You have spent the first half of the semester reading To Kill a Mockingbird. Now you need to write a review it. The purpose of this review is to let other future ELI High Advanced Reading students know what you think of this book. The type of review I want you to write is a summary review.

The first part of a summary review is, as the name implies, a summary of the book, and the second part presents your opinion of the book. When you write your review use the following guidelines: 

Introduction

• Your introductory paragraph should start with the name of the book you are reviewing as well as the author's name.
  
• The second part of your introductory paragraph should present your opinion of the book in one or two sentences (this will be the main idea, or thesis, of the review). 

Summary of the Story

• This is the first part of your review's "body." Remember to write a summary, not a paraphrase, of the story: cut out details and focus on main events.
  
• Use the present tense in your summary. 

Review

• This is the second part of your review's "body," and it is really the 'heart' of your paper since this is the section in which you explain your opinion of the book.
  
  
• Have a clear criteria system by which you judge the book.
  
• You must use the following when you set up your criteria system: 
• vocabulary -- was it too hard, good, too easy?
  • give at least three concrete examples to support your judgement
  • include at least one example of a simile used in the story
• explain what it means & why the author used it
• explain how the author's use of simile in the story affects the reading experience of the book for high level ELI students
  
  
• length -- was it too long, just right, too short? Explain your answer.
  
  
• interest level -- were the topic and theme of the story ones you believe other ELI students would find interesting?
  • Within this section, you must identify the
    • major topics of the story & explain if these make the story interesting or not and why
      
      
    • theme - what "lesson" does the main character and/or reader gain? Is this a worthwhile theme for ELI students to read?
      
      
    • tone - is the narrative language formal or informal, pessimistic or optimist? (You can choose other labels for the tone.) What effect does this have on a reader who is a high level ELI student?
      
      
    • metaphor - identify a metaphor used in the story (hint--> mockingbird)
      • explain what it means & why the author presented the meaning in a metaphor rather than directly stating it.
        • explain how the author's use of this metaphor affects the reading experience of the book for high level ELI students
          
          
• Be sure in this section to present clear reasons why you liked or disliked the book AND to use concrete examples from the book to support your assertions about the quality of the story.
  • If you use the required criteria system, your paper will automatically do this
  • You are welcome to add to the required criteria 

The Conclusion

• Tie up everything just as you would in a 'regular' essay by restating your thesis and summarizing your main points from the Review section.