book chat general guidelines 

Below you will find the general guidelines I provide students for the Book Chat assignment at the beginning of the semester.

Let's Chat...About a History Book!

The Book Chat assignment is an opportunity for you to delve more deeply into a historical topic that interests you by reading a book written by a professional historian with extensive expertise on the topic in question. Here are the steps for completing the assignment:

  1. Select one of the books on the syllabus to read. You only need to pick one--whichever title interests you most.

  2. Read the book, and as you read fill in the note-taking guide provided for your book. You can refer to the note-taking during during your Book Chat. I do not collect or grade the note-taking guide. Its purpose is to help you come prepared to have a meaningful conversation about the book.

  3. Once I announce that I have posted a schedule of ten-minute Book Chat slots, sign up for one on your Canvas Calendar.

  4. During our book chat, we will have a loosely structured one-on-one conversation about the book. Questions and themes that I'm likely to bring up include:

    • What conventional wisdom--that is, widely held assumptions--does the book challenge?

    • How does the book add to our understanding of the topic? In other words, what does the author do that is new compared to previous studies of the topic?

    • What do you think are the two or three most important things that the author wants the reader to take away from the book? Another way to think about this is what are their core claims/arguments/theses?

    • What are some specific examples from the book that you think help the author support their core claims/arguments/theses?

    • What type of sources does the author use to make their case? Be prepared to cite a couple of specific examples of this in relation to the above bullet point.

    • How does the book connect to individuals, issues, and events that we have discussed in class?

    • How would you have approached writing the book differently, if at all?

It is important not to be intimidated by this assignment! If you read the book and take notes, you will pass and most likely excel! If you do not read the book or simply skim some of it the day before, you will have problems. It really is as simple as that.