Your assignment is to write a 1100 word book review on the Joshua Zeitz book Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity And The Women Who Made America Modern. In essence, this is a compare-and-contrast essay – it is not a book report. In order to complete this assignment successfully, you will have to read additional books and other materials to evaluate the book based and assess the book’s strengths and weaknesses.Your paper should be typed in a regular-style font (Times New Roman or Calibri) and the type should be no larger than 12-point. Margins should be no larger than one inch and indentations for paragraphs should not exceed one tab. Please single-space your papers.
Each paper should be properly cited and each paper is expected to include a properly-formatted works cited page. Both the paper and the works cited page should be included in the same document and that document should be uploaded to turnitin.com no later than the start of class on the due date. Late papers will not be accepted! Each paper should have at least 7 sources. All sources should be books, periodicals or online articles from scholarly journals or scholar-run websites. Sources from websites not affiliated with academic research will not count as a source and neither do encyclopedias, dictionaries or your textbook. All papers will be checked for plagiarism. Papers that have excessive amounts of unoriginal work (more than 50 percent according to turnitin.com) will be awarded a zero, even if the outside information is cited. The purpose of this assignment is for you to review the book, not someone else. Turning in a paper that consists of lengthy quotes from other sources does not meet the criteria and will result in a grade of zero!
Sample Book Review Outline
I. Introduction
A. About the author
1. Define his/her expertise, Etc.
B. Main points made in the book
1. Point 1
2. Point 2
3. Point 3
4. Point 4
II. What other sources say
A. Source 1
1. Information on author of source 1
2. Main points of source 1
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book.
B. Source 2
1. Information on author of source 2
2. Main points of source 2
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
C. Source 3
1.Information on author of source 3
2. Main points of source 3
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
D. Source 4
1. Information on author of source 4
2. Main points of source 4
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
E. Source 5
1.Information on author of source 5
2. Main points of source 5
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
F. Source 6
1. Information on author of source 6
2. Main points of source 6
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
G. Source 7
1. Information on author of source 7
2. Main points of source 7
a. Compare with book
b. Contrast with book
III. Conclusion
A. Evaluation
1. Compare, contrast
Example Review
John Doe
HIS 121-101
Spring 2016
Nail Ferguson, The Ascent of Money
In this work, Niall Ferguson discusses the evolution of the use of money in human societies as well as the evolution of financial institutions, from banks to stock markets to bond markets to life insurance.
Ferguson, whose recent work, War of the World, sparked controversy among scholars of nationalism and the rise of the world wars (Berendon, Review, pp. 1-3), writes the book amid the current collapse of the world financial markets. His thesis is that collapses are often the result of unscrupulous business practices combined with government and business working hand-in-hand to game various financial systems, such as the housing market which collapsed following a spate of mortgage foreclosures. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 8-15) Needless to say, Ferguson’s assertions in the book have drawn fire from many quarters during the recent scandal yet his overall chronicle on the rise of money and financial institutions is clear unparalleled in the field of financial history, which is one of the less interesting fields of research in the entire discipline.
The author begins the book not by talking about money but by talking about mathematics, specifically the discovery of the concept of zero by Indian mathematicians in the fourth century. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 24-28) Ferguson said that, coupled by developments in algebra and in the computation of fractions led to the development of calculations of interest rates, which revolutionized financial activity around the world. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 110-124)
After these ideas made their way to Europe in the Renaissance, economies exploded from Italy to England as businesses began to develop new calculations for making money. Ferguson discusses how bonds arose as a result of this as did banks and other financial institutions, giving rise eventually to the development of the joint-stock company and the stock market. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 200-375)
Most of what Ferguson writes about the development of money is not that controversial but when he begins his analysis of the Great Depression and the growth and development of the welfare state, he gets dinged, mostly by partisan writers of the right and left who are more interested in pushing an agenda rather than the truth or the history of money. (Bagration, “Depression,” p. 383-384; Donnelly, “Free Markets vs. Freefall” p. 987-989) Ferguson’s breakdown of the various financial strategies employed by governments not only to escape the Depression but also to deal with more pressing problems such as insurance and healthcare, is not skewed – instead, he backs up his assertions with data collected from demographers and economists from all parts of the political spectrum.
In conclusion, Niall Ferguson’s book, The Ascent of Money, is a historical look at how humans and money have co-existed from almost the start of recorded history. It is an examination of how money and finance work and the promise and perils inherent in the workings of these tools and institutions. Like all human institutions, money and financial institutions have their problems and many times those problems impact the lives of people. Despite the powerful grip money and finance has over our lives, we oftentimes do not understand what is happening until it’s too late, if at all. Ferguson’s book works to dispel how we think of money and it does a good job of showing how these forces operate to shape, maintain and stabilize the modern world. He also tells us of the flaws inherent in these systems and leaves it up to us to figure out how we, as individuals, can benefit or be hurt by changes in these institutions. It was a fascinating read and after finishing it, one can feel much better about having more knowledge of the world’s finance system.
WORKS CITED
Berendon, Piers. “Review of War Of The World.” www.historyalive.org Published January, 5, 2004
Ferguson, Niall. The Ascent of Money (2008) Penguin Books: New York.
Ferguson, Niall. The War of the World (2003) Penguin Books: New York.
Bagration, Kate. “Depression: Government Foibles And The Great Slump.” The Economist. Vol. IX, No. 7, April, 2009.
Donnelly, K.J. “Free Markets Vs. Free Fall.” The Social Journal. Vol. MC, No. 9, May, 2008.
