How to prepare an Annotated Bibliography

What is an annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is an organized list of sources (references cited), such as books, journals, newspapers, magazines, Web Pages, etc., each of which is followed by an annotation or description of each item.

There are different types of annotated bibliographies (Definitions taken from the Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science):

• Informative - An abstract that summarizes as much of the essential content of a work as possible, within the limitations of a single paragraph.
• Critical - An abstract that includes a brief evaluation of the content and/or style of presentation of the work abstracted, usually written by a subject specialist.
• Indicative - An abstract that describes the type and form of the work abstracted, indicating the main topics covered and providing a brief description of the treatment, but that does not summarize the content or evaluate quality.
• Or you may be writing an annotation which is a combination of the above.

Annotations may consist of all or part of the following items, depending on the assignment:

• describe the content (focus) of the item.
• describe the usefulness of the item.
• discuss any limitations that the item may have, e.g. grade level, timeliness etc.
• describe what audience the item is intended for.
• evaluate the methods (research) used in the item.
• evaluate reliability of the item.
• discuss the author’s background.
• discuss any conclusions the author(s) may have made.
• describe your reaction to the item.

What is the purpose of an annotated bibliography?

Depending on the assignment, the annotated bibliography may serve a number of purposes. This includes but is not limited to:

• a review of the literature on a particular subject
• illustrate the quality of research that you have done
• provide examples of the types of sources available
• describe other items on a topic that may be of interest to the reader
• explore the subject for further research

Some guides to help you

How to Prepare and Annotated Bibliography - Cornell University
Academic Writing: Annotated Bibliography - University of Wisconsin
Example of APA Format for an Annotated Bibliography - 5th ed.

How to Write an Abstract

"A brief, objective summary of the essential content of a book, article, speech, report, dissertation, or other work that presents the main points in the same order as the original but has no independent literary value. An abstract can be indicative, informative, critical, or written from a particular point of view (slanted). In a scholarly journal article, the abstract follows the title and the name(s) of the author(s) and precedes the text. In an entry in a printed indexing and abstracting service or bibliographic database, the abstract accompanies the citation." - Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science

How to write and abstract - Carnegie Mellon University
George Mason University Writing Center Guide to Writing an Abstract
The Abstract - University of Toronto Writing Support
The Abstracts - Asian Institute of Technology
How to write an Abstract - El Paso Community College

How to Write a Book Review

There are two approaches to book reviewing: a descriptive review and a critical review. A descriptive review is one in which the reviewer gives the essential information about a book without expressing any evaluative opinion of the contents. This is done by description and exposition, by stating the perceived aims and purposes of the author, and by quoting striking passages from the text. A critical review is one in which the reviewer describes and evaluates the book, in terms of accepted literary and historical standards, and supports this evaluation with evidence from the text. An essential element of a critical review is an evaluative judgment on the quality, meaning and significance of the book. It includes a statement of what the author has tried to do, evaluates how well (in the opinion of the reviewer) the author has succeeded, and presents evidence to support this evaluation.

Writing a book review - Queen's University
How to write a book review - University of Kentucky
Writing book reviews - Indiana University

How to Write Reviews of Literature

A review of the literature is an essential part of an academic research project. It is a careful examination of a body of literature pointing toward the answer to a research question. All good research and writing is guided by a review of the relevant literature. The purpose of the literature review remains the same regardless of the research methodology you use.

The Literature Review - University of Toronto
Psychology Lit review
Conducting a lit review