We all understand perfectly well that a summary is an assessment of work, first of all. And, most often, it answers the most important question of a reader — whether a person who wrote the summary liked or disliked the book. If you want your review to be as interesting, objective, and detailed as possible, just follow a few simple rules.

10 Steps to Writing a Great Summary

Here are 10 tips on how to succeed in summarizing a book:

1. Read a book at least once

When you first read the book, you will have a general impression of what you saw. Then it is necessary to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the work under study. After that, read or review the material again, compare your feelings with the first impression and write down if your opinion has changed.

2. Provide the audience with detailed information about the book

For example, if you are writing a literary summary, indicate the publication date of the book, the author, the publisher, tell where they can read/buy/find the book.

3. Constantly ask yourself “Why?”

Why did I choose this book? Why do I disagree with the actions of the protagonist? Why do I not recommend reading this book to others? Why don’t I feel sorry for not having read this book to the end? Why did tears flow from my eyes from empathy and then from laughter? Why is this book comparable to the books of classical authors? Why should it be read at this particular age? Asking yourself such questions and writing down the answers to them, you will already see an almost ready and very good summary.

4. Describe the quality of the work for yourself and others

What are its advantages and disadvantages? Who will benefit from reading it? What is new, relevant, interesting in it? Share your personal opinion and objective assessment. If this book didn’t make a special impression on you for some subjective reasons but, objectively, it deserves a better assessment, you shouldn’t neglect this. Don’t write an exclusively negative impression. Don’t let your own attitude to the author influence your summary of the book.

5. Try to compare the book with other works of the author

If this author is familiar to you, read his/her other books. Then it will be easier — you can draw parallels. Your thoughts and critical eye will be very useful. Indicate whether there are recognizable copyright features. Or maybe this book is out of the ordinary? Whether the new book helped to better understand the previous ones or do you recommend readers first read other works that they can take as a sample? And don’t forget about the generally accepted comparison — the new book is better or worse than the previous one. Such comparative literary analysis will be both interesting and useful.

6. Know your target audience

You have to understand who you are writing for. The style of writing the review will depend on the audience (for example, a scientific summary will be written exclusively in a formal style). A more detailed presentation of your arguments will be needed for the general public. And for experts, your review should be as laconic and reasoned as possible.

7. Prove your thoughts

Show your reader why and how you came to this conclusion. Support your critical assessment with evidence, facts, quotes, and comparisons. Explain what criteria, standards, and characteristics you followed when analyzing and evaluating the book. You can use quotes or describe scenes from the book. You can use external sources — the opinions of other critics, reviewers, and experts.

8. Don’t retell the book

The purpose of the summary is to arouse interest in the book, analyze, and disassemble it. Write according to the plan: the meaning of the name, analysis of the content, the peculiarities of the book, the author’s skill, and style. Rate the main idea and relevance of the topic. It is not necessary to reveal all the components. The main thing is to make the review interesting and competent.

9. Don’t get personal

While working on a summary, don’t criticize its author. Don’t invade privacy, religious, or political beliefs, habits, or diseases. If you don’t have a specific quote from an interview with an author on some issue, there is no need to think out what he or she wanted to say.

10. Compare and contrast

It is human nature to compare everything. If, while reading a certain book, you remembered three more, then be sure to write about it. Such a comparison will reveal deeper the genre of the work, attract fans of similar stories, and add color to your text. And if you want to compare a book with a film, musical or artistic work, don’t be afraid to talk about this too. Reviewers always have the right to their point of view.