Research Proposal on "Iraq War John Keegan Tackles"

Quoted Instructions for "Iraq War John Keegan Tackles" Assignment:

This paper is on the book The Iraq War: The Military Offensive, from Victory in 21 Days to the Insurgent Aftermath by John Keegan

A book review is not a book report there are fundamental differences. A book report is concerned with plot, i.e. making sure you read the book. A book review focuses on analysis, making sure you understand what you read and are conversant in the book itself as well as understanding the meaning of the book. There are basic rules to the format of the book review, most importantly; plot details should be kept to an absolute minimum.

Section 1 is the introduction. It should not be longer than a single paragraph and the paragraph should be reasonably short, approx. 4-5 sentences. In the case of The Glorious Cause by Jeff Shaara, you would introduce the topic: the American Revolution. If you did not know a lot about the revolution before reading this book, you would want to point that out with a sentence like this: *****To an uninformed reader, The Glorious Cause, is an excellent introduction to the American Revolution.***** If you were familiar with the revolution you might write something like this, *****Although much is known about the American fight for independence, Jeff Shaara*****s The Glorious Cause presents a well-researched topic in a new light.***** The introduction sets the tone of your paper. It should not contain any plot points, although you may want to incorporate a quote from the book (properly documented of course).

Section 2 is a brief synopsis of the book. Do NOT go into great detail. You would mention that The Glorious Cause is about the American Revolution as seen through the eyes of whomever. You can say what years the book covers. Mention highlights, an example would be, *****The Glorious Cause covers the most formative years of the American Revolution opening with the Siege of Boston and ending with Yorktown.***** Once again do not go into too much detail. We all read the book we know what happens. This synopsis should not be more than 5 or 6 sentences (less if you use complex sentences). At this point you should only have written between 2/3 - ¾ of a page.

Section 3 is your analysis of the book. What*****s the main theme? How is it written? Is the author biased? Is his writing style effective? Is his information accurate? You don*****t have to answer all these questions but you should answer most. Most importantly you cannot simply make a statement like *****The author is biased.***** And leave it at that. You have to back up what you write. Where is the author biased i.e. we need examples. If you propose that the main theme is something you have to back it up FROM THE BOOK. Remember this is an analytical paper, not a plot paper. There should be no plot in this section. This is probably the longest section of a book review. It should take you through the rest of page one and onto page two, between 6 to 10 sentences. There is a lot of information here so use your space wisely. Do not make statements that cannot be supported.

Section 4 is your reaction to the book. Did you like it? Why or why not. What was most interesting to you? What struck you the most when you read the book? Did you like the way the author wrote the book? Did you learn anything? This is an important section of the paper but remember at no time should the words *****I*****, *****Me***** or *****My***** occur in the paper. Find an interesting way to say you liked the book or a section of it. *****The author*****s portrayal of Cornwallis is different and humanizes one of America*****s great villains.***** There should be no plot here either. This section should be 4 to 6 sentences long.

Section 5 is the conclusion. Run through your main points again (briefly) and reiterate what you thought were the most important points of the book. ***** whether or not the text helped you understand the culture better. Make a definitive statement about the book that is supported by the rest of your paper. Make sure all quotes are properly documented otherwise you've plagiarized.