necessary to evaluate based on its other deliveries, as well as make a comparison of the author's career, if it implies a maturity of his work or, if on the contrary, it is a turn to the usual.
Aspects to take into account when summarizing a book
With the following tips, you'll never have problems writing a summary. You just need to keep in mind a few fundamental principles that will help you write a book review:
- You have to make your synthesis in a clear, colloquial and simple language, avoiding technicalities or double meanings, it must be understood perfectly and not create confusion.
- Never give your opinion about something you do not know, if you have not read anything before about the author, state your point of view about the book you have read, avoiding taking other sources as a reference, which may not coincide with your criteria.
- Your assessment must be focused within the context of the entire work, not trying to influence
- Watch your spelling
- Do not leave anything to describe, but do not extend yourself unnecessarily.
Now that you know how to write a summary , we hope you won't have any trouble writing a review of a book assigned in class or one you particularly enjoy. If you have any questions, leave a comment and we'll help you.
